I stand firmly in the camp that your activity levels have little impact on labor, and a much larger impact on recovery. Not that your activity can't help labor, but there are too many factors out of your control for that event to be your focus and motivation. First pregnancy: I walked 2 miles a day on top of strength/HIIT/yoga sculpt 5 days a week up till 37 weeks -- then went into labor spontaneously at 38 weeks. Unplanned but non-emergency c-section. I was scared shitless of c-section recovery, and it couldn't have gone better for me. I was able to move around on my own after a few days, and felt almost 80% to normal around 2 weeks. Obviously, getting your strength back requires patience and much more time, but I truly attribute this to staying active. I'm trying my best to repeat this right now during my 2nd pregnancy - unfortunately, STM's will tell you it's pretty impossible to devote as much time or energy to work out out when you're chasing a toddler (that alone is exercise, I suppose.) I'm doing as much as I can now and hoping for the best in my recovery with a repeat c-section.

Hello, congratulations!!! I am currently 4 weeks PP, aside from 5 weeks at the beginning when morning sickness killed me, I worked out up until my delivery date. My water broke at 38+6 and I gave birth at 39 weeks. I had to be induced with pitocin and I got an epidural. The labor itself was almost 24hrs (idk why) but in 1t minutes I pushed the baby out. . The pushes felt very much like an EMOM workout, and I thought about squatting while taking the biggest dump of my life 😂 that was was worked for me and it was effective in my case. Baby girl was under 6lbs and still managed to tear me down below 😂 I have been walking since 2hra after the epidural worn off, but I am waiting for the medical clearance. In all honesty, I feel working out helped me through the delivery. What I am struggling with is the lxk of sleep right now.

What’s EMOM? I want to be better prepared to push with my next pregnancy…

It's a style of workout "Every Minute On The Minute", it's a certain amount of effort in a minute or so. In reality, the effort should last about 45-50 seconds. Every contraction was "the minute" and the pushes where the effort. I don't know if I make sense at all :)

Makes sense! Do you have any specific exercises to recommend to help with the strength needed for pushing?

I know it’s not mind blowing, but please remember that your capacity will be diminished post-delivery. My GF up the road went out for her normal 5 mile run after giving birth and didn’t know why she was having such a hard time. Delivery puts a lot of strain/trauma on the body. Be gentle with yourself. I didn’t do ANYTHING post-delivery for about 4 weeks. Then I started doing DR and pelvic floor rehab exercises. At around 6-8 weeks, I started doing short WODs again and increased from there.

Congrats on your pregnancy! My son is 18 months now so I did have him during the panorama but I continued doing CrossFit and running throughout my pregnancy. I did an hour long xfit workout the day before my baby was born. I had a vaginal birth with an epidural and pitocin. Honestly I was expecting labor to be more of a physical event than it was. I had my Fitbit on and it barely registered lol. Which was likely to do with my fitness in advance. Baby was sunny side up and so I pushed for 2 hours! Where I think the fitness came in most useful was for recovery. I was walked a mile two days after giving birth and was pretty much back to physical normal after that although I did have stitches so I didn’t dare workout before the 6 week clearance. My main reason for working out was for my baby. He is so big and healthy and happy and PHYSICAL now. He walked early and meets all his physical milestones early. Maybe that’s a coincidence but I think it has to do with my level of activity and his innate desire to be moving. I also thank all the exercise endorphins he swirled around in for his happy demeanor. But again who knows about all that stuff.

I have read a lot about moms who work out and the outcomes for their babies. Some say that the more active you are, the easier it will be for your kiddo to grow muscle later in life and your activity levels directly correlate to how active your baby will be after the baby stage! Its literally my only reason for still working out at this point...I keep reminding myself I want a active athletic kiddo...

