I just thought I would share my experience of cycling after suffering with SPD. For people who don't know, SPD is a pregnancy induced disorder which causes the hips to either pull apart, or clench together. It can be excruciatingly painful and women who suffer it often have to use crutches and spend the last few months of pregnancy on complete bed rest.
I was suffering SPD for the last few months of my pregnancy, but wasn't officially diagnosed until after my baby was born. It was at the point of crying whilst trying to lift my newborn daughter that a doctor assessed my case and realised my pelvic bones were too close together (they were clicking while I walked). I received a bit of help while I was in hospital, and went to see a physiotherapist afterwards.
During pregnancy, some women say that cycling helps the symptoms of their SPD. Others say the opposite, that it's a major trigger for their pain. But after pregnancy, cycling and SPD are a different issue. People recover from SPD at different speeds, and depending on the symptoms, some women have to follow very specific instructions about what they can and can't do with their legs in order to ease everything back into place.
Personally for me, when it came to cycling, I found it was easier on me than walking. I was cycling comfortably before I was walking comfortably, essentially. It took a while to gradually ease into it, as I also had an emergency c-section birth, but it's completely possible that you can be cycling again within a few months of giving birth if you've had SPD. You just have to go at your own pace, speak to your physiotherapist, and listen to your body. It will tell you if you're not ready yet.
I was suffering SPD for the last few months of my pregnancy, but wasn't officially diagnosed until after my baby was born. It was at the point of crying whilst trying to lift my newborn daughter that a doctor assessed my case and realised my pelvic bones were too close together (they were clicking while I walked). I received a bit of help while I was in hospital, and went to see a physiotherapist afterwards.
During pregnancy, some women say that cycling helps the symptoms of their SPD. Others say the opposite, that it's a major trigger for their pain. But after pregnancy, cycling and SPD are a different issue. People recover from SPD at different speeds, and depending on the symptoms, some women have to follow very specific instructions about what they can and can't do with their legs in order to ease everything back into place.
Personally for me, when it came to cycling, I found it was easier on me than walking. I was cycling comfortably before I was walking comfortably, essentially. It took a while to gradually ease into it, as I also had an emergency c-section birth, but it's completely possible that you can be cycling again within a few months of giving birth if you've had SPD. You just have to go at your own pace, speak to your physiotherapist, and listen to your body. It will tell you if you're not ready yet.