12 Fun Exercises To Do With Your Baby

• Builds healthy habits for your baby from a young age.
• Helps in the growth and development of your growing baby.
• Creates a positive environment around you and your baby, which aids in psychological growth
• Ensures that you are in your best form to keep up with your ever-active bundle of energy
• Helps with post-delivery issues such as weakness and aches and pains

12 Fun Exercises To Do With Your Baby

Incorporating exercises that involve both the mother and the baby is not only a great way to stay active but also strengthens the bond between them. Here are some fun exercises that you can do together.

1. Cardio With Strollers

This is easy and simple to follow. Aim for 15-20 minutes of cardio daily to keep your metabolism high (2). Pushing the stroller as you venture out with the baby counts. Make it even better by practising interval training. Walk for 2 minutes with the stroller and then with the stroller brakes locked you may do jumping jacks facing the baby. Start with small counts and then you may gradually increase as it suits you. This will keep the baby entertained as you do your workout.

2. Squats

Once your baby is grown enough to hold up his head, neck, and torso by himself you may opt to do this exercise with your baby. Hold the baby in your arms and squat by going down slowly and aligning your thighs parallel to the floor. Ensure your knees are in line with your ankles and toes. After squatting when you return to your standing position “curl” your baby in towards yourself. Also, make sure that you do not stand straight with your knees locked.

3. Opt for Swing

When you are out in the park with your baby and your partner is with you, go enjoy the swing. It is one of the most fun ways to work out your abs. You can do this provided you have your partner to take care of the baby in the stroller or your kid is grown up enough to give you company on the swing beside you. Look out for two swings that are placed side by side to enjoy with your child.

4. One Leg Balance

If you are familiar with yoga, then you may know how to go about doing this. You tend to feel a little off-balance post-delivery since pregnancy tends to mess with your balance. Your ankles and joints would be relatively weak post-delivery, so start with practising to stand on one leg first. Try to hold it for as long as possible for you.

Do not stress yourself much, because your joints and ankles are still weak and will get stronger and stabilize with time. If you wish it to be more challenging, try the tree pose. Start with standing on one leg, and slowly bend the knee of the other leg and place the sole of the foot anywhere on the inside of the standing leg. You may hold your baby and do this exercise as you get stronger and get a better hold on balancing yourself. This exercise will help improve your balance and overall fitness (3).

5. Planks

Planks are considered one of the best forms of exercise as they engage more than 2 kinds of muscle and body parts as you work out. Hold your body parallel to the floor like you do in the up position of push-ups and hold it in that position for a minute or two. Use a stopwatch to keep track of the time and repeat the same 3-4 times. Make sure you do your exercises in the right form. Your shoulders should be directly over your wrists, hold your tummy tight, your pelvis neutral, and your legs straight and parallel to the floor with your toes tucked under. If you find this difficult to perform, you may do it by keeping your knees in contact with the floor.

6. Wall Push-ups

This exercise is easy to do and will help you tone and strengthen your upper body and arm muscles. Stand at a distance of 2 feet, facing the wall in your room with legs placed together. Now slowly lean in towards the wall bending your hands at the elbows. Stay in this position for a count of 5 and push back to return to the original position. Repeat this exercise ten times to begin with and then gradually increase your count.

7. Sit Ups

This is an easy way to sculpt your thighs. Doing this exercise with a baby can be challenging but it is worth the effort. To begin with, sit on your heels in a kneeling position holding your baby in front of you. Keep your knees a few inches apart. Now slowly lift your seat a few inches off your heels and keep your torso upright. Now push yourself up an inch and go down an inch without touching your seat to your heels. You may start with 10-15 reps at the start then gradually increase as it suits you.

8. Lower Body Toning

This exercise can be done to tone your lower body. It requires lying flat on your stomach and then placing your hands beneath your chin. Bend your knees and raise your legs such that the soles of your feet face the ceiling. Now try raising your lower body from the knee, push it towards the ceiling, and then bring it back to the floor. Repeat this for 10-15 times and you may do 2-3 sets of this. You may slowly increase the count to increase the challenge. You can keep the baby in front of your eyes so that you can interact with the baby as you do this exercise.

