It took a lot of creativity to get fit after having a baby. When I was 8 months pregnant with my first child, and packing my hospital bag, a good friend told me she was able to wear her pre-pregnancy jeans home from the hospital. I packed my pre-pregnancy jeans in my hospital bag, but also packed a pair of super comfy yoga pants. Proudly, I wore my yoga pants out of the hospital, and around the house for many days to come! Months after both of my girls were born, I continued wearing my maternity pants, and that was ok!
Eventually, the weight came off and my old clothes began to fit again. As a former personal trainer-turned-stay-at-home mom, I believe healthy weight loss is more important than quick weight loss. Here are 8 tips to help you get fit after having a baby-in a healthy manner.
Tips to Get Fit After Having a Baby
WALKING
Walking often gets a bad rap for not being enough of an exercise. You can burn just as many calories walking as you can by running; it just takes longer to do it. After having your baby, you can usually start a walking routine before the doctor clears you for more intense exercise. How many of you moms out there have a certain time of the day when your kids are restless and cranky?
My solution is to load my girls into the stroller and go for a walk! We all feel better after getting out of the house, and I get to burn a few calories along the way. There are also apps you can download, such as Map My Walk which help you keep track of miles walked and calories burned.
After having a baby, with the catheters and the meds and physical toll it takes on your body, getting up and starting walking is one the best things you can do. It may feel impossible at first, but take it slow, feel it out, and before you know it you’ll be walking for blocks on end with your little one curled up in their stroller.
GYM TIME
If your kids are a little older and you feel comfortable leaving them in child care or with a babysitter for a few hours, join a gym. There are many days that I don’t really feel like exercising, but I head to the gym anyway.
My girls love interacting with the other kids and playing with new toys, and I get an hour or so of me time. If you have never worked out in a gym before, ask for a free orientation to get familiar with the equipment. You can also find ideas for workout routines on websites like Pinterest.Try taking a class-whether its yoga, boot camp, or step, most gyms offer a variety of classes to suit you. Let the instructor know you are new and they can help you modify the exercises if needed.
FITNESS DVDs
Working out with a DVD at home can also be a great way to squeeze in a workout and get fit after having a baby. They are low cost, and you don’t have to worry about finding the extra time it might take to get to and from the gym.
There are a million options to choose from (PIYO is my current favorite), so pick something that you think may be fun yet challenging. Carve away 30 minutes (or even less) a few times a week when you can take a break from the dishes, laundry, and other chores to focus on getting healthy.
FIND A FRIEND
Having someone to keep you accountable will help you reach your goals faster than going at it alone. When my first daughter was still a baby, I would put her down for a nap at my friend’s house, and together we would workout with our favorite DVD.
The benefit of creating healthy habits for ourselves means we are also setting a good example for our children. My husband will often take our older daughter to the park to do sprints. They race up and down the field together, burning calories and tiring her out!
Sometimes I have a few minutes to spare, so I pick up the baby and do squats and lunges with her in my arms. Or I lay her on her back on the floor and do pushups, giving her kisses at the bottom. We are having fun and burning calories at the same time.
SET A GOAL
How about committing to exercise 3 days a week to start off? Or you can try walking for a certain time or distance each day.
If you are interested in running, sign up for a 5k and start following the training plan. Take a before and after picture, and put your goals down in writing.
My goal is written on my bathroom mirror just big enough to remind me what I’m working towards. I schedule my workouts into the week to also keep me accountable.
GOOD NUTRITION
Most important to any health and fitness goals is nutrition. You can exercise all you want, but if you do not give your body the fuel it needs, you will not be able to feel healthy. Especially if you are a nursing mom, eating the right amount and kind of calories is not only important for you, but also for the baby you are feeding.
You don’t have to deprive yourself. I give myself one day a week to eat and drink anything I want. Everything in moderation is a great way to approach nutrition.
Buy healthy foods, eat healthy foods, and serve them to your children as well. Starting when they are infants and toddlers offer these foods to help establish what foods we will eat as a family and which ones we will only have now and then as treats.
DRINK WATER
Drinking water helps keep you full and your body working properly. Try flavoring your water with lemon or cucumber. Set another goal to drink enough water that you need to fill up your favorite water bottle (fill in the blank) times per day. Nursing moms should plan on drinking even a little more.
