Postpartum Running Update: 12 Weeks
To all of you who read my last post and offered support through prayers, thoughts, love and hugs in your comments: thank you. If there is one thing that continually amazes me about the running/blogging community it is the genuine care and concern everyone seems to have for each other. Thank you. I feel so loved:)
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It has been nearly 12 weeks since I delivered Jack. Postpartum running has been a much different journey this time around than it was with my first child. But it seems, after taking the entire month of November off and sticking closely to a very conservative training plan, that things have made a turn for the better. Here is where I stand now.
Speed: When I set up my training plan for December I wanted to make sure I took it easy so I committed to running 10 min/miles. I've stuck to this commitment up until last week. I stepped on the treadmill and started out at 6mph (10 min/mi) pace and it felt uncomfortably slow. It felt like there was more impact moving through my body (and pelvic floor) at that pace compared to running at 9:30 min/mi. So I've upped the pace on the treadmill to 9:30 which feels easy, but not slow. I've done a few runs outside and they have all been by feel. When I get home I realize that I'm often averaging between a 9 and 9:13 min/mile pace. I think it's because I'm excited to be outside, my mind gets carried away and so my body just goes into auto pilot. Prior to getting pregnant easy pace runs were in the low 8's, so I still feel slow compared to where I was at, but it will come.
Distance: The majority of my runs have been two and three miles. At the end of my runs outside I feel like I want more. When I run on the treadmill I just want to get off (I still feel good, I just am not a fan of treadmill running). I just ran four miles yesterday, which is the furthest I've gone since I (stupidly) ran that distance 9 weeks ago. I felt really good: strong, able to push the pace a bit, not too winded. I did notice that running that distance made me much more tried for the duration of the day. As for weekly mileage I am up to about ten miles a week, running every other day or so.
Pelvic Floor: My pelvic floor seems to be holding up well to both the increase in distance and speed. The difference between how I felt during yesterday's four miler and the one I did back in October is vast. A few miles in to the run I did in October I felt a pinching and sagging feeling in my pelvic floor=not good. I pushed through (stupid) determined to have a run with an average pace in the 8's (that run's average was 8:59. I stepped off the treadmill and didn't run for five weeks. Yesterday I felt great the whole time. There was no sagging or pinching and I am more aware of the muscles in my pelvic floor and can engage them while I run. I feel much stronger and in turn much more "secure" down there. I attribute this to doing the exercises in the Hab It DVD I purchased. I perform the exercises every other day or so and do kegels throughout my day. I am also more conscious of my whole "pelvic floor basket" and engage it when I am picking up my kids, coughing or sneezing. I think I have better posture because of it.
Even though my midwife cleared me for activity on my final visit to her back at the end of November I have still made an appointment to see a physical therapist who specializes in pelvic floor health. My appointment is the 29th of this month. I'll be able to find out what shape my pelvic floor really is in and if ramping up training now will undo some of the good I have done. I'll be sure to let you know how that goes.
Cross Training: Since I am only running three times a week I cross train on the other days, usually taking one or two days off depending on how I feel and how much time I have. I've been doing the WOD (workout of the day) from Crossfitmom.com. I really enjoy Crossfit workouts: they are tough, but short. Crossfitmom.com has great scaled workouts, they aren't quite as intense as the Crossfit WOD's, but they are still a great workout. Occasionally I do a yoga DVD too.
Sleep: For the most part I've been getting a good amount of sleep. Jack is waking once or twice at night, usually between 1-2am or 3-4am. Sophia is a great sleeper (except when she has bad dreams), but an early riser. Sometimes she's up at 5:30am and in our bedroom trying to convince us that it's time to go down stairs and make breakfast. There have been a few rare occasions when they both wake up in one night, like last night. Sophia was up at 1:30am in the bathroom cause she had to pee, this was followed by a bad dream 30 minutes later and then a few hours later Jack was up needing to eat. Both kiddos are in the same room now, which I thought was going to be impossible. But somehow when Jack cries, Sophia sleeps and when Sophia cries, Jack sleeps. It's amazing.
Diet: I am eating Christmas cookies as I type this (Yep, that's cookies plural and no, they are not paleo). We will get back to this later...
Have you come back to running after a pregnancy? When did you start to intensify your training?
--Sarah