When Can You Safely Return to Running Postpartum?

Do you have data-based recommendations on how long it’s advised to wait after a vaginal birth before returning to running? A friend in Amsterdam was told to wait three months by health professionals, but in the U.S., OBs typically say you’re cleared after your first postpartum visit at about six weeks.

— Anna

When different doctors say different things, it’s usually for one of two reasons. Either we do not have very much data, or the answer differs a lot across individuals, making it hard to give a single answer. In this case, it’s both. We both have very little good data on when to return to running, and it varies a lot across people.

In principle, after a vaginal birth, you could return to some exercise very quickly — ACOG says within a few days. I think they mean light yoga or walking, not interval training, but some movement is feasible early on.

But that’s about general light exercise. Running might take more time. The barriers to returning to running per se are your pelvic floor (which will be weaker), possibly having vaginal tearing, and generally lax ligaments, which can make you more susceptible to injury. But how long you need to wait depends on all of these factors. If you had a very traumatic vaginal birth with a lot of tearing, you will need to wait longer than if you had an easier time. Some people have a stronger pelvic floor than others, etc.

You shouldn’t run before you feel ready – either physically or emotionally. But also, there is no reason to hold back if you do. There is nothing in the data that says you’d need to wait three months (which is a very long time), and some people feel ready before six weeks. But some do not! This is very much a question of who you are and also what you did before.

For one person’s journey, I love this piece Molly Huddle did for us about her pregnancy and postpartum running journey.