Time and energy are precious assets, assets you can’t afford to waste as a mum. Working out requires a significant amount of time AND energy, but so often we come across mums who are committing the time to postpartum fitness but not actually getting stronger or seeing their bodies change. If you’re choosing to dedicate time and energy to your health goals, you probably want to see physical results from your efforts. So, how can you be sure that what you’re doing will get you stronger; and perhaps more importantly, how can you get results in the minimum time possible. Efficiency is key as a mum, so you want your training to be effective.

Rebecca Masters, personal trainer and founder of Strong Mums Club, shares her expert postpartum fitness tips…

Train progressively

To get results you should train at an intensity that challenges you, and then continues to challenge you as you get stronger. If you don’t keep increasing the intensity of your workouts (i.e. training harder and lifting more every session), your body has no reason to change, and won’t get stronger. If you want to build muscle, get stronger and change your body, you need progression. 

Prioritise big muscles and big movements

Prioritising big movements that use multiple muscle groups is the fastest way to get strong and lean. The more muscle you can work during your session, the bigger the impact your workout will have. Focus on training your whole body with big exercises like deadlifts, squats, rows and lunges.  

Repeat your workouts

The most efficient way to get stronger is through repetition. Each time you repeat a session (with increasing intensity) your body learns to adapt to that particular workout, gets stronger in those movements and builds more muscle. When you do a different workout every session, your muscles don’t get the opportunity to respond and adapt so your body won’t change as quickly. Ideally you should be repeating your workouts for about four weeks before switching up the exercises. 

Utilise supersets

A superset is where you perform two exercises back-to-back for the required number of sets. Using upper body/lower body supersets (e.g pairing a squat with a seated shoulder press) is a brilliant way to maximise your training time because you can rest one body part whilst working the other. This minimises rest periods, so you get more done in less time – a huge win for busy mums!

Use a timer

Wasting time during your session is not conducive to an efficient workout. Using a timer for your work/rest periods is particularly useful if you are prone to procrastination as it keeps your session flowing so you can achieve more in less time. 

Prioritise protein

The fastest way to get results, build muscle and lose body fat is to increase your protein consumption. Protein will support your recovery and help you build muscle faster. It’s also highly satiating and stabilises your blood sugar levels, making it far easier to stick to your nutrition goals.

Stay consistent

Progress takes time and whilst you don’t need to spend hours training in the gym, you do need to keep going, even when you can’t yet see the results. Set a training goal that is realistic for your life right now, follow the steps set out above and keep going. 

Starting out on any training or fitness journey can feel overwhelming if you have a lot of work to do. Focus on taking small positive steps towards your goals each day and with the right training plan and a bit of consistency, you will eventually get to where you want to be. 

Rebecca Masters is the founder of Strong Mums Club who are on a mission to empower new mums to feel strong, healthy and confident in their postnatal bodies. They specialise in strength training and body transformations and are passionate about helping women discover the benefits of weight training for their strength, fat loss and health goals. They offer both in-person (mum and baby) and online progressive weight training programs that help women regain confidence in what their body can do post birth. 

@strongmumsclubHQ
strongmumsclub.com

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