Exercise for the overabundant – or for the plugged duct/mastitis sufferer

If my experience is any guide, probably those who have overabundant milk supply also get more plugged ducts and mastitis than other nursing moms.  And it seems true that women who get plugged ducts are more prone to get them again, sad to say. 

It’s also true that exercise is excellent for human beings – our bodies are made to move, and we get many benefits from moving them.  The thing we must be careful of, if we’re prone to plugged ducts and mastitis, is overdoing it.  Nursing women can overdo things with astonishingly ease and swiftness.  I think we forget to take into account the fact that producing milk and caring for a baby 24 hours a day takes huge amounts of energy – huge amounts!  So we sign up for more activities than we can actually handle in a day and then we pay the price.
Our culture, unfortunately, suffers under the impression that once pregnancy ends and the baby’s safely out, the hard part ends, too.  We take all kinds of care of pregnant women and then expect new moms to be back on their A game within days of the birth of the baby.  This means that new moms feel the pressure to get to pre-baby fitness levels quickly once the baby arrives.  My first piece of advice for moms who want to exercise:  DO NOT BE IN A BIG HURRY. 
I recently read someone who recommended taking the “9 months to put it on, 9 months to take it off” approach.  This especially applies to moms who get plugged ducts or mastitis, because over exercising is a very easy way to start a plug.  We’re not in need of easy ways to start plugs!  Incidentally, those who have low milk supply should also approach exercise with caution, because over exercise can take the energy our bodies should use to make milk. 
That said, exercise increases endurance, which means that, as our bodies grow accustomed to exercise, we’re able to handle more of what life throws at us.  This endurance helps moms – any moms – because life often throws lots of things at us!  The answer, in my opinion, lies in taking things slowly, working our way into an exercise program that gets results without overtiring us, and paying scrupulous attention to what our bodies tell us. 

Personally, I don’t do much at all for the first 6 weeks after birth.  I don’t mean I don’t do much exercise, I mean I don’t do much at all.  I mean I spend most of my time in my pajamas in order to signal to myself and others that I am not up to speed.  I take daily naps, I lie down on the couch, I sit and nurse the baby whenever necessary – which, of course, is a lot!  I rely on meals that others bring me, or that family members make, or that I stored in the freezer before the baby made his or her debut on the outside.  (Goodness knows it’s much easier to cook then, even with an 8-months-pregnant belly, than it is once the baby is born!) 
I also don’t do a lot of formal exercise for a few months after the baby’s birth.  Once I’m feeling up to it, I’ll walk or garden, but I don’t go in for the more formal workouts for a while.  Mastitis is far too big a price to pay for a vigorous workout.  With 4 kids, too, I have the experience behind me to know that after a few months postpartum, there will come a time when the pounds will melt off more quickly and exercise will seem right and good – although not necessarily easy. 
For some reason, it took me until my fourth pregnancy to realize that I should really focus on fitness during pregnancy in order to help with recovery afterwards.  Now that I’ve figured that out, I don’t know why it took me so long – slow learner?  But I exercised religiously during my fourth pregnancy, and it made a huge difference in my recovery.  I still didn’t start formal exercise until many months postpartum, but my recovery happened more quickly and I got fewer plugged ducts.
This pregnancy (number 5 is on the way!) I managed to remember this hard-earned knowledge and have been exercising in order to gain and maintain a good level of fitness because I know it will help once the baby’s here. 

In short, my points of advice on exercise:
-- Rest postpartum.  Recovery takes time, and exercising too soon after birth doesn’t gain us much if it means we get plugged ducts. 
-- Start slowly when you start. 
-- Pay attention to how your body feels before, during, and after your workout.  See if patterns develop, like getting a plug the day after – or even two days after – a harder workout. 
-- Remember to eat enough and drink enough to take care of your body’s needs.  Start with the goal of strength and fitness, not the goal of getting skinny at any cost – the cost will be too high.
-- Exercise during pregnancy to help with recovery from birth and to give yourself a good baseline of fitness to return to once the baby arrives.
-- Comparisons are odious.  Do what works well for you, your body, your baby, your family.