Hopefully, by now, you will feel that your body is recovering well after the birth of your baby. You might still have a little tummy or pelvic floor muscles that are weak.
As long as you feel up to it, you can now increase the amount of exercise. Talk to your doctor first before starting any physical exercises.
Yoga and Pilates are good for you. You can find classes near your home that will help you. Your health visitor or doctor may have the information about these classes. In addition, the Guild of Pregnancy and Postnatal Exercise Instructors has a list of trained exercise teachers who teach in the area, including yoga and Pilates.
Also Read: Science Proves that Plank Exercises are Better than Crunches
Stretching and strengthening exercises such as yoga or Pilates can help you sleep better. When you are sleep deprived, it is hard to get the rest that you need.
One study found that doing 30 minutes of Pilates five times a week led mums to enjoy more satisfying sleep. Once you’ve learned the moves in a class, you can try them at home.
If you want to lose weight and get stronger, exercise is tough for you, and your heart is beating fast. This is called aerobic or cardiovascular exercise. Something as simple as walking quickly or swimming will make your heart and lungs work hard.
Exercise is essential. For beginners, try for 10 minutes of exercise 3 times a week, and then work up to 30 minutes 5 times a week.
It’s important to make sure that you are not too tired when you exercise because it can be dangerous.
Remember to drink plenty of fluids before, during, and after exercise. You should also give yourself a break if you are feeling tired or unwell.
Wear a supportive bra and trainers when exercising. Try not to exercise on an empty stomach. It will take some time to build up your strength and stamina after having a baby. Stop exercising if you feel any pain.
Exercising can help your mood. One study showed that many new moms felt better after exercising. There are two ways to exercise: joining a class or just going for a walk with the baby in her stroller. If you do this every day, it will be better for you and help your mood.
Exercise You Must Avoid
If you just had a baby, don’t do high-intensity aerobics or go running for the first five months. This is because your muscles and joints need to recover from pregnancy and birth.
During pregnancy, a hormone called relaxin makes your ligaments laxer. The effects of relaxin can continue up to five months after your baby is born, so be careful about protecting your joints when you’re exercising.
After you have a baby, do not go swimming in the water for one week or until your lochia has stopped. There is a risk of an infection from the water.
If you are going to do exercise classes that are not designed for new mothers, make sure your teacher knows. They need to know what they should and shouldn’t be doing so they don’t hurt your back.
Exercise You Can Do At Home
To start your exercise session, do five minutes of brisk walking. This helps make you more ready for the workout to come.
You can also do some walking on the spot or up and downstairs. Move your shoulders backwards and forwards a few times and twist from side to side with your hands on your hips.
Lower tummy and pelvic floor exercises
- Get down on your hands and knees.
- Your back should be straight, and you should be relaxed.
- Breathe in when you breathe out, tighten your pelvic floor muscles.
- Imagine that you are trying to stop yourself from passing wind or doing a wee while also pulling your belly button in and up simultaneously.
- Hold for 10 seconds before relaxing everything for 5 seconds before repeating it 10 times.
Bridging exercises
These exercises help you to get better tummy, bottom and thigh muscles:
- Lie on your back on the floor or bed.
- Bend your knees and slide your feet up to your bottom.
- Breathe in and tighten your pelvic floor as you breathe out.
- Lift your bottom as high as it is comfortable for you.
- Keep breathing normally and hold this position for about five seconds while breathing normally.
- Lower yourself back down to the floor slowly, relaxing your pelvic floor muscles when you get there.
- Repeat these exercises up to 10 times if desired but not more than that at a time.
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Hip exercises
- Lie on your right side with both of your knees bent towards you.
- Breathe in and as you breathe out, tighten the muscles around your pelvic floor and lower stomach.
- Keeping your heels together, lift your left knee to the ceiling.
- Do not allow the hips to roll backwards.
- You may find that you can only lift it a little bit before the hips want to roll back.
- Don’t be tempted to lift it higher than how high you can now when you’re just starting.
- Hold for up 10 seconds and then lower it again.
- Repeat this exercise between 7-10 times with each leg for each side (left then right).
