How to Get Enough Exercise to Help Prevent Postpartum Depression
If you are pregnant or have a newborn, you are likely to get a lot of advice! Which baby’s straitjacket is best for swaddling, what does “sleepy but wakeful” look like, why “sleep regression” might be a term coined just to fight you. Here’s another tip that may or may not make you feel better: Exercise during pregnancy and for several months after giving birth can help prevent postpartum depression . It even reduces depression in women who are not depressed enough to meet the PPD diagnostic criteria.
I know I know. Who has time or energy for exercise? Just taking a shower or thinking about something to eat with one hand or even without hands like a cat can drain all your energy. But from my own experience, I know that even the most gentle workout, such as a short walk, can cheer you up. The study looked at programs that lasted three or more months and encouraged exercise three to five times a week, but otherwise did not conclude that one particular type of exercise or duration was better than another. So I’m going to take a chance and say that no matter what you do or how hard it is, the main thing is that it be something .
I’m also going to suggest that not only exercise, but also social interaction during exercise is mood-boosting. If you are walking with a stroller, you can chat with a passer-by who admires your baby. If you’re heading to the gym, you’re talking to the guy at the front desk, and maybe you say hello to the good trainer you’ll definitely hire someday. If you find an exercise meeting, you empathize with other young moms. Even just walking in a cafe with a baby in a carrier gives you the opportunity to chat with people, which is very important for maintaining a good mood.
But how? Below are some tips for getting some air and exercising. And please, if you feel too depressed to even think about going outside and moving a little, talk to your midwife about PPD.
Find Your Birth Class For Potential Exercise Partners
The best reason to join obstetric care during pregnancy is to have social connections when you have a newborn. Send an email to your fellow Lamaser or Bradley Methodists and invite everyone to take a walk together. In bad weather, take a stroll around the mall or meet at someone’s home to watch a stretched video. If you are not enrolled in class, ask your midwife if you can write on the notice board in his office to meet other parents.
Research Exercise Classes “Infant and Me”
Gyms and yoga studios often run classes that you can take your child to. Stroller Strides is a franchise that hosts workouts that you can do with a stroller – just enter your zip code and see what’s nearby. (Or start your own Stroller Strides class!)
Find a supervised gym
Most gyms do not accept tiny newborns, but if your baby is a little older (my gym will be overseeing babies from six months old) babysitting might be an opportunity to spend a little time cycling or zumba lessons. Bonus: after that you can take a shower. On one’s own. In the world. Gyms with pools also often offer “family swim time,” which can also be the ability to simply walk from one side of the shallow water to the other while holding the baby (again, probably a little older than a newborn).
Contact us via social media
Social media is just as good for keeping in touch with distant friends, but also for solving household problems: if you post on Facebook that you’re looking for workout partners, or even to find someone to talk to. swap short periods of childcare, a local will probably get to know them. (Re: swaps: I once met a friend in the park and watched her baby while she jogged for ten minutes in one direction, and then ten minutes ago. A walk in the park was enough for me.)
Take a DIY approach
If you prefer to work out alone at home, there are literally thousands of options, from exercises you can do while holding your tethered baby, toyogavideosspecifically designed for new moms, to workout programs that can help you step up your workouts after pregnancy . If you feel company, you can obviously invite someone to do it with you, and if you only last five minutes before the diaper burst, well, at least you tried. Have a beer.
Set a walking target
I know I insist on taking a walk here, but it’s free and available and you can keep your baby with you while you do it. (Want a harder workout? Get a stroller and increase your pace.) When I had my newborn, I would go to a bar about a mile away and drink soda while the baby dozed in his stroller. Since it was usually late at night, the bartender had few customers, was bored and willing to chat. He took me out of the house, I got some fresh air, and I had a company for the third day’s nap – just at the moment when the mood began to fall.
What do you say? Up and on them? If not, do not despair – this stage does not last forever. You will be eating with both hands again in no time.