I’m officially just over five months postpartum and I’m feeling incredible!
Next week will be my 31st birthday, and even after having a baby, I’m probably in better shape than I was a year before getting pregnant.
This is not to gloat, or make you stop reading this post. It’s to show you that all of our postpartum journeys are different.
That no matter where you’re at, these workouts can work for you.
I say this with confidence because I’ve done them pre-baby, pregnant, and now postpartum. And I’ve watched hundreds of other women do the same.
But there are a few key things I think you should know that really attributed to getting in shape after baby.
Postpartum workout key #1: be kind to yourself
I’m starting with this one because if you know anything about me, you know that I 100% believe our minds play such a huge role in our success.
Which is why if you’re starting your postpartum weight loss journey from a place of shame or hatred for your body, it’s not going to work.
You could possibly see initial weight loss from this place, but it won’t be lasting weight loss.
Because if, deep down, you dislike what you see in the mirror and are constantly playing a story of “I’m fat. The weight just won’t come off. I can’t seem to lose the baby fat.” then all of those things will become your truth.
Meaning you won’t see consistent and lasting weight loss because you’ve convinced yourself that you’re not meant to lose the weight.
By being kind to yourself, and telling yourself a new story, you will see consistent and lasting weight loss.
The story I told myself every day in the shower was:
- I love my toned arms
- I love my tight, toned and flat stomach
- I love my toned and muscular thighs
- I love my perky boobs full of milk {yes, I still say this one because I’m still breastfeeding Kennedy}
By telling myself this story every single day, my body started to follow suit of what my mind believed to be true about myself.
Postpartum workout key #2: don’t expect immediate change
This honestly goes for more than just postpartum workouts and weight loss.
None of us can expect immediate change, as much as we would like to, in our bodies. Especially after giving birth. We spent nine months growing a small human in our bellies. Everything changed the moment we got pregnant. BUT that does not mean you can’t reach your weight loss goals just because you had a child.
It goes back to key #1 and the story you’re telling yourself. Start writing a new story, and you will start to see a change.
Again, it’s not going to be immediate. You have to put in the consistent work to see consistent change.
I work out every day.
Not every day is intense. Some days it’s a walk around the neighborhood. Other days it’s an intense HIIT session. Sometimes it’s a run. Some days it’s yoga.
But every day I’m moving my body. This signals to my body that I’m being consistent in my routine. Which in turn tells my body to be consistent in achieving the weight loss I’m looking for.
I didn’t expect weight loss to be immediate after baby. Especially because I had a pretty intense delivery that caused a fourth degree tear and meant six weeks of healing.
Postpartum workout key #3: listen to your body
Which leads me to key #3: listening to your body during postpartum workout.
I waited the full six weeks that was required by my doctor to heal my body.
But because I had worked out a lot pre-pregnancy and all throughout my pregnancy, I felt comfortable with starting to workout when the six week mark hit.
Actually, my first workout was exactly on the end of week six. I was just so ready to get back to it. To move my body in a way that I knew felt good for it.
However, I did listen to my body all throughout the first workout. Things were different than I remembered. Taking six weeks off of working out meant that I wasn’t going to be as strong as I had been. I was going to get winded faster than before.
And all of that was okay! Because I payed attention to key #1 and was kind to myself. I didn’t expect my body to do exactly the same thing it did pre-baby.
I gave myself grace and love and hope to continue to workout and get stronger with every workout.
Again, consistency is key!
Postpartum workout key #4: push yourself
Okay, I know I just got done saying to listen to your body, but you do need to push yourself after awhile.
Try new workouts. Try new moves. Do something you haven’t done before.
If you push yourself just a little bit harder each workout, you’ll start to see incredible gains week to week.
What I mean is maybe week one you do scaled back or modified jumping jacks. Then week two you do a few full-out jumping jacks and then the modified ones. Keep pushing yourself each week to add on the full-out jumping jacks, and before you know it, your body is going to be doing them all full-out.
I also suggest trying new workouts and not getting stuck in a rut. It can be easy to just go for a run every day, but what about strength training? Or if you’re only a weights girl, why not give a dance video a try?
Getting out of your workout comfort zone will keep your body guessing, and will encourage it to make changes you may have never seen before.
The exact postpartum workout I did to get in my best shape
Before I tell you the exact program I did during my postpartum workout journey, I want to emphasize the “my best shape”.
That’s because, like I said in the beginning, we all have our own postpartum journeys.
This is the shape that I want to be in. This is where I feel my best. I want you to use these workouts to get in your best shape, whatever that means to you.
Now that that’s out of the way…let’s get into the workout.
I’ve been doing Beachbody workouts for over two years now, and this particular program was released when I was at the beginning of my pregnancy.
I decided to do it, Morning Meltdown 100, because it would get me through my entire pregnancy. I also knew they had a couple modifier options, which would allow me to {again} listen to my body during my workouts.
When I started this program again, postpartum, I was excited to try many of the moves I had modified during pregnancy.
Morning Meltdown 100
This particular program is broken out into five phases. Phase one was definitely difficult. And I could tell that my body wasn’t quite used to workout out yet. So I took it slow, but by the end of phase one, I was doing many of the moves full-out and for almost the entire duration of the move.
What I love the most about Morning Meltdown 100 is that it combines cardio, HIIT, strength training, kickboxing and yoga. Not only that, but the workouts are, max, 30 minutes. Meaning, for this mama, it’s the best way for me to squeeze in a workout while Kennedy naps.
By the end of the entire program, I was in my best shape, and feeling absolutely incredible! I was also incorporating running in with this program, because strength training and the cardio sessions only enhanced my running.
I pushed myself to get the most out of each workout, and appreciated the active rest days.
These results won’t be the same for every woman. It depends on how much effort and consistency, grace and love you plan to give yourself. But I’ve seen this program affect so many women in a positive way, that I just had to share what worked so well for me.
If you want to chat more about these workouts, or if there’s a program that could work for you, I’d love to talk more! Just put a comment below this post and I’ll get back to you!
