Water Sports

It's fine here.

Louise :-)

Hi Oceanblue,
I don't really have an answer to your question but I suspect it is not an easy one to work out. Finding a way to canoe or kayak may be possible, but I am thinking it is going to take some awesome upper body / lumbar strength to be able to sustain the posture while using your upper body and abdomen to use the oars. I love love love rowing, and since I do not have POP of any kind I can theoretically still row, but I really hesitate now since I know it is probably very dumb to do so. Canoeing or kayaking may be a bit gentler though? You may have to be the guinea pig on this one....my instinct says it would not be good but maybe there is a way for you to figure out a way to stay in posture but still use your upper body to propel yourself forward? Or is there a way to use the transverse abdominals to steady the organs rather than the rectus abdominus which would be pretty anti-WW? What do you think?

I think it would depend very much on the seating position. With legs straight out front it would be too easy to slouch, and would require a lot of upper body strength. Canoe paddling cross-legged might work but this is not coming from a canoeist.

I have a little picture in my head of a pretty young woman kneeling in a broad canoe, with a little feather sticking out of her headband, just like a Disney movie, with pretty birds and butterflies twittering around her head, and a think bubble on her head, saying "I don't have to paddle this canoe the same way as everybody else has done it in the past. I don't have to get there first. I just have to get there in one piece."

L

This summer I went kayaking in the ocean in really rough waters. It was amazingly fun- though very challenging. I was instructed to use my hips and knees to help steer the boat and not to twist my torso but to lean my whole body right or left. The big steering came that way, the small stuff came through the shoulders and wrists. my knees were bent with my heels and my bum at the same level. I was leaning forward the whole time. I didn't notice any issue with my prolapse during or after- but man were my wrists sore! oh and my abs.
I can see how river kayaking would not be that great for prolapse since there isn't the intense need to pay attention to body mechanics. you can kinda just drift along- I've done that too, many times. and if you river kayak you can sit on your knees and lean forward to paddle- it's not too bad that way- but your knees will get tired after a time.
The canoe is different all together- you sit on a little low bench with your knees higher than your bum. You twist a bit to paddle on the side of your choice at the time and then you lean forward to dig the paddle in- I think if you are on a lazy river you could probably pay enough attention to posture that your pop wouldn't bother you. But it might make your back hurt :)
I have kneeled in front of the seat on a boat cushion and just perched my bum on it to accommodate my hurting back.
The thing I've found is that with any sport is if you can pay attention to how you move your body and return to ww posture as much as possible then you can really do anything. Also, for me, sometimes it's worth a little bulge:) I'm always better in the morning and the fun is so worth it. Way more worth it than if I spend too much time cleaning house.

and how do you feel now?