4 Easy Stomach Exercises After Pregnancy

Congratulations! Your little one has arrived, and now you have a chance to exercise your stomach a little bit to get it back to prime form! In this article, we discuss some simple stomach exercises after pregnancy to have you looking great in no time!

How soon after pregnancy should you start exercising?

Ultimately, you are the best judge since you know your body best. The general guideline is that you should wait about six weeks after your pregnancy before setting off to tone your stomach. If you had a c-section, wait about eight weeks. As always, please discuss this with your doctor to come up with an optimal timetable.

Pay close attention to the transversus abdominis muscle.

The transversus abdominis (TA) is your most important muscle after pregnancy. It's not visible from outside your body, but provides much-needed stability and helps keeps your midsection shapely. It's the deepest abdominal muscle, and therefore acts as a shell for your internal organs. So take care of it!

And without further ado, here are some easy exercises to get you started on toning that stomach (as always, if you don't feel right while exercising, please stop, and if necessary, seek medical attention):

1. Scissor kicks.

Lie down on the floor. Place your hands under your butt. Raise your right leg up about 10 inches, or as far as you are comfortable and hold for a moment. As you bring your right leg back down, raise your left leg to the same level. Repeat this process about 10 times for one set. Do 3 sets.

2. Crunching the TA (transversus abdominis).

Lie down on the floor with bent knees and feet on the floor. Rest your hands below and off to the sides of your navel. Using each hand, press two of your fingers into the lower part of your stomach. Gently "suck" your lower abdomen in towards the floor, as though your belly button is tied to a string and is being pulled towards the floor. Stay as still as possible - don't move your hips, don't hold your breath, and don't stick your chest out. As soon as your stomach muscles feel tight, stop sucking your stomach in. Don't overdo it - the movement doesn't require too much effort. Hold this position for 10 seconds and repeat the process 10 times.

3. Kegel exercises.

You can do these anywhere, and they're great for strengthening your pelvic floor. Just hold your vaginal muscles in as though you really have to pee but have to hold it in. See if you can work up to contracting the muscles for 10 seconds at a time. Try to do about 30 of these a day for optimal results.

4. Pelvic tilts.

Lie down with your knees up. Slowly lift your pelvis up towards the ceiling, while keeping your upper body on the floor. Hold the position for a second, and then bring your pelvis back to the starting position. Repeat this process about 10-15 times for one set. Do about 3 sets.

So there you go! These are some easy exercises to get you started on toning your stomach after pregnancy. These shouldn't be too hard and should get your abdominals back to normal in no time. Stay tuned for the next article highlighting advanced stomach exercises after pregnancy!