Starting a Postpartum Workout Plan

Many moms are eager to jump back into a postpartum workout plan after being cleared for exercise. Getting back into a routine is great for overall health - mental and physical, but it can be easy to overdue it! In this blog post, I am going to give you tips to start a postpartum workout plan that is safe, and sustainable so you can start getting back to your normal activities!

If we are meeting for the first time - hi! Welcome to Vibrant Mama Wellness! My name is Megan, and I am a pre and postnatal personal trainer. I am certified through the National Academy of Sports Medicine, with a specialization in pre+postnatal fitness through PROnatal fitness. I am a mom of 1, and became interested in pre + postnatal fitness as I was going through my own pregnancy journey!

(Disclaimer: I am not a doctor and this is not medical advice. This blog is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease or condition. This blog post is based on my own research and experience - please consult a medical professional before starting or making any changes to your exercise program).

There are two things to look out for as you’re starting to workout that indicate you’re overdoing it, such as pain or bleeding. If you experience this, stop right away and contact your doctor!

If you’re feeling pretty good, I definitely recommend you take it slow. Slow and steady wins the race, ESPECIALLY in this case. Here are 4 exercises I would start with as you start to build back up your strength and stamina!

Walking.

Walking is phenomenal for you. It hosts a ton of physical benefits such as calorie burning, builds cardiovascular endurance, low impact and safe on joints - but has so many mental benefits as well. Mental benefits include improving mood, boosting energy, and even can have a meditative quality. If you are doing your walks outside, you’re also getting the benefit of fresh air and vitamin D. In the newly postpartum phase, take it easy and listen to your body. Starting with short walks is great, and lengthen them as you feel stronger!

Core Engagement.

Learning how to re-engage your core is so important after pregnancy and birth. Everything has been stretched, and the muscles are weakened. Check out my video on Instagram for how to properly breath and engage your core when working out! I recommend practicing this breathing technique throughout the day, and whenever you are doing household chores (lifting laundry basket, lifting baby, vacuuming, etc). Remember to always exhale and engage your core on the effort to protect yourself from injury.

Glute engagement.

During pregnancy, alignment can be really off (due to the added weight in the front of the body), and often the glutes get lazy! Especially if you tilt your pelvis. Focus on neutral alignment with your pelvis, and avoid arching your low back (tipping the pelvis forward) or tucking your tailbone in. These cause the glutes to essentially shut off, which means other muscles have to work harder to overcompensate. Also focus on things that activate those glutes again such as body weight squats, clam shells, and glute bridges.

Upper body.

Once you have a baby, you’re going to be spending A LOT of your day performing upper body exercises! So practicing these during your workouts is key. Again you want to be thinking about correct alignment and your core engagement. Some great moves to focus on are: bicep curls, overhead press, and rear delt flies.

Remember, everyone recovered at different speeds. This is not a race, and I cannot stress enough that slow and steady is the best way to get back into a routine! Start with doing body weight exercises, and slowly increase resistance/weight as you get stronger. The most important things here to focus on are alignment and core engagement!

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Disclaimer: This blog does not serve as medical advice. Please consult your medical provider before starting a new fitness routine. This blog is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease or condition.