Is Labor Really Like a Marathon?

CalinAZ · October 2013

Wondering if any STMs can chime in, preferably those who have also run a marathon (anyone...?). I keep reading about how labor is like a marathon and see similar comparisons (i.e. hitting the wall). I am wondering whether or not anyone who has run a marathon (or done other endurance events) felt that the experience helped them mentally handle labor, since you knew what it was like to push through a lot of pain and keep going when you were exhausted. I'm guessing labor will be a million times more painful, but other than that, I don't have any clue.

I'm hoping that having run some marathons, 50ks and a 50 mile race will somehow make me a bit more prepared in this endurance endeavor

.

TallaB · October 2013

God I hope not! I ran a half marathon and damn near died!

EJChapman123 · October 2013

I survived labor and am pretty sure I could never run a marathon. I had a 10 hour labor and a working epidural from 3 hours in and it was challenging, painful, exhausting and emotional. But there is such a great reward on the other side, and you just kind of push through.

If you get an epidural (very personal choice!) you can sometimes rest, and it helps a LOT

pineconey · October 2013

i also hope not. because i'm a chubby kid. i've "run" several 5ks.... but the actual running portion is always fairly short-lived.

ksulli · October 2013

Meh. Not really. Although I think the most I've run is in the 7-10 mile range. You get a baby when you're done. Way better than a medal. (Although I hear they're giving those out these days if you go med-free).

MamaFantastic · October 2013

i've never run more than 7 or 8 miles, and that was years before having a baby, but my labor was 45 hours in total, 3:45 of which were active pushing. i had a LONG delivery process!

for me, it was all about the exhaustion. i had mentally purposed to not take drugs at all, and i can honestly say there never was a point where i thought "screw my plans, gimme the good stuff!" like you hear so many women describe. it never even crossed my mind. i just had to go to my introspective happy place and ride out each contraction, especially during transition. the hardest part was the pushing. i was just dead.dog.tired. by the end of it, and then almost 4 hours of pushing out a 9 pounder without any drugs felt like an insurmountable task. the exhaustion of not sleeping for 2 days straight (plus the obvious physical toll on my body throughout those 2 days) was really what caused me to go so long, i believe. my body just didn't have it in me to dilate quickly and push effectively. i was too tired.

but he arrived!! without drugs! hooray! (and i'm electively doing it again..)

so maybe it IS like a marathon after all

jennypenny1014 · October 2013

Well I only run when it's away from cops, ferocious rabid animals, or crazies w/guns, so I can't speak for the actual marathon runners, but I can say that while the average first time labor is supposed to start slowly and build over the course of 8-10hrs or longer, my water broke spontaneously in my kitchen (apparently spontaneous breaking like you see in the movies only occurs to less than 20% of women) at 1am, I completely skipped "early labor" and jumped right into 2 min apart contractions, went from 3cm to 10cm in 2.5 hrs, and DS was born at 5am. So not every labor follows the textbook.

bacorrea · October 2013

@spasticfantastic 45 hours?!? You are superwoman!

Bluebird2318 · October 2013

@spasticfantastic

I've never experienced labor, and I'm still impressed. I could barely handle staying up 45 hours doing nothing! I'm sure the adrenaline is pumping for awhile, but damn... Well done.

=D>

abbeylanecb · October 2013

I have never run a marathon but I would guess so. It takes a lot of endurances and physical strength. That's why all this sitting on my ass must stop soon !

jennypenny1014 · October 2013

@spasticfantastic is my new hero. Holy shitballs.
8->

MamaFantastic · October 2013

ha! well thank you for the love, but i just did what i had to do. it didn't feel like some amazing feat in the moment... it just felt like me doing what was set before me. looking back, though, i do feel a LOT of pride about the fact that i survived that. i hope this time around i'm smarter and i visualize my body opening up in a more focused way to allow for a shorter delivery process. heck, even 10 hours will feel speedy! (my bar clearly isn't set very high...

)

another A14er met tonight with my doula and i'm sure she heard an earful about my labor... which my doula still says was one of the longest she ever attended!!

BiggerinRealLife · October 2013

TallaB said:

God I hope not! I ran a half marathon and damn near died!

I second this, and never finished one without blowing out a knee, or a hip, or something!

Twirple · October 2013

I can say I have never run a marathon, but I am a martial artist and one of my rank tests was an individualized 2+ hour test with all of the black belts in our studio taking turns putting me through my paces then, at the end of the test, when I was completely exhausted, I did 10-15 minutes of endurance (pushups, crunches, knee-ups, mountain climbers, wash, rinse, repeat).

15.5 hours of labor with contractions 2-3 minutes apart the whole time, ending with 1.5 hours of pushing, with no meds, was far more exhausting. I ended it feeling like I could run a marathon.

joyfullyfound · October 2013

Well, kind of. It's a test of endurance for sure, so anyone who has been trained in an endurance sport will likely find that experience useful. You're certainly not thinking about techniques and training while in labor though! It's survival... so if endurance sports training comes into play, it's subconsciously.

MamaFantastic · October 2013

^^ i definitely think my hypnobirthing training helped me out, though! i very consciously used the techniques i learned in that class to center myself, embrace the pain, ride it like a surfer on a wave (instead of letting it crash over and drown me) and pace myself to mentally handle one contraction at a time.

Twirple · October 2013

spasticfantastic said:

^^ i definitely think my hypnobirthing training helped me out, though! i very consciously used the techniques i learned in that class to center myself, embrace the pain, ride it like a surfer on a wave (instead of letting it crash over and drown me) and pace myself to mentally handle one contraction at a time.

