WORKOUT WEDNESDAY Postnatal Exercise

Can you believe that my little Indi Joon is already 3 months old? She’s already smiling and cooing, and has even had a few rather adorable cases of the hiccups. While breastfeeding has helped me lose a lot of my baby weight, I’m still struggling to find time to devote a few minutes to exercise. So, I’ve been doing some reading up on postnatal exercise to find a few tips and tricks that I can fit in to my schedule. By now, I’m all healed and ready to go, but you should always check with your doctor to make sure your body is ready to jump back into your exercise regime (especially when it comes to workouts for your abs.) Enjoy these tips!  

Try Some Gentle Yoga: Yoga can be a soothing way to get back in the game and get your body pumping. You may want to avoid some poses, especially inversions and intense ab work, but you can probably do most of the poses in a beginner class. Let your instructor know that you’re a new mama, and she’ll guide you to the right poses for your body.

Play with Baby (and break a sweat): This is a great tip for moms with babies who can already hold their heads up (3-4 months). Try dancing around with your baby. Put on some rockin’ tunes and keep your abs drawn in as you hold baby close. Or, if you’re good-to-go on working out your abs (ask your doc!) do a few curl ups with your munchkin sitting on your lower belly as you lie on your back. Lift your head, neck and shoulder blades. It becomes a fun way to play peek-a-boo and work out your belly.

Join a Mommy Group: Having the support of other moms can be so helpful with getting back into shape, not to mention all the good advice you’ll get. A few of my best girlfriends just had babies too, and we’re constantly sharing tips and tricks, even when we can’t always be in the same city. Try a postnatal yoga class or a group like Stroller Strides to find some friends with little ones.

With lots of mama love,

Josie

Images via: Fit Pregnancy