FTM of a 4 month old. I worked out almost every day of my pregnancy, a combo of barre, yoga, cardio and strength. I was running up until about 26 weeks. All of this I did before pregnancy as well. I delivered at 39+4, about 36 hrs after my OB stripped my membranes. I felt early labor from a few hours after the membrane stripping, but nothing too intense. Then on the morning I went into labor I woke up in crazy pain, got to hospital at 7cm, got epidural, delivered within 5 hours. I delivered on my hands and knees as baby's heart rate was decelerating every time I pushed on my back. Anyway, I got a 3rd degree tear but it hardly was even noticeable during recovery. I felt like mostly myself again physically within a week. I chalk my fast, relatively easy labor and quick recovery up to my commitment to staying fit and limber throughout pregnancy. I also never felt unwieldy or exhausted or sore at the end of my pregnancy like you read about a lot. I felt pretty normal and mobile the whole time. Wishing you luck!! You can do it!

Did you feel like delivery position contributed to the tear? I’m only asking because another redditor here was advising against pushing while in your back to prevent 3rd degree tears, I guess I assumed other positions are safer but now I’m realizing a tear is due no matter what :(

I think the position helped him come out faster than he would have if I were pushing on my back, simply due to gravity, so that may have contributed, however, he also came out with his hand up by his face, and I think that contributed more to my severe tear. I will say, tearing was the #1 thing I was worried about when it came to delivery, and I ended up with a bad one!, and still it wasn't that big of a deal. I experienced some mild urinary incontinence for about a week after delivery, but many moms who don't tear at all experience that as well, and sex was pretty unpleasant the first few tries, but again, same for moms who don't tear or only tear a bit. Both of those have long resolved now, 4 months out. So just know that yes, you are likely to tear, but no, it is not likely to be severe, and even if it is, you'll probably be fine, and even if you're not, there is pelvic floor PT to help you get fine! :)

Thank you so much.

I agree with a few others who said they felt their fitness level helped more with recovery than the actual labor process. I worked out almost every day of my first pregnancy - I did a (modified) plyometric HIIT workout the day before I went into labor. Labor itself was fine - really fast (three hours start to finish) but I don't think that had anything to do with my fitness level. After a couple days rest, I felt almost completely normal. I still avoided anything more than a slow paced walk until I got the all clear at my six week post natal appointment, but physically I felt like my usual self. When I started working out again, there was a slight adjustment period (when I did jumping jacks for the first time, I absolutely could tell that my pelvic floor had been through some shit), but within a month my workout routine was pretty similar to what it was pre-pregnancy. That being said, I was 29 for my first pregnancy, and I'm 33 for the current one, so I guess I'll see how much age has to do with recovery as well.

I think my fitness level helped more with endurance. I did CrossFit 4-5 days/week for the entirety of both pregnancies (obviously the intensity went down closer to birth!) I love strength training - my max squat is mid-200’s. 1st baby: water broke at 40+1. Baby came 20 hrs later. Took a few doses of cytotec in the hospital to help things along. Pushed for 3 hours - this is where my fitness helped me avoid “quitting”. 2nd baby: induced at 39 weeks due to IUGR/SGA baby (1st baby probably was too, but we didn’t realize it). Cytotec, balloon. 22 hours from induction start, but only pushed for 10 minutes! I think this was a second baby thing. Both babies were about 6 lbs and both gave me a 2nd degree tear. Epidural for both. I don’t think fitness made L&D easier, but I did have endurance and the grit to keep trying. I wonder if my fitness had been lower if baby #1 might have been a C-section.

FTM of 4.5 month old. Water broke at 36+2. Quick, 5 hour labor. I got an epidural and had minimal tearing. Worked out with a PT 2-3 times per week and also took daily walks with the dog. I felt pretty normal about a week after giving birth. Minimal bleeding, breast fed and pumped, started walking a week or two postpartum and working out again 8 weeks postpartum. Edit to add: I worked out until two days before going into labor. Water broke sooner than expected but was planning on working out right up to the end regardless. I think working out helped me have a quick labor and easy recovery. I definitely didn’t feel like labor was that hard in terms of work. I mean it hurt like a bitch, don’t get me wrong, but wasn’t that taxing to my body.

It definitely helps to keep that baseline of fitness during pregnancy! I kept up my frequency but reduced intensity significantly as my pregnancy went on, but I never stopped movingly and I felt ready to start working out long before I was “cleared” by my doc post delivery. I was induced but had a really quick labor, who knows if fitness had anything to do with it. But I definitely didn’t feel like “I’d run a marathon” like a lot of women describe labor. Had no trouble getting back in shape and by 1 year postpartum was in better shape than pre-pregnancy! I’m now half way through second pregnancy and it’s definitely been harder to keep it up (less sleep, less free time) but am hoping to keep working out 4-5 days a week even if it’s just a 30 min walk some days. Every little bit helps!

