Exercise at home

[Aleksandra1977]

Hi everyone,

I'm 8 weeks postnatal and really want to get exercising but don't have the money (or space) to go out and get equipment in my house or the time to get down to the gym! I'm desperate to start exercising for 2 reasons really, the obvious (weight loss), but also to hopefully lift my mood a bit which I always used to get post exercise! Does anyone have any home workouts (dvds, websites, games, anything!) that you would recommend?

This is a great website . You don't need any equipment.
www.bodyrock.tv/page/5/. Great for abs, trust me!

I just plugged in my mp3 with some really dancey music and jumped about like a loon! It kept DS amused too.

Combined that with lots of walking and I really felt the benefit mood wise.

thanks gordonpym, it's hard to find websites etc. that I know are safe as a lot of them do seem a bit extreme and you never know if what they recommend is safe particularly as I'm postnatal, but I'll take a look at your recommendation!

It is just a bit hard to differentiate what actually works. so many celeb stuff out there but it is clear that it's not just the dvd that got them into shape!

SkipToTheEnd, thanks for this. Maybe that is the way forward. i'm concerned with getting a little bit of a structured workout and following some routine of some sort, but maybe going a bit manic for a bit is the way forward!!

I find the Zest Magazine website really good for doing work outs at home. They add new exercises all the time, have fitness programmes for all different fitness levels, and to target specific areas (like arms, or legs).

I have been doing their 'Pippa Middleton Bum Work out' religiously, i expect it's just a matter of time until I see results! Good luck!

but when you follow these routines (magazines, dvds etc.) do you feel they are safe to do? I'm so confused as to what I should or shouldn't do though at this stage. Most of these exercises are for people who are fully fit already. Does anyone have recommendations that they trust for post natal exercise at home? (Maybe I'm worrying too much!!)

Have you had a post natal check from the docs? Did you have a CS or a difficult assisted delivery? You can ask your GP or midwife whether it us ok to exercise. Generally unless you have a specific 'issue' then you should be ok by 8 weeks. Be aware of your iron levels and drink plenty if breast feeding. Also if you think you have separated stomach muscles then you need to be careful what stomach exercises you do. Gp should be able to tell you HF this is the case, but I believe it isfairly obvious.

I think DVDs more motivational than trying to follow a set of routines from a book/magazines tbh. It depends what level of fitness you are working from. I really rate Jillisn Michaels DVDs (if you have been on mumsnet for more than z day you must have seen a 'Shred Thread'!) I found nearly all of hers good- but they are not the easy option. There always 'beginner' versions of all the exercises though, and the shred itself is only 20 mins.