How to Safely Get Back to Hiking After Having a Baby

Eight years ago, I became a mother and in an instant felt the collective euphoria from every mountain I’d ever climbed. Holding my beautiful baby boy for the first time, I didn’t yet fully understand what a C-section would mean for my physical and mental health. My OB-GYN predicted that my recovery would be easier because of my active pregnancy, which involved trekking and cycling across the world for my work as an adventure travel journalist. But, immediately postpartum, I realized that I wasn’t mentally ready to become something I’d never been before: an inactive person. 

Over the course of several months, with agonizingly slow steps, I could lift myself out of bed, go on walks with the stroller, and eventually wear my son in a light Osprey carrier. Within a year, I was tucking him into a Deuter backpack and sharing favorite New York hikes in Harriman State Park and Watkins Glen as he babbled at the tall trees and scurrying animals. His awe for the outdoors was a balm for my soul and made the patience required in recovery worth it. 

When my daughter was born three years later, I had a postpartum training plan and a sense of peace that empowered me to be much more prepared for another C-section recovery. I couldn’t control everything as I returned to the trail, but I could control my daily habits, find joy in the small things, and be kind to myself while moving through challenges. 

Here are some of the most important tips for getting back on the trail—at your own pace. 

Shift your perspective

“When I wanted to return to activity postpartum, the biggest thing that helped was adjusting my mental game,” says Brooke Froelich, co-founder of Wild Kind, a community for adventurous moms in Colorado. “Instead of expecting to immediately return to pre-pregnancy activity and ability, I had to learn to shift my mindset to love being outside, for the sake of being outside.” 

With an open-minded attitude, you’re better equipped to face disappointments and accept the unexpected. Regardless of the kind of delivery you had, or how fit your postpartum body may seem, consider taking a more sensitive approach to exercise. There could be new limits to the things you can normally do. 

“What happens to the body when you’re pregnant and postpartum is there are lots of hormonal changes in estrogen and progestin as well as relaxin in the system,” says Dr. Katherine Koch, an orthopedic and pelvic floor physical therapist, who opened her Sage Physical Therapy practice in Denver to be closer to the Rocky Mountains and 14ers like Longs Peak. “All these changes make it harder for the body to do what it does naturally. Ligaments have passive stability, joints are less stable and more loosey goosey, muscles need to take over more, and if they are not strong enough that can lead to issues.” 

Although Dr. Koch encourages her patients to go for postpartum runs and hikes, she says to listen to your body and try to notice what’s noticeably different. This might include an increase in pelvic or low back pain, foot and ankle pain, and pain or inflammation in a C-section scar. “Don’t ignore signs that you’re overdoing something,” she says. “Just because a symptom is common does not make it normal.” 

Set realistic goals

Doing prehab work like strength and stability exercises before you’re pregnant and during your pregnancy can help prevent postpartum problems. But, you still want to ease back into activity: You’ve had a growing bowling ball of a baby sitting on top of your pelvis for months. This rapid increase and the pressure on muscles, joints, and bones to withstand the load can quickly turn into overload. Everyone is different, though, so focus on how you personally feel. Dr. Koch suggests setting realistic goals that work for you, perhaps hiking a smaller neighborhood hill at six weeks postpartum instead of bagging a big peak.

“Hitting manageable goals will boost your confidence and build your foundation without injuries. You might be feeling good overall, do the rehab, then overdo it,” says Dr. Koch. “When women are breastfeeding, estrogen is still low, and there is bone loss, making you more susceptible to things like a stress fracture.” 

After I had my daughter, I followed another piece of advice Froelich shared: Instead of setting a distance-based goal, I focused on a time-based goal, like moving outside for 20 minutes one day and increasing that amount week by week. 

“I truly believe that bringing your little one along is a wonderful way to learn to move around in your body again—to have a companion who helps you remember to grant yourself some grace, and to share the experience with,” says Froelich, who recommends finding a community, like a local hiking moms’ group on Facebook. “Remember that your body and mind are strong. Your strength just might manifest itself differently for a little while—and that’s beautiful in its own way.”

