5 Ways to Relieve Foot & Back Pain During Pregnancy
I think every pregnant woman deals with back pain (at least to some extent) at some point during her pregnancy. So many things can cause it –> carrying a bowling ball in your belly, added weight, poor posture, weak core and glutes, and the list goes on.
I definitely dealt with some lower back pain (especially in the third trimester) during my pregnancy. Luckily, it wasn’t severe, but it was enough to annoy me and interfere with my workouts as well as my sleep quality.
I did some preventative things throughout my entire pregnancy to make sure that I took care of my body from the beginning, before the pain actually began. But once the back and foot pain did finally show up, I made sure to adopt some new habits to help control it. Here are a few things that I did to relieve my foot and back pain during my pregnancy…
1. yoga/stretching
We all know that yoga and consistent stretching can do wonders for your back. I made sure to up my stretching game during my pregnancy. It helped loosen up my sore muscles, kept me limber, and helped my lower back pain tremendously. Even if it was just 5 minutes, I made sure to do some prenatal yoga or at least stretch my entire body every single day.
2. good posture
Practicing good posture throughout the day is something we should all be doing, whether you are pregnant or not. Slouching puts extra pressure on your neck, shoulders, lower back, and even your core. Any time I was sitting at my desk, on the couch, or in the car, I tried to remind myself to sit up straight and practice good posture. I also did a meditation every morning where I would make myself practice perfect posture, and I always felt SO good afterward.
3. supportive shoes
I think I only wore heels once or twice during my entire pregnancy because it was just so difficult to wear uncomfortable shoes when my center of gravity was off. Wearing supportive shoes is so important during pregnancy for several reasons –> it is safer because your equilibrium is off and you don’t want to take a chance of tripping and falling, it is better for your back, as well as more supportive for your feet and ankles.
During pregnancy, your body releases a hormone called relaxin, which relaxes the ligaments in the pelvis, as well as the rest of the body. This can put you at more risk for injury simply because your ligaments are loose, which means you can sprain an ankle or pull a muscle pretty easily. This is why wearing flat, comfortable shoes is a must.
But I took it a step further and wore these SUPER comfortable inserts in my shoes. These Wiivv inserts were created specifically for me, and gave me custom support from the ground up. They gave me a custom arch that was digitally mapped to my feet FROM MY PHONE. What? Crazy.
I wore them in pretty much all of my shoes, from my tennis shoes when I worked out or was walking a lot, my cycling shoes when I taught my classes at CycleBar, and even my casual everyday slip-on sneakers. They have a really nice cushion to them and are SO much better than any stock insole that I’ve ever tried. They really are like a Posturpedic mattress for your feet!
I think my favorite part was getting to use the Wiivv app to map the insoles to my feet and then getting to design them with whatever graphic I wanted to put on them!
* Wiivv is having a Black Friday sale on all of their products that lasts through tomorrow! (Monday 11/26) You can BUY ONE GET ONE 70% OFF! This includes all of their products as well as their gift cards, go take advantage because you will LOVE these insoles!
4. chiropractic care
I work in a chiropractor’s office, so I have been fortunate enough to get to learn about the amazing benefits of chiropractic care. If you live in Lubbock, go see Dr. Matt at Infinity Wellness Center, he is the BEST.
I had been getting adjusted since before I was even pregnant, and obviously continued that throughout my pregnancy. I would go once a week to get adjusted, and it did wonders for my back and hips! It just keeps everything aligned properly, allowing your body to do what it needs to do to grow that baby, and to also keep the baby in a good position. In my experience, it really relieved the pressure in my lower back, every time I left there, I always felt so much better.
5. sleep support
Until I got pregnant, I never knew that pregnancy insomnia was a thing. Geez! I had such a hard time sleeping! From all of the hormone changes, to the growing belly making it hard to find a comfortable position, I was just not getting very restful sleep. That is, until this pregnancy pillow was recommended to me. Oh my gosh, it was like a Christmas miracle. Pretty much every woman I know recommended that I get some sort of pregnancy pillow, and they were right, it helps so much. It supports your back and belly, as well as gives you something to put between your knees for added hip support. Do yourself a favor and get one of these!
*Wiivv generously gifted me their insoles and sandals, but all opinions in this post are my own.