7 reasons why massage and Pilates can be instrumental to your postnatal recovery
This blog reinforces the importance of lowering expectations of ourselves post natally and listening to all those gentle warning whispers from our bodies which we sometimes ignore.
1) Pilates and massage improve posture - pregnancy and round the clock feeding have a huge impact on your posture. It may feel like your shoulders are more rounded forward, the tension between your shoulder blades may feel more noticeable and the likelihood is that you are spending a lot of time in a head forward position looking down at your beautiful baby (or your phone). Fatigue can also have an impact on your posture so even though you are not sitting so well, you really are too tired to even be aware let alone care. A postnatal massage is such an integral and nourishing part of any postnatal recovery, in fact, in many cultures a postnatal mother would receive daily massage to promote healing in her body. I know, that would be a dream come true, right?! The wonderful thing about releasing the build-up of postural tension is the body feels freer and more able to maintain good posture with ease, so you then don’t build up so much postural tension. This is why the first thing we do in my postnatal Pilates course is work on releasing postural tension and I encourage clients to build a few of these movements into their day especially during times when baby might be cluster feeding or especially clingy.
2) Pilates and massage reduce tension in the body – one of my biggest mantras is that ‘you can’t strengthen a body that is tight’. And let’s face it, nursing and taking care of a new born after 9 months of pregnancy is tension inducing enough on the body without throwing a killer virus and a global pandemic into the mix, One of the biggest benefits of doing Pilates and having regular massage or even self myo-fascial release (more on that in 2 secs) is that reduces tension in your body. In my postnatal Pilates classes I teach myofascial release techniques using a magic red ball. We explore the body ironing out any areas of tension, especially focusing on areas where one side of the body might be tighter than the other creating awareness of what we might be doing to exacerbate this. Are we always lifting and carrying in the same way? If we are bottle feeding, are we remembering to swap sides regularly? By releasing tension we support the healing process in the body, enabling the body to do what it is designed to do with ease.
3) Pilates and massage both aide the breath – Most postnatal women are keen to rehabilitate their core and it is really enlightening for them to learn about the vital connection between their breath and their core. Your core is literally a cylinder with the diaphragm at the top and the pelvic floor at the bottom, abdominals at the front and back extensors at the back and it is pumped by your breath. A massage in the postnatal period will release tension around your ribcage allowing you to breathe more freely and postnatal Pilates will teach you how to connect with your breath to engage your core most effectively and to remind your body that your lungs are not squished in the same way as they were when you were pregnant. It will also teach you how to breathe so you manage pressure correctly when lifting, pushing, pulling, squatting, lunging and all those other daily motherhood movement patterns.
4) Pilates and massage both calm the nervous system – no one would ever argue with the fact that being a mum is hard work and at times can be pretty stressful. It is hugely rewarding but the relentless focus on meeting the demands of a baby can easily leave you feeling slightly on edge and anxious. This kind of state takes us into a state of high alert or ‘fight or flight’ mode. Movement and massage can help reset your nervous system taking your body back into ‘rest and digest’ or a state of calm and relaxation. When we are in this state, we are able to think more clearly and make better decisions about our wellbeing.
5) Pilates and massage help you to be more connected with your body – I am a great believer that the human body talks to us. An ache or pain might be a message to stop doing a particular activity, a request to slow down or a warning that your body isn’t happy. If we tune into our body, listen to our body and respond to our body’s messages then we can promote healing and prevent injury. This is particularly important in the postnatal period as your body is healing and you also have the demands of a small baby to tend to.
6) Pilates and massage promote more holistic wellbeing and self-care or as I like to call it ‘essential care’ – I know James often gives his massage clients homework to try and mitigate aches and pains. My postnatal Pilates course is also about SO much more than just movement. The course is packed full of extra guidance to support your healing from talks from postnatal experts and healing nutrition ideas each week. No topic is off limits. We even talk about pooing in a pelvic floor friendly way.
7) Pilates and massage will support you in your return to exercise – it is vital after any huge change to your body like childbirth that you are gentle in your return to exercise. I encourage clients to embrace their body for the new life it has created and listen to it if it no longer feels nourished by the same exercise regime. It may well be that as a mother, your needs are different and that is okay!! If you are keen to get back to high impact exercise I will provide you with steps to do it in a safe and graduated fashion. There are now postnatal return to running guidelines that provide evidence based information for clinicians and exercise professional on how best to support clients who want to return to running after a baby and it certainly isn’t popping your trainers on the day after your 6 week check. We wouldn’t expect to recover from surgery on any other part of our body without a graduated rehabilitation programme so why would we expect it after growing and birthing a new life?
I could probably keep going and list another 70 reasons that massage and Pilates are good for you in the postnatal period but I also want to stress that there are a few things that I believe are even more important than Pilates and massage to your postnatal recovery! Yes, you heard me right. Resting and getting lots of skin to skin with your baby is vital in the fourth trimester. Throwing off your super woman cape and accepting or asking for help (even if it is paid help like a postnatal doula). Lower your expectations of yourself. Babies don’t allow you to do much other than tend to them. And get out into nature. Breathe in the fresh air and just place one foot in front of the other. Even on the toughest of days this will help and if not walking is a fabulous pelvic floor exercise.
If any of this sparks your interest, please check out Zing Wellness for their postnatal massages and Core Care & Pelvic Floor Repair Postnatal Pilates & Wellbeing course which helps put all of this into practice. It is accessible in a 6 week group class format, 1-2-1 format and online course format, something for absolutely everyone.