Don’t play the comparison game

In the first few summer months after I had my son, I couldn’t help but feel twinges of envy as fellow new moms started springing back to their pre-pregnancy weight and talking about upcoming family hiking trips. “Try not to get pulled into the comparison game,” cautions Dr. Koch. “Everybody has had a different pre-pregnancy, pregnancy, delivery, and postpartum support. Listen to your body; you do you.” 

One year after giving birth, I did the New York City Triathlon. As I trained with a newborn, I struggled to accept my changed body or take genuine pride in what it had already accomplished. There were days when I pushed myself too far, but felt ashamed to admit it.

“If it all has to come back to the kids being a priority, you’re a better parent when you take care of yourself,” says Dr. Koch, adding that new mothers often know their body is experiencing a problem, or that something doesn’t feel quite right, but they don’t know who to talk to or what to do. “An OB-GYN might say certain pain is expected or it’s normal to leak a little. Well, no. Again, it might be common, but it’s not normal and it can be fixed. Don’t minimize your pain.” 

Try These Exercises 

Dr. Koch says you can do the exercises below as a complete 10-minute routine or do them individually when you can fit them in throughout the day. She also suggests doing this series three to four times a week, whenever your schedule allows. Also, alternate exercise days with walking and hiking.

“I still want my patients getting out on the trail with their newborns, enjoying the sun,” she says. “But [listen] to the body and [adjust] the grade or amount of time you’re out there if you are running into symptoms.” 

You can even start doing these exercises before you give birth. “A stronger core is more likely going to lead to a smoother delivery,” Dr. Koch says. She adds that there are better outcomes, for both mom and baby, when mom stays active. And a new study linking a more distressing birth experience with greater symptoms of postpartum depression further underscores the benefits of staying active while taking care of yourself.

No matter what, consult with your doctor to make sure it’s safe to proceed with certain exercises when you’re postpartum.

Pelvic floor contractions

New or expecting mothers need to have the ability to contract and relax the pelvic floor. Both are important. People think about kegels but not the opposite, which is letting go or relaxing the pelvic floor. Think about it: It’s very important for vaginal delivery to be able to relax and stretch those muscles.  

You want to squeeze the pelvic floor muscles around the vagina and lift up and inward without activating your legs or glutes. Exhale up and in, then inhale down into the belly. Let all the muscles go. Exhale, squeeze, lift, inhale, open, expand. You can do 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps. 

How will these contractions help you on the trail? “Less chance of leakage, less chance of pelvic organ prolapse, and less chance of getting injured in the postpartum period,” Dr. Koch says.

Gluteus medius lifts

The glute muscle on the backside of the hip is really important in pelvic and hip stability. It is mainly responsible for stabilizing your whole leg, pelvis, and back, particularly in a single-leg stance. You need to be strong on each leg for all the activities you enjoy doing, like hiking—especially if you’re carrying a child as well. 

For this side lying hip abduction leg lift, lay on one side and lift the top leg, pulling it back diagonally. You can work on your glutes for 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps on each leg.

Deep core pulls 

For early postpartum, you want to practice drawing in of the deep lower core stabilizer muscles. We’re not talking about sit-ups or crunches, but the deep core. 

Laying on your back with knees bent, place your hands inside your front hip bones and activate the deep core by pulling across lower abs and up toward your belly button. Do this for a count of five, and repeat five times. You can pair this with the bird dog exercise, extending one arm and the opposite leg and holding simultaneously, keeping shoulders and hips parallel to the floor. Hold for 2 to 3 counts, 8 to 12 times. 

Inner thigh activations 

The inner thigh adductor muscles are often forgotten in traditional exercises, but they are important pelvic stabilizers that help prevent ailments like lightning crotch and pubic symphysis pain, which could prevent your ability to get to the trail.

Lying on your back, knees bent, put a ball or yoga block between your knees. Squeeze your knees together and feel your inner thigh muscles activate. Repeat for 2 to 3 sets, 8 to 12 repetitions.

Posture resets 

While the body heals naturally in many ways postpartum, it’s important to work on resetting your posture back to normal. After having a baby, your posture can be thrown off and still be in “pregnancy posture.” Hips are too far forward, shoulders too far back. If you stand to the side and look at yourself in the mirror, pull your hips back underneath. Here, your shoulder should be aligned with the center of your hips.