Exercise for those prone to plugged ducts and mastitis

How's that for a catchy post title?  I know what you're going to say -- keep those hip titles coming!

All right, exercise really helps with preventing plugged ducts and mastitis, BUT one has to be very, very careful.  Here's the thing:  the bodies of women prone to plugged ducts and mastitis deal with overwork or stress or any unusual exertion by getting a plug.  So exercise has to come slowly into the picture -- very slowly. 

I finally figured out when I was pregnant for my fourth child that if I did lots of great exercise during pregnancy, I'd be in better shape after the baby made her appearance.  This revelation was long enough in coming, wasn't it?  So I exercised diligently throughout my second and third trimester (the first trimester, I practiced sleeping and feeling nauseated).  This made my postpartum time much easier as far as bouncing back physically, and I also noticed that I didn't get the worn thin feeling as easily.

After a baby comes, I spend at least six weeks recuperating before I do any exercise at all, besides walking around my house.  One must approach exercise with caution, particularly if one has either high or low supply.  Using up too much of one's reserves for exercise can cause trouble.  At one point, I theorized that maybe exercise would decrease my milk supply, since it seems to do so for some people who have low supply.  This theory wasn't correct in my case; I just got plugged ducts. 

The bottom line seems to be -- do exercise.  Carefully build up your strength, making sure not to overdo things.  Once we're strong, it's harder for us to get plugged ducts, because our bodies handle any extra stress and strain better.  Start slowly and build up, checking to be sure that you're not overworking your body.  If you have a busy day, get a little bit of exercise, but be sure to balance your schedule with your exercise so that your body can handle what you're asking it to do.