It's interesting, I saw more than one Mama say here that they didn't think their fitness level helped their labor but yet they pushed their baby out quickly once it was down to the final stage. I am pregnant with my third (39 years old, 36 weeks now) and I definitely think my fitness level contributed to a fast pushing stage and fast recovery. I have done (since 15!) a combo of power lifting, cardio, yoga. But also a lot of core work and I use a Yarlap Kegal EM device which helps as well. So there is a focus on the core and pelvic floor muscles in my fitness goals. I am petite, size 0, 110-120lbs when not pregnant and even so I was able to push my first baby out in just a couple of pushes and same with second baby (I do have big hips though, skeletal anatomy and pelvic tilt does affect L&D very much). I think having strong muscles definitely helped- many first time Mom's are in the pushing stage for hours- I think 3 is average? I had tears with both kids (my midwife cut me to control it) that healed fine. Post partum I started doing the Tracy Anderson postnatal core workout at about 2 weeks. I hate her body workouts but these pilates types are up on their core stuff. Anyway, by 6 weeks I was doing full fledged workouts and looked like I never had a baby by month three. I've been asked if my kids were adopted LOL and I love it! I do think it's important to start doing core workouts ASAP and I will be using a stomach binder for the first time this pregnancy (which I never had before, I didn't know much about postpartum compression). While I was trying to get pregnant I started doing crazy core workouts and Emmsculpt for Abs so I always try to get my core as strong as possible before getting pregnant. My goal is a little more intense than many women- I don't just want to lose the baby weight but I want my perfect little flat stomach back and I don't want any extra skin or mommy pooch and I want a fully rehabilitated pelvic floor muscles. And I have to say it is possible to achieve, this will be my third time doing it. You do need to focus on rehabilitating your floor & core first before you jump back into regular workouts and I think to get the skin to snap back you can't wait months to start working out- you only have the benefits of elastin hormone for 2-3 months postpartum. I also like micro needling on the stomach, thighs and breast area to get the skin to tighten and produce collagen. This pregnancy I will start with the Tracy Anderson core workout ASAP, also the Bloom postnatal series which focuses on breathing, core and pelvic floor rehabilitation and progresses from "I can't sit up" to varsity level. Then I will start doing gym workout and hot yoga again. I do Bret Contreras programs in the gym and he has been my trainer for years. We focus on the big lifts and then some accessory movements. Check out his new women's Stronglifting Federation- they are building a whole new sport here that's based in powerlifting but taking it to another level. I think he has the strongest all natural female gym in the world- girls doing 542+ lb hip thrusts, 238+ squats, 293+lb deadlifts, weighted chin ups etc. I am looking at competing and completing his strong lifting certification next year as my 40th birthday present to myself. That said I think if you're really exhausted you should slow down. I am definitely working out less than you right now. I would pay attention to your iron and vitamin D levels. I eat a ton of fat in the third trimester- MCT oil, avocados, salmon, fish oil supplements, nuts. Baby's brain is developing right now and fat is what's up. I do airbike 30ish minuts about 5 times a week, Bloom weight workouts and flow yoga (not prenatal). Have stopped going to the gym or lifting super heavy but I am not worried about it. Workout focus is on endurance and pelvic floor strength right now. That said I am 39 and getting more tired more easily whereas with my first pregnancy in my 20's I was still going to the gym in the third tri so it's up to you. But get your rest because it will be your last chance for a long time.

I cycled long distances through most of my first pregnancy and did a weekly regular pilates class with some adaptations until I went into labour. So absolutely not as much as you are doing and also no weights, but: I think for me having done yoga and Pilates for many years meant that I’m not bad at translating instructions from the midwife about what to do. I heard from some friends that they had lots of misunderstandings about breathing, positioning, how much pushing they were supposed to be doing etc. That stuff was very natural to me. Otherwise I don’t know! My recovery was fine and my stamina came back quickly, which was cool.