Nine month postpartum and still looking 6 months pregnant. Does that sound familiar? Well, that was me a month ago. I know, everyone says you have to take time for yourself. Your workouts need to be priority. I hear ya, but like many other moms with littles, IT’S HARD. My baby is not sleeping through the night yet, neither is my toddler for that matter. My preschooler has stopped taking naps and doesn’t hit the hay at night until close to 8:00pm. Then my early riser is usually up by 5:30 am. So my day starts early and ends late with very few breaks in between.
I know, some of you may be reading this thinking wow what a load of excuses. I’ve heard it all before. But, for me they are not excuses. It’s life. I know there are other moms out there who can relate. Especially if you have 3 young kids, not in school, at home with you all day, everyday.
Although I’m busy, I still want to try to squeak in tiny workouts here and there. So I decided to come up with something that I was able to work into my schedule. It was a bit tricky as not only was I trying to come up with something quick and very localized, I was also dealing with having a postpartum hernia. SO, that made the whole tummy tightening idea even more difficult. There are so many ab and core moves that I just can not do, from crunches to ball work to too many positions using plank. Let me tell you, when that hernia pops out, it is excruciatingly painful. So doing everything I can to keep it intact while strengthening my core, is exactly my game plan.
Through my research on what core strengthening moves would work for me, I came up with a 4-4-4 program. Four moves, repeated four times, four days a week. I did my 4-4-4 program for one month, and let’s be honest, I didn’t always get all four in every week. But, I did lose 3 whole inches off my waistline. I did not measure my thighs or upper arms, but based on how my clothes fit, they have toned up a bit too.
After creating my 4-4-4 workout, I wrote down each workout on a different colored notecard. Each day, I took out the notecard I planned to use for my workout that day. The colors just helped me to keep track of which ones I’ve already done and which ones I still needed to do. Find a FREE color coded printable here.
Pelvic Tilt: Lie with your back and feet on the floor knees up. Slowly, lift your pelvis to the ceiling. Hold and release. Repeat.
Mountain Climbers: begin in plank. Pull your right knee into your chest. Release. Pull your left knee into you chest. Release. Repeat.
Flamingo: Stand on one foot with your opposite leg bent and hitched at the knee. Place your hands at your ears. Slowly bend forward pushing your bent leg back creating a straight horizontal line with your body. Return to starting position and repeat.
Surrenders: Begin in a kneeling position. Step into a lunge and then pull your body into a fully standing position. Step back into a lunge and return to a kneeling position. Repeat.
Pelvic Tilt + Leg Up: Lie with your back and feet on the floor knees up. Slowly, lift your pelvis to the ceiling. Lift one leg. Hold and release. Repeat alternating legs.
Lying Heel Slide: Lie flat on your back feet flexed. Slowly bend the knee pulling one flexed foot towards your butt. Release and repeat alternating feet.
If you need support with any of these exercise moves please feel free to stop over at my Instagram feed and send me a DM. I am happy to help. Also, take a look at my 4 weeks of fall meal plans. There are some great healthy as well as some comfort food recipes accompanied by a starter shopping list all complied and ready to go.
Although these exercises worked well for me, I am not a doctor or a nutritionist. I am a mom who loves to share what works for me. My goal is to send positive vibes and help moms feel and do their best one blog post at a time.
