QuestionI'm 20 years old and just gave birth to my first child a little over six weeks ago. I didn't exercise during my pregnancy, but I had a standing job and went to school every day. I only missed a week of school after having a normal vaginal delivery. I bled for about 4-5 week afterwards, everything seemed normal and then I got my first period at the end of the fifth week. My six week postpartum visit came this Monday and everything seemed fine so I started exercising. I did 50 jumping jacks, toe touches, and crunches that night. The next day(yesterday) I still felt fine so I did the same routine that morning. Later I "jazzercised a little bit" and it was a lot of fun. Last night my legs hurt a lot so I went to bed early. This morning I bled through a tampon in about an hour. I know this is a sign of Postpartum Hemorrhage, but could it also just be a sign of me exercising too much? Could I have hurt myself?
AnswerI doubt very much that you had an actual period a five weeks post childbirth, as you would not have had enough time for ovulation to occur. Since your bleeding has greatly increased, it would be wise for you to get evaluated by your OBGYN.
Since heavier bleeding occurred before your first exercise session, I doubt whether exercise is a contributing factor, but to be on the safe side, don't exercise until your Dr. gives you the "green light."
As to your exercise selection, jumping jacks, toe, touches and crunches are not the ideal exercises to start with after childbirth. To learn more about how to recondition after pregnancy, visit my web site at www.befitmom.com.
