From Jessica Ennis-Hill’s top tips to the latest virtual exercise classes, we round up the best at-home workouts and apps to help keep you fit from the comfort of your own home.
With social distancing becoming the new normal, and many of us opting to self isolate as coronavirus continues to spread, at-home workouts are a great way to keep up with your pre and postnatal fitness routines when the gyms are shut.
Whether you’re expecting and want to keep fit with dedicated pregnancy exercises or are looking to kickstart your postnatal fitness after welcoming your baby, these workouts, fitness apps and virtual exercise classes are a great way to keep fit from home.
Jessica Ennis-Hill’s Top Tips for Pre and Postnatal At-Home Workouts
Olympic champion Jessica Ennis-Hill has launched a new fitness app, jennis, which includes jennis Fitness, Pregnancy and Post-Natal. Check out some of her favourite at-home workouts for pregnant and postnatal women below.
Jess’s Top At-Home Exercises for Pregnant Women
- Theraband leg abduction
- Put the Theraband around your ankles
- Make sure you’re standing strong on your standing leg
- Maintain a really good, upright posture
- Keep your leg straight and foot in parallel
- Raise your leg sideways up and out and back in again
- Do 10 reps on each leg
- Squats with Swiss ball (out in front)
- Place the Swiss Ball between you and the wall as a support
- Make sure your knees are just over shoulder width apart
- Put your arms out straight in front of you
- Stay within your comfort range when you squat
- Squat for 10 reps
- Theraband angels
- Place the Theraband under your feet and take each end in your hands
- Lift your arms up to 10 and 2 o’clock and then back down to your sides
- Make sure your thumbs are pointing up to the ceiling
- Make sure your core is activated
- Do 10 reps
- Shoulder blades activator
- Choose a Theraband with a lighter resistance
- Put the Theraband in both hands and pull it slightly to activate your shoulder blades
- When you step forward, push through your back leg onto your toes
- Bend your elbows at 90 degrees and bring your elbows up to about shoulder height as you step forward
- Make sure to activate your glutes (bottom muscle) as you step forward
- Do 5 on each leg
- Coffee table lift
- Carefully get down onto all fours, with your hands shoulder width apart and your knees hip width apart
- Find your neutral position and make sure your back is nice and flat
- Breathe out and contract your tummy muscles slightly
- Curl your toes under and prepare to lift your knees as you breathe out
- As you lower your knees back down, breathe out
- Do 10 reps
Jess’s At-Home Workout Tips for Postnatal Women
- Superman with hand lifts
- Carefully get onto all fours with your hands shoulder width apart and just in front of your shoulders. Keep your elbows soft
- Your hips and knees should be at 90 degrees and your knees and feet should be a hip width apart
- Find your netural (in this position your back should appear flat), tuck your chin slightly to your chest to keep your neck long. Breathe out and contract your core to 30%
- To get used to transferring your weight from side to side, try lifting alternate hands (like a cat pawing the floor)
- Do 10 reps on each arm
Adaption
- If you can manage this while keeping your back flat, try raising your arm and straightening your elbow reaching through your fingertips. Make sure this is no higher than shoulder height. Repeat on alternate arms
- Mini squats with heel raises
- Stand with your feet a hip width apart and your knees soft
- Find your neutral spine position, relax your shoulders and keep head floating up tall. Breathe out and contract your core
- Breathe out and keeping your heels on the ground, reach your bottom back and fold through your hips to squat as you float your arms to 90 degrees
- Breathe in and life both heels off the ground
- Breathe out and straighten knees to stand
- Breathe in and lower heels and float your arms down
- Do 10 reps
- Arm reaches with Theraband
- Stand with your feet a hip width apart and your knees soft
- Find your neutral spine position, relax your shoulders and keep your head floating up tall
- Breathe out and contract your core to 30%
- Hold a Theraband between your hands so your arms are shoulder width apart and gently move your hands apart to create tension raise your arms to 90 degrees
- Breathe out and reach your arms forward (your shoulder blades with glide out around rib cage)
- Breathe in and return (your shoulder blades will glide down and back towards your spine)
- Do 10 reps
More At-Home Workouts, Virtual Classes and Fitness Apps
Fiit Mum
Need at-home workouts at the touch of a button? Enter FIIT. The leading interactive fitness app, has launched a dedicated postnatal plan called FIIT Mum and it’s everything you need to kickstart your postnatal exercise journey at the touch of a button.
FIIT Mum has been designed by five postnatal fitness experts, and a pelvic health physiotherapist to help the one million new mums every year, restore their strength and confidence after having a baby.
The programme is broken down into 6-week stages, which include each a series of 25-minute classes that mums can take at home, at a time which suits them, without the worry of arranging childcare.
The plan provides a safe and informative work-out schedule, beginning with pilates and yoga to work on the core and pelvic floor, slowly introducing resistance, through weight-training and low impact cardio classes, which help to build functional strength and increase energy levels.
Results With Lucy
Following the UK government’s guidelines to practice social distancing and news that a number of gyms and fitness studios have shut to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, Results With Lucy announced they will be live streaming a number of at-home workouts for free.
Read More:
- COVID-19 and Pregnancy: Guidelines, Questions and Advice
- How to Baby Proof Your Home
- Missguided Launches First Maternity Collection
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