9. Lunges And Side Leg Raise

To do this, first place the baby in the stroller and stand facing him. Keep a little distance between you and the stroller. Now move one leg ahead of you towards the baby and go down to sit such that your thighs are parallel to the floor and the knee is at 90 90-degree angle. Then rise and push back your leg to the starting position and repeat the same movement with the other leg. You may keep your hands on your waist or you may blow a kiss to the baby as you step out and go down to keep him entertained. Start with 10-15 reps on each side and then gradually increase the counts and reps

Your hips tend to increase during the pregnancy. Side leg rise will help you get back in shape. Look for a raised platform where you can make your babysit such that he is at your eye level and stand facing him. Now stand straight with your legs and hips apart. Now putting weight on your one leg slowly raise your other leg out towards the side and then hold it for 5 seconds and get it back to the original position. Then repeat the same with the other leg. Start with 10-15 counts for both legs and 2 sets each and gradually increase your counts.

10. Exercise Ball

Using an exercise ball with your baby can be a fun and interactive way to engage in gentle movements and play together. There are some exercises and activities you can try with your baby using an exercise ball. Sit on the exercise ball with your feet flat on the floor, and hold your baby securely on your lap facing you. Gently bounce up and down, being mindful of your baby’s comfort and stability. This bouncing motion can be entertaining for the baby and may elicit giggles.

11. Seated Ball Squeeze

Seated ball squeeze or seated adductor ball squeeze is one of the simplest exercises you can do with your baby. The exercise focuses on strengthening adductor muscles (4). To do this exercise, sit on a chair or sofa and put a mini Pilates ball between your thighs. You can hold your baby in a baby carrier bag while doing this exercise. Try to squeeze the ball while pressurizing your pelvic floor muscles. This will build your core and lower body muscles. Release the ball after a few seconds without dropping it. Do 2 to 3 sets with 1 minute repetition.

12. Dead Bug

Dead bug exercise is meant to enhance strength and flexibility in your back and core muscles (5). You can do this exercise while lying down on your back with your baby beside you. Lift your one arm, keeping it straight. Draw your shoulders away from your ears, making a 180-degree angle. At the same time, lift your other arm straight at 90 degrees and the opposite leg with knee and hip flexed. Do 2 to 3 sets with 2 to 3 repetitions on each side. There are many more fun ways to get you healthy and fit and the ones suggested above are just a few of them.

These 12 fun exercises to do with your baby will nurture your and your baby’s health. These will brighten you up and make you look and sound happy throughout the day.  Incorporating these exercises into your routine will not only keep you and your baby healthy but will also give you time to connect and bond with your baby.

FAQ’s

1. When Can I Start Exercising With My Baby?

It’s a good idea to wait until 4 to 6 weeks after delivery before starting your workout routine. Further, you can go for a post-natal checkup and get your doctor’s approval before exercising.

2. How Can I Exercise When I Have a Baby?

You can talk to your physiotherapist to create a customized workout plan for you. Moreover, you may enroll in group exercise programs or start exercising at home at your convenience.

3. How Does Exercising With Your Baby Affect You And Your Baby?

Doing exercises with your baby can boost your and your baby’s health. It will ensure the overall fitness of both of you.

References

1. Benefits, need and importance of daily exercise – https://www.researchgate.net/publication/306118434_Benefits_need_and_importance_of_daily_exercise
2. Exercise and metabolic health: beyond skeletal muscle – PMC – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7377236/
3. Effect of Postpartum Exercise on Mothers and their Offspring: A Review of the Literature – Larson‐Meyer – 2002 – Obesity Research – Wiley Online Library – https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1038/oby.2002.114
4. The effects of gluteal squeezes compared to bilateral bridges on gluteal strength, power, endurance, and girth – PMC – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6622157/
5. Comparative Analysis of the Effects of Abdominal Crunch Exer… : Nigerian Journal of Medicine – https://journals.lww.com/njom/fulltext/2020/29040/comparative_analysis_of_the_effects_of_abdominal.26.aspx