{"id":43178,"date":"2015-09-04T07:15:58","date_gmt":"2015-09-04T11:15:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/?p=43178"},"modified":"2021-11-18T08:15:14","modified_gmt":"2021-11-18T13:15:14","slug":"post-pregnancy-exercise-tips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/fitness\/post-pregnancy-exercise-tips\/","title":{"rendered":"Body After Baby: Here\u2019s What You Need to Know"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"What
Photo: Pond5<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Think the only thing scarier than birthing a baby is the idea of getting back in shape afterwards? You\u2019re not alone. Those first few workouts back are going to \u201calmost be harder than when you were pregnant,\u201d says Sara Haley<\/a>, prenatal and postnatal exercise specialist (and mother of two).<\/p>\n

\u201cI call it the ‘fourth trimester’ for a specific reason, because it is like<\/em> you\u2019re pregnant \u2014 you still have to treat yourself that way \u2014 which is super frustrating because you\u2019re not,\u201d says Haley, who\u2019s DVD Expecting More: The 4th<\/sup> Trimester Workout<\/em> came out in April 2015. Here\u2019s what you need to know about easing your body back<\/a> into a fitness routine.<\/p>\n

RELATED:<\/strong> 17 Tips from Fit Mom Bloggers on Finding Time for Exercise<\/a><\/p>\n

Post-Pregnancy Weeks 1 – 6: Recover<\/strong><\/h3>\n

We\u2019ve all heard stories about women who hop back on the spin bike within two weeks of giving birth. You don\u2019t<\/em> need to be that woman. \u201cMy first pregnancy, I was totally that person\u2026I did go back harder than I should have and felt like my internal recovery was harder as a result,\u201d Haley recalls.<\/p>\n

“Don\u2019t forget about those kegels. Bladder control during Zumba is not <\/em>underrated.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

How fast you bounce back will depend on a variety of factors. \u201cFor a cesarean, we tell them no real exercise until six weeks out. You can walk around but no vigorous exercise,\u201d says Dr. Joanne Stone<\/a>, MD, director of Maternal Fetal Medicine at Mount Sinai Health System. \u201cFor a vaginal delivery, I tell people do what your body tells you. Everybody is a little different.\u201d<\/p>\n

Depending on how fit you were before and during your pregnancy<\/a>, some women can start being active again within a few days or weeks (as long as your doc gives you the OK). \u201cI think for most people, after vaginal delivery, usually you want to give yourself around two weeks to recover enough from delivery,\u201d Stern says.<\/p>\n

Approved to Exercise? Start Gentle<\/strong><\/h3>\n

You\u2019ll either be psyched or horrified when your doctor tells you it\u2019s OK to start exercising again. But don\u2019t worry; it\u2019s normal to go slow. \u201cOnce you\u2019re approved, that doesn\u2019t mean go back to what you were doing [pre-pregnancy],\u201d Haley says. \u201cTo me, that\u2019s light cardio, low impact workouts and focusing on your core work.\u201d (And don\u2019t forget about those kegels<\/a>. Bladder control during Zumba is not <\/em>underrated.) Just don\u2019t forget to listen to your body. \u201cDo you feel like halfway through spin [you\u2019re] going to vomit? Then you need to scale back,\u201d Stern says.<\/p>\n

RELATED:<\/strong> DailyBurn Postnatal Yoga: A Gentler Way to Exercise<\/a><\/p>\n

Your abs have been through a lot over the last nine months, too, so try this move to gradually start getting your core back in gear.<\/p>\n

\"Post-pregnancy
Photo: SaraHaley.com<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Heel Slide<\/strong><\/h3>\n

How to:<\/strong> Lie flat on your back, arms by your sides (a)<\/strong>. Keep your left leg fully extended, and bend your right leg, heel planted on the floor near your left knee (b)<\/strong>. Slide your heel along the floor, until your right leg is straight, contracting your abs as your leg is moving (c)<\/strong>. Repeat 10 times, then switch sides.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t shy away from cardio, either \u2014 that\u2019s what will help you start shedding extra pregnancy pounds (or as Haley likes to call it, baby cushioning). Walking lunges, squats<\/a> and or stationary jumping jacks are a great way to start. Do them Tabata-style<\/a> (20 seconds on, followed by 10 seconds of rest), for an extra challenge. \u201cIt\u2019s great for mom because you think, 20 seconds, I can totally handle that,\u201d Haley says.<\/p>\n

Feeling Good? Amp It Up<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n

You\u2019re at the point where you\u2019re feeling strong (and you\u2019re starting to get the swing of this whole \u2018taking care of a baby\u2019 thing). Now might be the time to push your workouts to the next level \u2014 as long as you\u2019re being kind to your body. \u201cYou have to make sure you have the energy and you\u2019re getting some degree of rest so you can function and exercise. And you have to stay well-hydrated<\/a>,\u201d says Dr. Stern.<\/p>\n

RELATED:<\/strong> How Yoga Helped This Mom Fight Stress, One Pose at a Time<\/a><\/p>\n

Start building up your cardio and endurance \u2014\u00a0and add this core move into the mix. \u201cI still do this and it\u2019s challenging and I\u2019m 14 months out,\u201d Haley says.<\/p>\n

\"Post-Pregnancy
Photo: SaraHaley.com<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Resistance Fight<\/strong><\/h3>\n

How to:<\/strong> Lie on your back, with your knees bent to 90 degrees, feet planted on the ground (a)<\/strong>. Bring your right leg up to tabletop position, keeping your knee bent and foot flexed (b)<\/strong>. Place your left hand on your right thigh, and engage your core as you attempt to bring your thigh in towards your body, while creating resistance with your hand (c)<\/strong>. Switch sides and repeat. Eventually, use two hands to create even more resistance.<\/p>\n

As you slowly gain back strength, remember, post-baby workouts are extra challenging for a reason. \u201cI think it\u2019s great to work out with the baby in front of you because it\u2019s like I want to be strong for this child and also, I have to keep in mind this is what I just created and that\u2019s why this is so hard,\u201d Haley says.<\/p>\n

Want a workout that\u2019s built just for YOU? Learn more about DailyBurn 365<\/a>, a totally doable program that offers new 30-minute workouts every day.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Getting back in shape post-pregnancy is no joke. That\u2019s why we put together this easy guide to make it feel less overwhelming. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":53,"featured_media":43186,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,6],"tags":[219,341,343,100],"class_list":["post-43178","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exercise","category-fitness","tag-pregnancy","tag-tax1living-well","tag-tax2exercise","tag-workout"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43178","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/53"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43178"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43178\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43186"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43178"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43178"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43178"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}