I’m one year postpartum — these are the exercises that helped me strengthen my core

I’ve been writing about fitness for over a decade, but nothing made me feel more like a beginner than my first few workouts after giving birth.

I have vivid memories of lying next to my baby’s Moses basket and trying to do a deadbug, only to find my core just wasn’t strong enough. I’ve run five marathons, but childbirth was by far my biggest challenge, and rebuilding my core has been a priority ever since.

Unsurprisingly, your core goes through a lot during pregnancy. Your abdominal muscles have to stretch and sometimes separate (a very normal condition known as diastasis recti) to make room for your growing baby.

What’s more, your body produces a hormone called relaxin, which makes your joints and ligaments looser to prepare the body for labor. This can also affect the stability of your midsection.

Rebuilding a strong core is essential — functional movements you perform every day, like walking up the stairs and lifting your growing baby from his or her crib, will involve your core. But where do you start?

Read on to find the workout I did religiously to strengthen my core this past year.

An important caveat — before returning to exercise, it’s important to get signed off by your doctor or female physical therapist. How soon you’re ready to exercise depends on your birth and whether you experienced any complications or pelvic floor issues. What worked for me might not be right for you and your body.

What is the workout?

The workout I used was devised by a certified pre and postnatal personal trainer, and mom of four, Rachel Hulteen. There are five different exercises involved, and you don’t need any equipment, although as you progress, you might want a set of the best adjustable dumbbells on hand.

When I first started the workout, I did each exercise for 30 seconds, followed by a 30-second rest, and repeated the circuit twice through if I had enough energy. A year later, I’ll do each exercise for a full minute, without a break, and do two or three circuits. It’s been really encouraging to see how I’ve progressed and gotten stronger.

Remember, it’s essential to move slowly and with complete control. If you’re not sure about your form, check in with a personal trainer to make sure you’re not putting too much stress on your lower back or midsection.

Here’s the exercises involved:

• Bridge marches: For this exercise, start by lying on your back, with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Engage your glutes and press into the floor to raise into a bridge. From here, sucking your belly button into your spine, lift one foot off the floor and keeping the 90-degree bend in your leg, raise your knee towards your torso. Lower the leg back to the floor and repeat on the other side, marching one leg then the other. Keep your glutes engaged and your hips lifted throughout the exercise. If this feels too difficult, just lift into a bridge position and lower back to the ground.
• Reach over bridge: For this exercise, start in the same position as you did for the last exercise, but this time, extend your arms behind your head and interlink your fingers. Squeeze your abs and glutes to raise into the bridge position, and at the same time, lift your arms over your head and torso. As you lower your hips back down to the ground, extend your arms back behind your head. Don’t lower your glutes and hands back to the ground as you move through your reps. As you get stronger, to increase the intensity, hold a dumbbell in your hands.
• Bear floor taps: Starting on all fours, with your wrists underneath your shoulders and your knees underneath your hips, engage your core and lift your knees a few centimeters off the ground. Hold here, then tap your knees back down to the floor before lifting back up. Keep your back straight and your core and pelvic floor engaged throughout.
• Bear side taps: For this exercise, start in the same position as the bear floor taps. This time, lift your knees off the ground and pause. From here, tap one foot out to the side of your body, then bring it back in and repeat on the other side. Keep alternating sides. If this is too much, lower back to the ground for a second after completing a toe tap on each side.
• Deadbugs: To complete a deadbug, start by lying on your back, with your lower back pressed into the floor, your arms extended to the ceiling, and your knees bent at a 90-degree angle. Engage your core and extend one leg out away from your body. At the same time, extend the opposite arm. Pause, then bring both back to your starting position and repeat on the opposite side. To progress this exercise, hold a dumbbell in each hand.

What are the benefits?

When cleared to exercise by your doctor, there are a number of benefits to adding core exercises to your postpartum routine. All of these exercises target the deep core muscles — the transverse abdominis, which stabilize and support the spine and core.

A lot of these exercises also work other muscles in the body. The bridges, for example, work the glutes, which are also important postpartum. You might find yourself spending more time sitting down with your newborn, so strengthening your glutes can help stabilize your hips and spine and reduce your risk of injury.

From a mental health perspective, being a new mom is overwhelming, and taking 10 minutes to do a quick workout can help. Remember, you’re doing a great job, and practicing deep core exercises like this can help you speed up your recovery and get you back to the workouts you love.

More from Tom's Guide

• Forget sit-ups — these are the best exercises to re-build your core after a baby
• 7 Diastasis Recti-safe abdominal exercises to try
• I did the 12-3-30 treadmill workout for a month — here's my results