Chiropractic Flow

New mums are often told:
“Just sleep when the baby sleeps.”

But research suggests movement might be one of the most powerful things for postpartum recovery and sleep quality.

A systematic review and meta-analysis analysed 12 studies including 3,096 postpartum women across 9 countries to examine the effects of physical activity on sleep and fatigue.

The results showed that postpartum women who engaged in physical activity experienced:

• Improved sleep quality
• Reduced daytime fatigue

compared with women who did not exercise.

Interestingly, exercise did not significantly change:

• total sleep duration
• time taken to fall asleep
• sleep efficiency
• frequency of night waking

So exercise may not give mums more sleep, but it appears to improve the quality of sleep and reduce daytime exhaustion.

That matters.

Better sleep quality supports:

• nervous system regulation
• mood stability
• recovery and healing
• cognitive function
• resilience during the postpartum period

And importantly, the research did not require high-intensity training.

Gentle, consistent movement — walking, strength training, mobility work — appears to be enough to support these benefits.

For many new mums, movement becomes a powerful signal of safety and regulation for the nervous system.

Sometimes the body doesn’t need more rest.
It needs the right input to restore rhythm.

⸻

Study source

Uchida et al. Effect of physical activity on sleep and fatigue among postpartum women: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

PEDro Database Record:
https://search.pedro.org.au/search-results/record-detail/82154