OK that’s a big promise! But the way we feel is greatly affected by the way we execute our daily repetitive tasks like stair climbing — also picking up things around the house, carrying our little ones, sitting at our desks, sitting in our cars, sleeping, basically anything!

WHY DO MAMAS HAVE SORE KNEES?

Knee pain in postpartum is a very common complaint. Often, the discomfort starts in pregnancy as the body grows larger and the joints become less stable. Any imbalances in our bodies become much more obvious as we load the joints with more weight and simultaneously loosen the structures that support those joints, the soft tissues which must give way to accommodate the growing pregnant body and prepare for birth.

In postpartum, kneeing, Babywearing, running around for diapers and cries and every little thing can put strain on those knees while they’re still gradually trying to return to their pre-pregnancy alignment.

I’m simplifying a bit because the truth is: no one joint or muscle in your body is simply “dysfunctional.”

The body works together as a machine and knee pain is often accompanied by or related to:

• pelvic floor dysfunction
• diastasic recti
• plantar fasciitis
• hip pain and stiffness
• glute weakness
• poor alignment/posture
• …and so on.

The best thing you can do for knee pain is to get a personal assessment by a qualified practitioner, like a physiotherapist or osteopath. Then look at the way the body is functioning as a whole and work on strengthening the body safely with the guidance of a qualified trainer.

In the meantime, you might be surprised that something as simple as stair climbing can aggravate your knee pain. This simple trick will help you climb stairs with less knee pain AND help you to understand how to perform stepping exercises more effectively, in general!

HOW TO REDUCE KNEE PAIN FROM STAIRS IN

PREGNANCY & POSTPARTUM

Let me know if this was helpful! ?? And comment below with a suggestion for a #TrainerTipTuesday topic you’d like us to cover!

xo

-D.