Returning to Exercise
Returning to exercise with Women’s health Physio Madison Cutmore.
@physiomads @therunningroom @strengthtostrength_
Maddy and I both understand not everyone has access to a Women’s health physio, which is why we created this interview. For all women to have accessible information and advice from a qualified professional regarding the key points around returning to exercise post partum.
We would love to know what you think or if you have any questions please feel free to reach out to us.
Madison has also provided us with a basic guide around the Pelvic Floor and what to do with in the first six weeks post partum. It is important to note everybody and their recovery journey will always be different, it is important to not compare and focus on you and your own health and recovery journey.
Congratulations on your new bub and we hope you find this helpful.
See below our interview. :)
TOP TIPS for Pelvic Floor Rehab for the first six week postpartum (and beyond).
Madison Cutmore - Physiotherapist in Women’s Health
Pelvic floor health is important throughout the lifespan, however it is especially important in the
first six weeks postpartum. Not only have postnatal women spent ~9months carrying the
pressure of a growing baby on their pelvic floor, if they’ve had a vaginal delivery, they have had
the added stress of pelvic floor stretching and/or tearing.
To understand your pelvic floor you need to first understand some anatomy. Your pelvic floor is
a group of muscles and fascia that form a ‘sling’ and run from your pubic bone to your tailbone
and help support all of your internal pelvic organs, help prevent leakage and are important in
sexual function.
To kick start your pelvic floor rehab
1. Start ASAP postnatal to begin strengthening and to restore neural pathways that can
be broken due to trauma and damage during delivery. The easiest cue for activating
your pelvic floor is to simply think about stopping the flow of urine when you’re on the
toilet. Whilst you don’t want to train your pelvic floor on the toilet as this can create bad
patterns, you do want to visualise this cue and think about the contraction in three parts:
squeeze, lift, relax.
2. Train it like any other muscle in your body, your pelvic floor needs regular and
consistent training. You need to train your pelvic floor at least three times a week, just
like you would any other muscle. Training is most effective when completed in a block,
with exercises focussed on strength, endurance and coordination. And, the good news is
that it actually works - pelvic floor muscle training has been shown across many studies
to cure urinary stress incontinence in 50% of women and improve symptoms of leaking
in 75% of women (Cochrane, 2018).
3. Time your training with your breathing - it can be helpful to link your training to your
breathing; your pelvic floor naturally descends when you inhale and lifts when you
exhale. SO cueing your breathing with your training to inhale relax your pelvic floor then
exhale contract, squeeze and lift, can help you learn the correct patterning.
4. Coordinate with movements - once you have nailed your pelvic floor contraction, start
to incorporate this into different positions and with different movements. See if you can
activate in childs pose, 4pt kneeling and then with a bridge!
5. Try this! Given the variation in women’s pelvic health, there is no perfect program or
exercise for everybody and It’s important that you consult a women’s health
physiotherapist to do a vaginal exam to assess the quality of your pelvic floor. Here’s a
common pelvic floor program for an under active pelvic floor:
Repeat for 5mins:
● Pelvic tilts x10
● 5second Pelvic floor holds x5
● Bridges with pelvic floor contraction x10
● Pelvic floor in childs pose (quick ones to fatigue) x10