Approach any new exercise routine slowly. Listen to your body, and take your time. Let’s show our kids what a healthy lifestyle looks like, and how to make smart food choices.
Don’t forget to have fun!
How do you fit in exercise after having a baby?
This post is featured in A Complete Guide for Stay-at-Home Moms: Exercise Inspiration.
Jessica Stremer has a BS in Biology and has worked as a Certified Personal Trainer through NSCA. She currently enjoys her position as a stay at home mom. Jessica has been married to her husband, a US Marine Corps Pilot for 7 years. They have two little girls, a 3 year old and a 14-month old. She enjoys staying physically active, trying new recipes, getting together with friends, and crafting.
A huge thank you to my friend Jessie for putting this together for you! It is a great resource to have a friend so well versed on fitness. She and I both wanted to share a no-stress and sensible set of tips for moms to get fit after having a baby and shed some baby weight.
We want to be sure you know that the number on the scale IS NOT the main focus in your fitness and exercise goals.
Both Jessie and I did not lose all our baby weight the second we delivered our babies-Jessie took 13 months with her first child and 9 months after her second child to lose her “baby weight.”
I mentioned in my breastfeeding tips post that I hold on to about 5-10 pounds while breastfeeding. I know that breastfeeding is temporary (in the grand scope of life) and know that the extra fat is essential to making enough milk for feeding my babies. I took 6-7 months to lose all of my baby weight with my first child (but I was formula feeding by 6 months), 9 months with my second child, and am still hanging on to about 5 pounds after 10 months of breastfeeding the twins.
There is no timeline for losing the baby weight that fits everyone. Your body has matured through pregnancy and child birth, so often even getting back to pre-baby weight may not be healthy anymore. Whatever your goals, I know these tips that Jessie laid out for us are supremely important to keep in mind!
Sadly I don't get to exercise as much as I should, but I do agree that walking was key for me to fit into my pre-pregnancy clothes. That's pretty much all you CAN do during those first few months. I also ate well, which helps hugely!
I had a much easier time fitting into my old size after my singleton pregnancy, but with the twins pregnancy, I still have yet to go down to my old size and am one size above. Not too bad, and the clothes still fit.
Nina, I fall into that same group-not enough time to really exercise as regularly as I should. As busy as we are with kids, I think a lot of that movement counts as low impact exercise though. (At least, I hope it does!) I hear ya on the single baby vs. twins differences. I can definitely see a difference in how my body has bounced back after the twins…not sure it will completely go back to "pre baby" but there are other things to worry about, right? 😉
Hi there! Welcome to my little corner of the internet. My name is Jaimi, and I am a mom who loves to encourage other mothers in the season of raising children, making a home, and staying focused on the end goals of motherhood.
This site is amazing! Can’t believe I’ve only just found it!
I am so glad you did!
Thanks for the tips! So hard to find time but gotta make it a habit!
So true! I think I have stopped and started many times.
Awesome tips! Thanks for sharing these!
Personally, I have 3 kids and everytime I want to lose the baby fat, jogging strollers work perfectly! And the kids get to experience the outdoors 🙂
Win-win for sure!
Cheers,
Evelyn
Definitely a win-win!
Sadly I don't get to exercise as much as I should, but I do agree that walking was key for me to fit into my pre-pregnancy clothes. That's pretty much all you CAN do during those first few months. I also ate well, which helps hugely!
I had a much easier time fitting into my old size after my singleton pregnancy, but with the twins pregnancy, I still have yet to go down to my old size and am one size above. Not too bad, and the clothes still fit.
Nina, I fall into that same group-not enough time to really exercise as regularly as I should. As busy as we are with kids, I think a lot of that movement counts as low impact exercise though. (At least, I hope it does!) I hear ya on the single baby vs. twins differences. I can definitely see a difference in how my body has bounced back after the twins…not sure it will completely go back to "pre baby" but there are other things to worry about, right? 😉
Excellent tips! Wearing jeans after having a baby sounds painful. =) After having a baby, I went on a lot of walks.
I agree! Jeans after giving birth was never interesting to me. LOL! Walking was and still is my favorite exercise.