How I Got Back To Running After Baby

In the year leading up to my pregnancy, I was on a serious roll with running. I ran my first two marathons – the TCS New York City Marathon and the Miami Marathon, along with three 5K’s, two 10K’s and two Half Marathons! I was so invested in the sport I even hired a personal running coach to help me meet my pace goals (shout out to Cabada Training Systems!)

As summer reached its peak in July of 2018, I decided to add a fall marathon to my schedule and was preparing to start training when I found out I was expecting!

Truth be told, I had a relatively easy pregnancy and was able to run comfortably (and even complete the Miami Beach Halloween Half Marathon) up until around 22 weeks. At that point, round ligament pain became a thing and I decided to pull the reins on running.

So, how’d I get back to running after baby?

I found a new way to get motivated. I knew one way to force myself out the door was to bring my son along for the ride. I liked the idea of getting him (and myself) outside in the fresh air regularly, and greatly enjoyed his company as a distraction from the discomfort. I invested in a Thule jogging stroller, and given the cost, vowed to make good use of it. Running with Ben felt right from the start – it was an intersection of two things I loved so much, and it was a win-win for us both.

I committed to making time. One of the greatest challenges I faced initially in returning to running was time – how on earth was I going to be able to set time aside, particularly since I was exclusively breastfeeding? Bringing Ben along certainly helped with that, as I could time my runs right after his feedings and avoid the additional annoyance of engorgement. As time went on and running became increasingly more comfortable, I started to crave consistency and set up a weekly schedule so that running could again become embedded in my routine. I started with 2 days per week in September, and by November, my consistency had paid off and I was able to run 5 miles comfortably, a sign I was ready to start training with my coach again. On November 15th, I officially started training for the Miami Half Marathon, and was back to running 5 days per week – Woo hoo!

Most importantly, I forced myself to be patient. I’m not an extraordinarily patient person, but the physical recovery post-baby was long and exhausting – and straight up left me with no other choice. Though I was cleared to run at 6 weeks, I didn’t attempt to lace on my sneakers until 10 weeks postpartum. That first run felt like absolute hell, and EVERYTHING hurt – badly. And it kept on hurting for months. The only loop I attempted for a long time was under 2 miles, and it took what felt like forever to complete – with many pauses to catch my breath. Every day I told myself not to give up, and that this was better than nothing. It was hard – mentally – to accept that I went from a 5K PR (my last race before finding out I was pregnant) to a 15 minute mile. Some days I felt like my body had failed me, in that my athletic ability seemed to have been stripped from me entirely. Thankfully, I pushed on and kept going. At 6 months postpartum, I was finally able to complete a few miles comfortably, and I knew I’d finally crossed the hurdle that would lead me back to long distance running.

I’ve either played sports or worked out since I was young, so I naively thought my return to running would be smooth. Wrong! If I wasn’t dedicated and didn’t love it so much, I’d probably have quit after the first attempt, but thankfully, I pushed on and this weekend I’m preparing to run the Miami Half Marathon. I don’t have any lofty or unrealistic goals this time around; completing the race will be more than enough. However, I’m a competitive person when it comes to sports! I completed my last half marathon (pregnant) around 2:30, so my only goal on Sunday is to hopefully beat that time. Either way, I’ve already won gold.

Does your road back to running after baby align with mine, or is it entirely different? Either way, share your experience with me!