Train Smart after Having a Baby: Why Working with a Postnatal Specialist Matters

Beth Salter
May 11
3 min read

After having a baby, it’s natural to want to feel strong, mobile, and like yourself again. But your postnatal body has been through huge changes — physically, hormonally, emotionally — and it deserves more than a generic workout or one-size-fits-all fitness plan.

Whether you're 8 weeks or 8 years postnatal, strength training under the guidance of a postnatal specialist is one of the smartest, most powerful things you can do for your body and wellbeing.

Here’s why:

1. Your Core and Pelvic Floor Need Specific Rehab — Not Just Crunches

After pregnancy and birth, your deep core system — including your pelvic floor, diaphragm, and transverse abdominis — can become weakened or dysfunctional. This might show up as leaking, a feeling of heaviness, doming along the midline, or just a general sense of disconnection.

A postnatal specialist understands this system and can help you rebuild strength from the inside out. That means:

Reconnecting with your breath
Relearning how to engage your deep core
Supporting or healing diastasis recti
Training your pelvic floor for function, not tightness

Before returning to running, lifting weights, or even doing a plank, your core needs to be retrained to support impact, load, and everyday mum life.

2. Not All Movements Are Created Equal

What worked for you before pregnancy might not work for you now. Movements that once felt good may now feel off, uncomfortable, or even risky — especially if your body is compensating for weakened muscles or altered posture.

A postnatal specialist helps you:

Understand what your body needs now
Rebuild movement patterns with awareness
Adjust exercises to support your recovery
Avoid exercises that may aggravate symptoms like leaking, pelvic heaviness, or back pain

Every postnatal journey is different. You deserve support that meets you where you are — not where someone else thinks you “should” be.

3. Strength = Energy, Resilience, and Long-Term Health

Yes, strength training can help you feel physically strong again — but the benefits go so much deeper:

Increased bone density (important after the bone loss that can occur in pregnancy and breastfeeding)
Improved insulin sensitivity and metabolic health
Better posture and alignment for carrying children and daily life
Less risk of injury through stronger joints and muscles
More energy and better movement efficiency

And let’s be real — picking up toddlers, lifting prams, carrying car seats… motherhood is physically demanding. Strength training prepares you for it all — so you can move through life with less pain and more power.

4. Pilates Is Great — But It’s Just One Piece of the Puzzle

Pilates is amazing for building control, breathing awareness, and deep core connection — and we love it. But on its own, it doesn’t give you the full picture of what your body needs postnatally.

What’s often missing?

Power and explosiveness
Bone and joint loading
Heart health and cardiovascular benefits
Energy system development
Hormonal benefits from resistance training

Strength training (done well and safely) fills those gaps. And when combined with functional movement, pelvic floor awareness, and thoughtful progressions, it becomes an incredible tool for recovery and empowerment.

5. Confidence Comes from Knowing You're Supported

When you train with a postnatal specialist, you’re not just getting a workout — you’re getting:

Education about your own body
Reassurance that what you're feeling is normal
Space to ask questions without judgement
Adjustments and progressions tailored for you
Encouragement when things feel hard
Celebrations when progress shows up (because it will!)

This isn't just fitness — it’s your comeback. It’s about rebuilding trust in your body, shifting your mindset, and reclaiming movement that feels fun, strong, and freeing.

The Bottom Line? You Deserve More Than “Bouncing Back”

There’s a lot of pressure to “get your body back” — but the truth is, you’ve never left it. Your body has done something incredible, and now it deserves care, attention, and smart strength training to support it moving forward.

💛 You don’t have to do it alone.

💪 You don’t have to feel broken.

🏋️‍♀️ You can feel powerful again — and we’re here to help you every step of the way.

This is Mamatime — where strength meets support, and every mum gets the space to feel good again.

Ready to train smart, feel strong, and reconnect with your body?👉