This! I am so glad I had HypnoBirthing training. It definitely helps.

clickactual · October 2013

I've only done a half. It was 5 months PP, and THAT was the hardest thing I had every done. Labor isn't even comparable as it is SO different. Sure both are emotionally and physically exhausting but that is where the similarities end. Both are long and while you HATE your life while doing it, you are so overcome with pride after you finish that you would gladly do it again. So maybe they are more similar than I initially thought?

Bluebird2318 · October 2013

spasticfantastic said:

ha! well thank you for the love, but i just did what i had to do. it didn't feel like some amazing feat in the moment... it just felt like me doing what was set before me. looking back, though, i do feel a LOT of pride about the fact that i survived that. i hope this time around i'm smarter and i visualize my body opening up in a more focused way to allow for a shorter delivery process. heck, even 10 hours will feel speedy! (my bar clearly isn't set very high... )

another A14er met tonight with my doula and i'm sure she heard an earful about my labor... which my doula still says was one of the longest she ever attended!!

NGL, that sort of makes me want to try natural even though I've always leaned toward epi. However, I'm gonna be VBAC (if I'm that lucky) and I think a lot of doctors prefer VBACs to have an epi "just in case"... I guess I'll have to ask her what she thinks next appointment!

sammyfurs · October 2013

I'll be an STM and I've run a couple of marathons. I think there is definitely a similarity in the mental aspect. If you have the mental ability to run those distances, there's certainly a chance that it will help you during delivery...at least that's what I told myself last time!

mrscrcalli · October 2013

I don't want to talk about it yet.. I'm scared [-O<

joiedev · October 2013

I would say, as far as a natural labor goes, it is definitely a mental game just like when you "hit a wall" during a marathon. That's why I am hiring a doula! I need someone in my face, encouraging me to keep going- otherwise I will start to panic and that's not good for me or the baby.

Linnea503 · October 2013

For me, the pain was the worst part but my labor was 12 hours max and I had pitocin. I'm sure I was exhausted but I don't recall that the way I recall the contraction pain.

SeattleMomma · October 2013

I've ran 2 breast cancer marathons. Shoot, those were a cake walk comparing to my deliveries.

ashcole28 · October 2013

I only run when something's chasing me or foods involved! I was admitted the day before to be induced since DS was over due and stubborn I has him the next day. Pushed for 17 minutes.

LEIGHLOVE09 · October 2013

Depends if you plan to get an epidural. I did and I also had a relatively easy labor...8 hours total, pushed for 20-30 min max. I ran a half marathon and honestly I don't think you can compare the 2. I also labored overnight so they kept me pretty comfy and I slept a lot too. However I know that if I didn't get an epidural that it would have been a completely different story.

Sisimama10 · October 2013

I don't think so. I was able to get DD out just fine and have never ever run a marathon. I honestly couldn't tell you the last time I even ran a 1/2 mile. I do not run. Ever. I got notes for gym. I'm pretty skinny, but not at all in shape in that way and my labor was fine.

Marusika · October 2013

spasticfantastic said:

i've never run more than 7 or 8 miles, and that was years before having a baby, but my labor was 45 hours in total, 3:45 of which were active pushing. i had a LONG delivery process!

for me, it was all about the exhaustion. i had mentally purposed to not take drugs at all, and i can honestly say there never was a point where i thought "screw my plans, gimme the good stuff!" like you hear so many women describe. it never even crossed my mind. i just had to go to my introspective happy place and ride out each contraction, especially during transition. the hardest part was the pushing. i was just dead.dog.tired. by the end of it, and then almost 4 hours of pushing out a 9 pounder without any drugs felt like an insurmountable task. the exhaustion of not sleeping for 2 days straight (plus the obvious physical toll on my body throughout those 2 days) was really what caused me to go so long, i believe. my body just didn't have it in me to dilate quickly and push effectively. i was too tired.

but he arrived!! without drugs! hooray! (and i'm electively doing it again..)

so maybe it IS like a marathon after all

You are a hero :O

I pushed only 3 times and the baby was out, I can`t imagine how is it to push more than 3 hours..

jsoubel · October 2013

Yes, it is.

KatieKim0815 · October 2013

I have never done a marathon so I can't speak to that but I can say that there are very different stages of labour. You do hit walls but then you power through with strength. It's amazing how you can listen to your body and power through. My first labour was 31 hours and my second one about 11. Both very different but both had similar stages.

frolic32 · October 2013

TallaB said:
God I hope not! I ran a half marathon and damn near died!

Hahaha this. I did a half and it sucked. Labor was longer and harder for me, but oh so much more rewarding and amazing. Two days after coming home with my DS I was already thinking "I want to do this labor thing again." Oxytocin is amazing stuff.

I think pregnancy itself is more of an endurance event.

stphanie · October 2013

OR it can be like a race to get to the hospital before baby pops out! My second came 2 hours after my first contraction. By the time I was sure it was happening, we had to make a mad dash to the hospital, rush them to get me checked in, and pray for dr to get there before the pushing started. Makes me worry how fast this next one will come. So you never know what you're in store for!

NicoleAnne416 · October 2013

I didn't go med free, but I suppose with my first they shut off my drugs for a long time, through 4.5 hours of pushing, then since he still wasn't coming out and it had been 18 hours total, and 2am I said I was done, midwife called the dr and I got my drugs back and he was born 30 mins later. As far as that goes, I say the mindset may be the same, the exhaustion maybe... but all in all, it's not exactly the same, and the pain is something you can't describe. Not to scare you, we all have done or will do it, you will make it through. Most of us do it again...

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