Exercise after birth: a complete, gentle guide to the postpartum year

After birth, your body is doing something remarkable and mostly invisible: healing tissue, rebalancing hormones, restoring muscles that stretched for months, all while you care for a new baby on very little sleep. Coming back to exercise is part of that recovery, not a test of it. There is no "getting your body back", because your body never left. It has simply changed, and it deserves patience.

This guide brings together everything Eggsports knows about moving after birth: when to start, what to focus on at each stage, how to care for your pelvic floor and tummy, what changes after a caesarean, when running is realistic, and how to be kind to yourself when you're exhausted. Each section links to a deeper guide if you want more.

When can I start exercising after giving birth?

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) says exercise can be resumed gradually after pregnancy as soon as it is medically safe, depending on the type of birth and any complications. Some women feel able to return to physical activity within days, and pelvic floor exercises can start in the immediate postpartum period.^[1]

The World Health Organization recommends that women without a medical reason not to are regularly active after birth, building over time towards at least 150 minutes of moderate activity a week, with muscle strengthening and gentle stretching. Its guidance is also reassuring for tired new parents: some activity is better than none, and starting small is the right way to begin.^[2]

Most of the timings in this guide come from the postnatal return-to-running guideline written by three UK physiotherapists, which recommends low-impact exercise through the first three months and a return to running between three and six months at the earliest.^[3] Our step-by-step guide to when you can exercise after birth explains each stage in detail.

What should I focus on at each stage after birth?

The return-to-running guideline offers a similar progression: pelvic floor work, basic core exercises and walking in the first two weeks, then squats and bridges, low-impact cardio from around four to six weeks, light resistance work from six weeks, and swimming from around eight weeks once bleeding has stopped and wounds have healed.^[3] The weeks are a guide, not a deadline. A long labour, a difficult tear, a caesarean, anaemia or very broken sleep can all mean that a stage takes longer.

Our postpartum readiness check asks how many weeks it has been, how your baby was born and how your pelvic floor feels today, and suggests which stage fits you now.

How do I look after my pelvic floor after birth?

Pelvic floor symptoms are common after birth. About a third of women have urinary incontinence and up to a tenth have faecal incontinence after childbirth.^[6] Physiotherapists describe these as "common but not normal": widespread, but not something you should simply accept.^[3]

The return-to-running guideline recommends that every woman, however she gave birth, has the option of a pelvic health assessment with a specialist physiotherapist from six weeks after birth, and lists the symptoms that make one especially worthwhile: leaking, urgency, a heavy or dragging feeling in the pelvis, pain with sex, difficulty emptying your bowel, a weak or separated tummy, and pelvic or lower back pain.^[3]

The research also shows that how you train matters. A large Cochrane review found that early, structured training in pregnancy may prevent leaking, but that simply offering postnatal training to every new mother is unlikely to reduce leaking overall, and that the effect of training as a treatment after birth is still uncertain. Targeted, well-delivered training seems to matter more than general advice.^[6]

Our guide to pelvic floor recovery after birth shows you how to do the exercises step by step, and the pelvic floor exercise timer guides you through slow and quick sets.

What is diastasis recti, and should I worry about it?

In a study that followed 300 first-time mothers, 60% had diastasis recti six weeks after birth, falling to about a third at twelve months, with most remaining cases mild. Women with and without it reported similar levels of back and pelvic pain.^[7]

The research on exercise is honest about its limits. A 2021 review with meta-analysis concluded that there is currently very low-quality evidence to recommend any specific exercise programme to treat diastasis recti after birth.^[8] That's why we focus on what core training can reliably offer: a trunk that manages pressure and load comfortably, so you can lift, carry and move without symptoms.

Our guide to diastasis recti recovery covers the self-check, a gentle progression, and what studies really show about crunches. The diastasis recti self-check guide walks you through checking your own gap.

How is exercise different after a C-section?

NICE advises that women can return to activities such as driving, carrying heavy items, formal exercise and sex when they feel fully recovered from the caesarean, including from any pain or physical restriction.^[5] The World Health Organization also recommends talking to a healthcare provider about returning to activity after a caesarean birth.^[2]

Healing goes deeper than the scar you can see. The return-to-running guideline highlights research showing that the uterine scar is still remodelling beyond six weeks, and lists a caesarean among the factors that call for a more gradual return to running.^[3] Until your postnatal check, Eggsports keeps you in the early, gentle stage whatever the date, and leaves out lying on your front and twisting while carrying a load.

Our guide to exercise after a C-section covers scar care, lifting, core rebuilding and the warning signs to watch for.

When can I start running again after having a baby?

The 2019 guideline states that running isn't advisable before three months after birth, or later if there are pelvic floor symptoms, and suggests load and impact tests to pass first: walking for 30 minutes, single-leg balance and squats, jogging on the spot, bounding and hopping, all without pain, heaviness, dragging or leaking.^[3] A 2024 international consensus moved towards individual timelines, after a minimum period of rest and recovery and with screening of each woman's health, physical capacity and training history.^[9]

Without that individual assessment, 12 weeks is a sensible minimum, and it's the one Eggsports uses, along with two weeks free of pelvic floor symptoms before running or jumping. Our guide to running after pregnancy explains the tests and a gentle first month, and the return-to-running checklist lets you work through them at home.

How do I exercise when I'm exhausted?

Sleep after birth tends to come in fragments, which can leave you exhausted even when the hours seem to add up. Short, gentle movement can help, but there is no minimum to meet. Choosing a nap over a workout is listening to your body, and in Eggsports a rest day earns the same egg as a workout. The box breathing timer is a calm way to rest with intention.

Mood matters as much as muscles. Perinatal depression, which includes depression during pregnancy and in the year after birth, is one of the most common medical complications of this time and affects about one in seven women.^[10] Physical activity can play a part in preventing depression after birth,^[1] but it is not a replacement for support. If you're struggling, please talk to your doctor, midwife or health visitor.

Our guide to exercise and sleep deprivation covers gentle options for low-energy days, what the research says about exercise and mood, and the signs of postnatal depression to take seriously.

Which warning signs mean I should stop and get help?

NICE lists these as symptoms of potentially serious conditions after birth that need medical advice without delay:^[4]

• Sudden or very heavy vaginal bleeding, or bleeding that persists or increases
• Abdominal, pelvic or perineal pain, fever, shivering, or discharge with an unpleasant smell
• Leg swelling and tenderness, or shortness of breath
• Chest pain
• A persistent or severe headache

If any of these feel urgent, call your local emergency number.

Other signs mean your body needs more time or specialist help rather than urgent care: leaking urine or stool, a heavy or dragging feeling in the pelvis, a bulge or gap along your midline, pelvic or lower back pain, or bleeding that comes on during or after exercise.^[3] None of these mean you have failed. They are your body's way of asking for a different pace.

Every guide in this series:

• When can I exercise after giving birth? A stage-by-stage guide
• Diastasis recti after birth: what helps and what the evidence says
• Pelvic floor recovery after birth: exercises, symptoms and support
• Exercise after a C-section: a gentle, week-by-week guide
• Running after pregnancy: when you're ready and how to start
• Exercise when you're exhausted: moving through newborn sleep loss

Wherever you are in the first year, the right next step is the one that feels kind to your body today. Some days that is a walk. Some days it is a nap. Both count.