Is Your Stroller Causing You Pain?

Pushing a stroller may seem like a simple movement and necessary convenience, but like any movement we do over and over, if we don't do it correctly it can lead to discomfort, or worse, injury. The intention here is not to scare you from stroller use, but to help you prevent the aches and pains it can cause with poor form. Start with these three tips and start moving better today!

1) Check handle bar height. The height of the handles can impact your wrists, shoulders and neck. Take a look down the next time you're pushing. You want your wrists in a comfortable, neutral position (straight line from your arms down, without flexion or extension). You also want to make sure the height doesn't cause you to hold tension in or round your shoulders. You should be able to push with your chest up and shoulders relaxed.

2) Body close to the stroller. This can be especially difficult when the stroller is heavy or you are pushing up an incline, but to protect your low back, you want to avoid excessive forward lean. A chest up position (ribcage over your hips) is ideal for your pelvic floor, will allow you to stabilize your core, and will encourage you to use your glutes to propel forward. If your arms are fatiguing before your legs, or you have low back pain after a long walk, then chances are the right muscles aren't firing or your positioning is incorrect.

3) Build core strength. Although the stroller isn’t terribly heavy, the posture and pushing action does require core muscle engagement. Your posture isn’t completely upright while pushing a stroller so in order to keep better alignment and have as many muscles as possible supporting the action, your core needs to be strong. After having a baby, core training should be progressive. For many people it starts with breath and learning how to coordinate the deep abs and pelvic floor muscles. If you need a few tips on getting a stronger core, check out this free download.