When Can I Start Bending after C-Section?

Bending makes up for a significant portion of your daily activities. However, delivering through a C-section compromises this freedom to bend and denies you the chance to execute your duties effectively. This makes many women wonder when they’re going to start bending again after a C-section

The right answer is that it depends on your doctor’s orders, but generally, you should be able to bend at least halfway down by the time you go home from the hospital. Bending over or doing deep squats is not recommended until about six weeks after you give birth. Therefore, until it is safe to bend entirely, you might need long-handled reachers or help from family members for easy maneuvering. 

In this text, you’ll learn about when it is safe to bend after a C-section, the benefits of early exercise after a C-section, how to tell if your wounds have healed and the exercises to do once you’re free to bend again.

When Can You Actually Start Bending After C-Section?

Bending is a full-body activity that requires all the muscles in your back to engage at once. It causes strain on your abdominal muscles or causes your skin to break open.

It could take some time before they are completely healed. Still, usually, around three to six weeks after birth, most women feel fit enough to start doing their regular activities again, including bending over.

Doing some regular light exercises like walking around and picking things from the table or bed without fully bending can help to speed up the healing process.

Your doctor should recommend some light exercises that you can perform at home to help strengthen your stomach muscles so you can bend easily again.

How To Know Your C-Section is Healed and When You Can Bend Again

One of the most common concerns mothers have after a C-section delivery is how long it will take to heal and the signs showing they’ve already healed.

Mostly, if you can bend over to tie your shoes or easily pick something from the floor, it must be a good sign that the C-section is completely healed.

But those are not the only signs that your C-section is healed and you can start working out again.

If your doctor has given the go-ahead, then here are some other signs to look for that will show that it’s okay to get back into a routine:

• Your C-section scar feels completely flat, almost like there was never an incision in the first place.
• You can cough or laugh without groaning in pain from your C-section incision.
• Your clothing no longer rubs against the area where you had a cesarean, and it doesn’t even feel like there’s an extra patch of skin that wasn’t there before.
• There is NO tenderness when you press on the area where you had a cesarean.
•  Your stitches have been healed for at least two weeks and are not easily irritated or tender when touched.
• You can lay on your stomach without feeling pain from the C-section incision.

It’s important to be careful and to listen to your body. If anything feels out of the ordinary, stop immediately to avoid opening up sutures or strain muscles in a way that shouldn’t be strained yet.

Also, make sure that if you do happen to feel any pain from the C-section incision, do not go past that pain and use the opposite side of your body.

What Exercises Should I Do When I’m Allowed to Bend Again?

Once you’re cleared to start bending and exercising again by your doctor, you need to know the types of exercises you should do.

Major exercises like squats are highly beneficial and effective for the overall improvement of our legs.

Taking part in light exercises will help tone up all those flabby areas and shape the muscles of the thighs, which eventually helps in improving the overall appearance of your legs.

Besides squats, other common exercises you can do after you’re allowed to bend again include:

• Leg raises
• Lunges
• Hamstring curls
• Planks
• Jumps

You can also add some yoga poses to your daily routine. Doing yoga regularly helps restore the strength and stability of the pelvic muscles, which is beneficial for strengthening your trunk, hips, and back areas. It also improves circulation throughout the body by increasing oxygenation and blood flow.

The Benefits of Early Postpartum Exercise for Moms who have had C-Sections

Even though you can’t engage in strenuous activities for several weeks, there are still some light exercises that may help speed up the healing process of your C-section incision.

Your doctor should give you a list of various simple at-home stretches and movements that will aid this recovery period. They might also recommend some mild physical therapy techniques, which can help strengthen the muscles in your abdomen and support the abdominal wall.

Some of the benefits of these mild exercises include:

• Decreasing the recovery time of your C-section incision.
• Helping you feel more confident in yourself and a better sense of making progress toward full health again.
•  Helping you feel more comfortable and less stiff in your everyday movements.
• Reducing the chances of developing a hernia or other problems with your abdominal muscles due to straining them too much during this healing process.

These benefits vary from one person to another depending on how long it has been since the surgery, the type of incision made during the procedure, and other personal circumstances.

It would be best to start exercising as soon as it is medically possible to optimize these benefits.

Final Thought

It is essential to follow the doctor’s instructions on when you should start bending and exercising.  In most cases, it will depend on how soon your body heals from surgery and whether or not there were any complications during childbirth.  

Don’t hesitate to ask questions about what kind of exercises, if any, you can do.  The doctor will let you know what is best for your body and health at this time.