Returning to Running After Baby: Why Six Weeks Isn't the Green Light You Think It Is

Congratulations — you've had a baby! You've been to the GP, had your six-week check, and now you're feeling ready to put your trainers back on and head for the nearest park trail. But as soon as you start running, something feels off. Maybe there's a slight bladder leak. Maybe your bowels aren't quite right. Maybe you just don't feel as strong or as supported as you used to.

What the Six-Week Check Actually Covers

The six-week GP check is important, and every new mum should attend it. But its primary focus is making sure you understand which contraception works best for you, and checking in on your mental health. It may touch on other things too, but those are the two priorities.

The six-week check is not a "clearance" for exercise. It's there to make sure you're okay — not to confirm your body is ready for high-impact training.

I've seen so many women in clinic reach the six-week mark and feel like that means they should be able to crack straight on with the gym, running, HYROX, or CrossFit. I want to gently push back on that. At six weeks, your body is only just starting to recalibrate. It took nine months to make your baby — it will take longer than six weeks to feel "like you" again.

To be clear: I am a strong advocate for new mums (whether it's baby one, two, three, or four) getting back to exercise. But it needs to happen at the right time, and under the right guidance.

What Running Actually Requires

Let's talk about running specifically. What does your body need to be able to do it well?

Balance. Running happens on one leg, 100% of the time. Good static and dynamic balance is your starting point. A simple practice: stand on one leg with your eyes open at home — in the kitchen, wherever — and see if you can hold it for 10 seconds. Once you can, try it with your eyes closed.

Posterior chain strength. Your glutes, hamstrings, and calf muscles are the big, key drivers behind running well. These muscles need to activate, fire, and time themselves correctly. We know that during pregnancy, this posterior chain tends to weaken. That's exactly why very few people are genuinely ready to run at six weeks — research points to 12 weeks as the minimum timeframe for a new mum to return to running.

Think of the six-week mark as the point to start a strength and conditioning programme — not to start running. This doesn't need to be advanced. Bodyweight squats, lunges, calf raises — the basics, unweighted at first. Rebuild your balance, reconnect with these muscles, and then progress toward running.

What Happens When Mums Return Too Soon

In clinic, I regularly see new mums who returned to running too early and end up coming to see me for knee pain, hip pain, or back pain — musculoskeletal injuries caused by those posterior chain muscles not yet being ready for the load.

I also see a lot of bladder leakage. A common story: "I started running, and after 15 minutes I was holding back a wee

— even though I'd been to the toilet right before I left." That's a sign your pelvic floor isn't quite managing the job, whether that's a strength issue, a timing issue, or a coordination issue.

As you return to running, it's not just about the big global muscles like glutes and hamstrings — your pelvic floor needs attention too. Even if you were an established runner before pregnancy, it's genuinely worth working through a postnatal Couch to 5K progression to make sure you're returning safely. (Return-to-run guidelines linked below.)

Know Your Red Flags

If you start to notice any of the following, please seek pelvic health physiotherapy care:

• Bladder or bowel leakage

• A feeling of heaviness or soreness in the vagina

• A sensation that something is "coming out" or bulging

  
  

These symptoms are not normal, but they are common — and they are extremely treatable.

Marketing and advertising would have you believe the answer is simply to pop a pad on and carry on with whatever activity you like. And while I'm all for women returning to sport and exercise, this shouldn't happen under the misinformation that reaching for a pad is just "the normal way" new mums are meant to manage things.

You should be returning to running feeling strong and informed — knowing your red flags, and knowing that if problems arise, you seek care and advice as soon as they do.