Affordable Fitness Equipment to Rebuild Strength Postpartum at Home
Postpartum moms, let’s talk about taking your home workouts to the next level! Whether you’re easing back into fitness after giving birth or working on postpartum rehab, having the right equipment can make all the difference. The best part? You don’t need a fully stocked gym to get started. With a few versatile and affordable tools, you can build strength, improve mobility, and support your recovery journey from the comfort of your home.
In this guide, I’ll share my top picks for fitness equipment perfect for postpartum moms. Each item includes a description of how it supports your workouts and examples of how to use it in a postpartum rehab routine. Plus, I’ll include alternatives you might already have at home to keep things budget-friendly.
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1. Yoga/Exercise Mat
A high-quality yoga or exercise mat provides a comfortable and stable surface for floor exercises, stretching, and mobility work. It’s essential for protecting joints and ensuring grip during workouts. Choosing a mat with adequate thickness (about 6-10mm) can help cushion your knees, wrists, and back during exercises, especially postpartum, when your body is more sensitive. The mat is also easy to roll up and store, making it a practical option for any home.
How to Use It:
Perform core rehab exercises like pelvic tilts and diaphragmatic breathing.
Use it for yoga flows to improve flexibility and balance.
Create a safe surface for exercises like bridges, side-lying leg lifts, or modified planks.
2. Resistance Bands
Resistance bands are a must-have for building strength and adding variety to your workouts. They’re lightweight, portable, and come in different resistance levels to match your progress. Bands benefit postpartum fitness by allowing for controlled movements, reducing the risk of injury as you rebuild strength. Plus, they’re small enough to toss into a diaper bag for quick workouts anywhere.
How to Use Them:
Strengthen your glutes with banded squats or lateral leg lifts to support pelvic stability.
Perform assisted core exercises, like dead bugs with band resistance, encouraging safe core engagement.
Use them for upper body strength, like seated rows to improve posture or bicep curls to build arm strength for carrying your baby.
3. Stability Ball/Mini Stability Ball
A stability ball is fantastic for core engagement, balance, and improving posture, while a mini stability ball is great for targeted exercises and pelvic floor work. Stability balls can double as a seat for mobility exercises and help with gentle bouncing to relax tight hips. Mini balls are beneficial for isolating smaller muscle groups and improving coordination.
How to Use Them:
Practice seated pelvic floor activation by gently bouncing on the ball, which can help improve circulation.
Perform bridges with your feet on the ball to challenge core and glute strength, adding instability.
Use a mini stability ball for inner thigh squeezes or to assist with supported side-lying stretches.
4. Foam Roller/Tennis Ball
Foam rollers and tennis balls are perfect tools for self-myofascial release (aka self-massage). They help relieve muscle tension, improve circulation, and enhance flexibility. Foam rolling can be particularly helpful for postpartum moms who experience tightness in the hips, lower back, or shoulders from breastfeeding, holding babies, or sitting for extended periods.
How to Use Them:
Roll out tight areas like quads, hamstrings, and back to release tension and improve mobility.
Use a tennis ball to target release in areas like your glutes or shoulders, especially if you’ve been carrying your baby on one side.
Incorporate rolling into your cooldown routine to relax and reset your muscles after a workout.
5. Light Dumbbells (1-10 lbs)
Light dumbbells are ideal for building strength and endurance postpartum. They’re perfect for reintroducing load to your workouts safely and progressively. Dumbbells also allow you to mimic functional movements, like lifting your baby or groceries, with controlled resistance. Water bottles or cans are excellent substitutes if you don’t have access to dumbbells.
How to Use Them:
Perform upper body exercises like shoulder presses to improve posture and chest presses to strengthen arms and chest muscles.
Use them to build leg strength and support balance for lower body exercises like goblet squats or lunges.
Combine dumbbells with core exercises like bird dogs to enhance stability and muscle control.
6. Yoga blocks
Yoga blocks offer support and stability for stretching exercises, making them perfect for improving flexibility and alignment postpartum. They’re beneficial if you’re working on regaining mobility or feel tightness in your hips and hamstrings.
How to Use Them:
Use them as support during deep stretches, like pigeon pose or seated forward folds, to make the stretches more accessible.
Place them under your hands during modified planks for added height and stability as you regain core strength.
Incorporate them into core exercises, like pass-throughs with your legs, to challenge coordination and flexibility.
7. Chair, Step Stool, or Low Sturdy Surface
A sturdy surface can be used for balance, support, or to add variety to your exercises. It’s an incredibly versatile tool for bodyweight exercises and postpartum rehab movements.
How to Use It:
Use a chair for assisted squats or seated core exercises, helping you ease into movement safely.
To strengthen your arms and chest, perform incline push-ups or tricep dips on a sturdy surface.
Practice step-ups to build leg strength and stability, mimicking the motion of climbing stairs with control.
8. Baby Carrier
Yes, your baby carrier can double as fitness equipment! It’s a creative way to add extra weight to your workouts while keeping your baby close. Using a baby carrier also helps moms stay active without needing to find additional time for workouts.
How to Use It:
Perform bodyweight exercises like squats, lunges, or standing marches while wearing your baby, adding light resistance.
Practice balance and posture exercises with the added weight of the carrier, focusing on keeping your core engaged.
Use it during light walks for added cardio and bonding time, especially if your baby finds movement soothing.
9. Yoga Strap or Baby Blanket/Towel
A yoga strap is a versatile tool for improving flexibility and providing stretching assistance. If you don’t have one, a baby blanket or towel works just as well. Straps are handy for postpartum moms who want to regain flexibility or deal with tightness in the hamstrings, shoulders, or hips.
How to Use It:
Use it to deepen hamstring stretches by looping it around your foot while lying on your back.
Perform shoulder stretches by holding the strap overhead and gently pulling it behind you to open your chest.
Use it for seated forward folds to maintain proper alignment and prevent over-stretching.
10. Sliders or Paper Plates/Towels
Sliders are excellent for adding a stability challenge to workouts, especially core and lower exercises. They engage smaller stabilizing muscles, which are crucial for balance and functional movement postpartum.
How to Use Them:
To engage your core and improve stability, perform slider mountain climbers or knee tucks.
Use them for lunges to add a stability challenge and increase intensity, helping you regain balance and strength.
Try hamstring curls for a controlled lower-body workout. While lying on your back, place sliders under your feet and pull them toward your glutes.
The right equipment can make your postpartum fitness journey more effective and enjoyable. Each tool is versatile, affordable, and perfect for building strength, improving mobility, and supporting your recovery at home. Remember, the key to postpartum fitness is consistency and listening to your body as you rebuild strength and confidence.
Ready to take your postpartum workouts to the next level? Book a private or group coaching session with me today to receive a customized plan and guidance on achieving your fitness goals.
