Are you pregnant and still training?
Pregnancy doesn’t mean you have to stop training, it is not the end of your active life. Plenty of women in Cardiff are running, lifting, cycling and training well into their third trimester, and doing so safely. Staying active during pregnancy has been linked to better outcomes for you and your baby. However, you do have to remember that your body is going through some of the biggest physical changes it will ever go through, and this is huge, but if you know the right ways to manage these changes, your body can cope.
This is where chiropractic care can come in, as a way to keep your body moving well through every stage of your pregnancy and after.
What is pregnancy actually doing to your body?
As your baby grows, your centre of gravity moves forward. Your lower back can curve more than usual, your pelvis tilts, and the ligament and joints throughout your spine loosen preparing you for childbirth, all due to the hormone relaxin. This is all normal but it means your muscles have to work harder to compensate for the changes, and areas that were already under load from training, can start to feel the strain even more.
Common complaints we see in clinic: - Low back pain – the curve in your lumbar spine increase to accommodate the weight on your front, which puts extra pressure on the joints and discs at the base of your back.
- Pelvic girdle pain – this includes pain around your sacroiliac joints at the back of your pelvis, and the puvbic symphysis dysfunction (SPD) at the front. For runners especially, this can be one of the first things that forces you to slow down or change how you train. It can feel like a deep ache in your hips and pelvis, sharp pain when walking or climbing straits, or a clicking sensation at the front of your pubic bone.
- Hip and glute pain – as the pelvis shifts, the muscles tighten and the hips and glutes often take more load than they should.
- Upper back and rib pain – as your chest changes, your posture adapts to this, tension can build through the thoracic spine and ribs, breathing can feel more resistrcted, especially in the later stages, and depending on the position of the baby.
- Carpal tunnel syndrome – fluid retention during pregnancy compresses the nerve running through the wrist, causing tingling numbness and weakness in the hands. This is more common than most people expect.
How chiropractic can help
Chiropractic care during pregnancy is safe. At Proactive, we have a pregnancy cushion from Beloost, which allows you to lie on your front, to accommodate a growing bump, so there is no awkward positioning or pressure where it shouldn’t be.
The work we do focuses on restoring normal movement to the joints of your spine and pelvis that may become stiff or resitrcited. When those joints are moving properly, the muscles around them can relax, the load is distributed more evenly, and pain tends to reduce. For runners and active women, that often means getting back to training sooner or avoiding having to stop altogether.
We also look at the bigger picture, how you are standing, how your gait has changed, where you are compensating. Sometimes the pain in your hip is being driven by something happening futher up or further down the chain, and addressing that is what actually fixes the problem.
At Proactive we aren’t just about the hands-on treatment, even though it is great, we also give you specific exercises tailored to where you are in your pregnancy.
Pelvic floor Rehab
The pelvic floor is a group of muscles at the base of your pelvis that support your bladder, bowel and uterus. During pregnancy, these muscles are under increasing pressure as your baby grows. A weakness or dysfunction in these muscles can show up as leaking when you run, cough or sneeze, pelvic heaviness or pain with movement.
Spinal adjustments in pregnant women appear to increase relaxation of the pelvic floor muscles at rest. For women who want a vaginal delivery, the ability to both contract and relax these muscles on demand matters a great deal.
We do not replace pelvic floor physiotherapy, but we complement it. We give you exercises that work of glute strength, hip stability and core control in a way that is appropriate for whichever trimester you are in. A balanced pelvis takes pressure of the pelvic floor and keeps you moving better for longer.
Post-natal
Delivery is only part of the battle, in many way postnatal recovery is where the hard work really begins.
After a vaginal delivery, the pelvic floor and surrounding tissues have been put under significant strain. After a c-section, you are recovering from major abdominal surgery, which requires structured rehab, but most women aren’t given the option on the NHS. Forceps deliveries can place additional strain on the pelvis and lower back, both for you and sometimes for the baby.
In all of these cases, the spine and pelvis need time and support to rebalance. Returning to training too quickly, or without addressing underling weakness or dysfunction, is one of the most common reason women struggle with pain, leaking or injury in the few months after giving birth.
We work with postnatal women from around 6 weeks after a vaginal delivery, or 8 weeks after a C-section, once medical clearance has been given. Treatment focuses on recreating normal movement patterns, gradually loading the core and the pelvic floor and also a gradual return to the activities you love.
Summary
Pregnancy changes your body in many way, but it does not have to stop you training. Most of the MSK conditions that limit active women during and after pregnancy are manageable with the right support. Chiropractic care, combined with targeted rehab exercises, gives you the best chance of staying active throughout and returning to full training after.
If you are pregnant and based in Cardiff and you want to keep moving, come and see us at Proactive Chiropractic & Sports Injury Clinic.