Workout Routines For New Moms
If you’re one of the new moms ready to get back to the gym or start a fitness program to eliminate pregnancy fat or strengthen muscles, choosing your workout routine can become a big task. It’s important to remember that no matter what you do, it took nine months of changes to accommodate the baby. Don’t expect it all to reverse in a few weeks. Your body also requires time to heal, so don’t push yourself too hard initially. Start with workouts to strengthen the pelvic floor and pelvic stability.
Start the process with low-impact exercises.
Unless your healthcare professional advises otherwise, you can start in the first six weeks with gentle exercises like walking. Don’t push yourself, but don’t shy away from short walks, light stretching, and mild core work like side-lying abdominal contractions and pelvic tilts. Your pelvic floor needs work at this time to regain control and strength. Start by doing kegels. Kegels work the muscles that control urine flow. You can tighten and release them or attempt to stop urine flow midstream when using the toilet.
After the first six weeks, you’ll be ready for more challenging workouts.
Most doctors give the green light to exercise after the first six weeks. You can start with low-impact exercises. You may already have been walking and doing mild core exercises or stretches. Lifting the baby has probably increased your strength. Don’t jump into a high-intensity workout but listen to your body. Swimming, stationary bikes, pelvic exercises, and yoga poses, like the combination cat-cow pose, can help rebuild the body without excess stress. If you were active while pregnant, you may be ready for more strenuous workouts before the end of six weeks.
Move on to more difficult workouts, especially those that build strength.
Use bodyweight strength training to build muscle and strength. Do box squats to start your workout. You can use a chair to help. The seat should be thigh-high. Stand with your feet pointing forward, shoulder-width apart. Squat down as though you were going to sit, but when your bottom touches the chair, immediately rise as you squeeze your leg muscles and thighs. When you feel strong enough, do traditional squats. If you want to start core strength workouts, before you do planks, start with wall push-ups.
- Yoga poses and simple stretches are underrated as postpartum exercises. A child pose can release muscle tension in the chest and neck while strengthening the pelvic floor.
- When you first start exercising, use simple exercises that don’t require much effort. A heel slide is one of those. Lay on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Slowly slide one heel forward as you tighten your abdominal muscles. Return it to the starting position and do the other side.
- Always focus on form. Once you’re ready for more intense workouts, add glute bridges, planks, and reverse lunges. You can start strength-building exercises without weights and gradually add weight.
- When you’re ready to start, our personal trainers will help guide you through a process that safely builds your body back to its original fitness or even better. We gear the workout to your needs and fitness level.
For more information, contact us today at VIP Fitness Center
If you’ve recently been injured, you don’t have to sit in your easy chair nursing a bowl of ice cream or mashed potatoes for comfort. You can stay fit and healthy even if you can’t do your normal workout. It may take some modifications or changing your fitness routine, but it’s possible. Get creative to overcome your limitations while you keep your goal in mind. Always listen to your healthcare professional before starting an exercise program to ensure you won’t exacerbate your condition.
Clients at VIP Fitness in Fort Lee, NJ, tell me the two hardest things to overcome on their road to good health are motivating themselves to start a fitness program and pushing themselves each day to go to the gym. It’s the reason that many people think that getting fit is more mental than it is physical. If your brain can’t convince your body to start exercising, you won’t get any benefits. It takes mental toughness to persuade ourselves that pushing hard and exercising are beneficial. It’s also far too easy to say, “I’ll do it tomorrow.”
We help clients at VIP Fitness in Fort Lee, NJ, learn to eat healthier. That includes more than meals. It includes snacks as well. What you eat should give you energy without spiking blood sugar. Food that causes blood sugar to rise rapidly has an aftereffect. It also causes blood sugar levels to drop just as rapidly. The type of snack you eat makes a difference. Eating the right food before exercising can improve the quality of your session and start the recovery process.
Depression can affect anyone at any time. It’s more than just feeling sad or having the blues. It’s a clinical problem that requires treatment. Depression can come from mental or physical issues, so always check with your healthcare professional when you experience symptoms. Exercise, no matter what the type, can help depression. It’s become an adjunct therapy that works better than some medications. The more intense the exercise, the better. The body can’t operate at peak intensity for very long. It’s why HIIT exercises are so beneficial. It alternates the intensity between peak and recovery pace.
One of the things I most often hear from busy people is that they don’t have time to exercise. Their life is already too chaotic to add one more thing to do. While it’s true that exercise takes time, it’s a stress reliever that can clear your head. It also helps you become more productive. That means you save time doing other things while you stay healthier. The healthier you are, the less time you spend at the doctor’s office and the more energy you have.
Many people in Fort Lee, NJ, find it a task to maintain their fitness. You have to say no to delicious treats that are unhealthy and yes to exercise. Since time began, many have struggled to make physical tasks easier. It’s almost against the nature of man to add physical work that doesn’t build a shelter or end by accomplishing a task. What most people don’t realize is that it is productive. It’s sculpting your body and keeping you healthy. Changing your perspective on exercise helps.
Illness or injury can cause pain. Exercise can also create pain if you overdo it. One of the most devastating types of pain comes from arthritis. It’s a deep pain that inhibits movement. It can cause people to take OTC drugs like ibuprofen or acetaminophen so they can function each day. Unfortunately, taking too many OTC and prescription pain relief drugs comes with an entirely different set of issues. You can reduce arthritis pain naturally. The only side effect is improved health.
Feel the burn or love the burn, both these phrases describe feeling the accomplishment of pushing yourself until you feel the burning feeling in your muscles. That burning occurs when the body fuels the muscles in a process known as glycolysis. It causes glucose to break down to create adenosine triphosphate—ATP. The amount produced depends on how much oxygen is available. The higher the intensity level the more anaerobic glycolysis takes place. Lactate is the byproduct. The increased lactate causes a hydrogen ion to separate to create lactic acid which causes a drop in the cell’s pH. You don’t have to feel the burn to benefit from a workout.