Pregnant - Petzl 8003 Full Body Harness questions

Anyone use this harness during pregnancy? If so did anyone else have the issue of it going up your yonni super aggressively? Suggestions on how to make it more comfortable? I've tried adjusting it differently but there's no padding on it. For now my regular harness still works but those days are soon coming to an end. 

Maybe insert padding somehow? Take it to a tailor to insert the padding if you don't know how to do it yourself.

Thank you we were discussing how to make that happen. We are in Japan until April ao may just have to deal for now. I think I have a month or two left of not needing to use it. Depends how fast my belly grows. 

Just checking in to see if you figured out any padding options? 

L Erikson wrote: Just checking in to see if you figured out any padding options? 

My fiance actually took an old reflective mat we had lying around cut it and duct taped it to the leg straps and that did the trick. He cut the end that wraps by the crotch into a point so it wasn't to bulky. That extra little padding seems to keep it from riding up and I'm in my 3rd trimester now and dont notice the harness when we climb. 

Steph Evans wrote: Anyone use this harness during pregnancy? If so did anyone else have the issue of it going up your yonni super aggressively? Suggestions on how to make it more comfortable? I've tried adjusting it differently but there's no padding on it. For now my regular harness still works but those days are soon coming to an end. 

For future (pregnant) readers I have to say that the Petzl 8003 is not a pregnancy specific harness but a regular adult full body harness, hence the issue. 

Fabien M wrote:

For future (pregnant) readers I have to say that the Petzl 8003 is not a pregnancy specific harness but a regular adult full body harness, hence the issue. 

Pregnancy specific harnesses exist, I would rather go for that 

Interesting as I have been using it my whole pregnancy and I am 35 weeks and still climbing with this harness, no issues. For reference I'm 5'10" and it works fantastic 

Steph Evans wrote:

Interesting as I have been using it my whole pregnancy and I am 35 weeks and still climbing with this harness, no issues. For reference I'm 5'10" and it works fantastic 

I m not saying it can't work, just saying its not design as a pregnancy harness specifically

Hi there!  My wife is pregnant, and it seems like the Petzl 8003 is the only adult full size harness available now.  Was wondering, if you had any thoughts on the sizing.  She's 5'3'' and I'm guessing size 1 would be best but kind of hard to tell without being able to try on.

Thanks!!

Michael Yu wrote:

Hi there!  My wife is pregnant, and it seems like the Petzl 8003 is the only adult full size harness available now.  Was wondering, if you had any thoughts on the sizing.  She's 5'3'' and I'm guessing size 1 would be best but kind of hard to tell without being able to try on.

Thanks!!

Hey, Congratulations!! 

there's a harness called Mountain Mama and it has padding but the Petzl worked great for me. My guess is a 1 is what will work best for her. The waist goes up to 37in and the leg loops go up to 24in. With her being 5'1" I'd worry the 2 would be too long. But they can cinch down a lot.  You don't really have to worry about the belly size as the harness fits perfectly around it. I climbed until 40 weeks and she was born 2 days after my last climb. It was a great harness. 

Hey Michael,

Not sure if you’ve figured out the sizing yet. I’m 5’2” and the size 1 fits for me. A lot of extra strap but it tightens down well.

I was cleared for exercise at 7 weeks postpartum and went climbing for the first time after my daughter was born. Nothing super difficult and all top-roping. I ended up injuring my right SI Joint and it’s been so painful for months now. Going to PT weekly and just very limited physical activity. Feeling so disappointed this happened since I was really looking forward to getting back to my normal activities after pregnancy. Has this happened to anyone else? How long did it take you to heal and get back to climbing pain and injury free after pregnancy? Mimiyang

mimi yang wrote:

I was cleared for exercise at 7 weeks postpartum and went climbing for the first time after my daughter was born. Nothing super difficult and all top-roping. I ended up injuring my right SI Joint and it’s been so painful for months now. Going to PT weekly and just very limited physical activity. Feeling so disappointed this happened since I was really looking forward to getting back to my normal activities after pregnancy. Has this happened to anyone else? How long did it take you to heal and get back to climbing pain and injury free after pregnancy? Mimiyang

First off I'm sorry this happened and I'm hearing your frustration. It's so easy to get discouraged and you so desperately want to get back to your life before baby. It's hard to slow down a little. 

What grade were you climbing out of curiosity? I started out with easier 5.6/5.7 routes and doing 2-3 laps maybe once a week starting at 8 weeks pp. I did climb until her due date and she came 2 days later so my guess is that helped keep me strong. If you're breastfeeding you'll continue releasing relaxin and your joints will stay lax making you more prone to injury. If you're not you're only 7 weeks and your body is still regulating, recovering also and you should get better by 3-4 months postpartum. 

I'm still breastfeeding at almost 2yrs old and that's the hardest thing for me is I don't feel like I can push myself as hard as I want to. I just listen to my body and really listen when it tells you to slow down or stop.

I tried this harness for the first time today (20 weeks pregnant) and it came together and squished my belly into a “V” while being lowered on top rope. It was very uncomfortable. Did anyone else experience this and find a solution? I felt like all the weight was squishing my belly together, so I know I’m doing something wrong! If anyone has advice on how it’s worn and adjusted, I appreciate you. Thanks! 

Jessica Cunningham wrote:

I tried this harness for the first time today (20 weeks pregnant) and it came together and squished my belly into a “V” while being lowered on top rope. It was very uncomfortable. Did anyone else experience this and find a solution? I felt like all the weight was squishing my belly together, so I know I’m doing something wrong! If anyone has advice on how it’s worn and adjusted, I appreciate you. Thanks! 

That sounds like coning. I think lowering is the most uncomfortable thing about climbing pregnant. I'd say try being more upright or put your feet on the wall in more of a seated position to see if it makes it feel better while engaging your deep core muscles.  Try loosening the shoulder straps vs leg loops

Steph Evans wrote:

That sounds like coning. I think lowering is the most uncomfortable thing about climbing pregnant. I'd say try being more upright or put your feet on the wall in more of a seated position to see if it makes it feel better while engaging your deep core muscles.  Try loosening the shoulder straps vs leg loops

Thanks! I’ll try that. I think I saw someone else in this thread or another say the leg straps go more so on the glutes than on the thighs? That may have been my problem if so. 

Jessica Cunningham wrote:

Thanks! I’ll try that. I think I saw someone else in this thread or another say the leg straps go more so on the glutes than on the thighs? That may have been my problem if so. 

Can you elaborate on this? I actually just came here looking for advice on how to adjust the leg loops on my Mountain Mama harness so they don’t slide down while I’m climbing—when they slide down they end up pulling down on my shoulder straps and I can’t reach up easily. 

Micaela Mendlow wrote:

Can you elaborate on this? I actually just came here looking for advice on how to adjust the leg loops on my Mountain Mama harness so they don’t slide down while I’m climbing—when they slide down they end up pulling down on my shoulder straps and I can’t reach up easily. 

I’ve unfortunately not found a way to make this harness work for me. I am going to try the mountain mama one because there’s more out there actually specifically for maternity with that one. 

Jessica Cunningham wrote:

I’ve unfortunately not found a way to make this harness work for me. I am going to try the mountain mama one because there’s more out there actually specifically for maternity with that one. 

I have both (hand-me-downs from a formerly-pregnant climber) and I found the Mountain Mama to be more comfortable due to the padding and the position of the straps.

Please let me know if you figure out where you saw the advice about wearing the leg loops on the glutes!

What size of the Petzl 8003 would y'all recommend for someone who's 5'8"? Size 1 or 2? I'm about to buy a new one but if anyone has a used one they'd like to sell, please let me know!