Postnatal exercises: strengthening core and pelvic floor (video)

So we're going to start looking at our standing posture. Now, also we're going to start looking at those really important core muscles, now this is the pelvic floor and your deep abdominal muscles, which are so important to work after having had a baby.

So for a standing posture, you need to make sure that you're just dropping your tailbone slightly, and lifting your tummy muscles in. Then you're going to slide the shoulder blades down, and bring your chin in – imagine you're holding a big grapefruit underneath your chin.

Now to hold yourself in this position, you need to use those all-important core muscles. Now these are the most important muscles to you, particularly after having had a baby.

This is the pelvic floor, and to hold that, you're going to "stop the wind, stop the wee", pulling on the inside. As you do that, you also bring your tummy muscles in at the same time. This is going to make you really strong on the inside.

So our first exercise is called a standing heel lift. So you're going to start literally by just peeling your heel off the floor. Now, connect to those core muscles - that pelvic floor and deep abdominal – by pulling in through, so "stop the wind, stop the wee", pull your tummy in. Then take the whole of the foot off the floor. You might wobble a little bit as you do this, and that's quite good because you're challenging your core. So again lift up through your centre, try and lift yourself up nice and tall.

Now take your leg behind, and you can squeeze your bottom a little bit. Again, lift your belly – it's really important that your back doesn't move as you do this. Then you're going to change legs.

You can do this literally any time, anywhere. So waiting for the kettle to boil, you can do your standing heel lifts, then take the leg behind, and you're squeezing your bottom as you take your leg behind, but pulling your tummy in so that your back stays nice and still. And that's your first exercise! Remember, you can do this any time, anywhere.

The next one is going to work the leg muscles. So we're going to step back, do exactly the same thing, lifting the foot up off the floor, holding your centre. Then step back, bend your back knee and push your hip underneath you and squeeze your bottom. What you want is your knee, your hip and your shoulders all in one line. Then you're going to drop down through that line, and lift back up, and step back in.

So we're going to step back, and when you step back you want to make sure your feet are fixed in tramlines, because if you step your leg back behind the other you're going to fall over. So nice parallel lines, and then when you drop down into your lunge, you drop vertically down and then straight back up and step back in.

This is fantastic for working the legs, for working your bottom. You push through the front heel, squeeze into your bottom, and then step back in.

Now I'm going to keep going through these, but what I want you to do is to stop when you feel your legs are fatigued. So if you feel that your legs are starting to shake a little bit, you can stop.

Whilst I'm doing this, I'm still thinking about those core muscles, thinking internally, lifting up through the inside, using the pelvic floor, using the deep abdominals. You can stop here, remember, if you want to, or you can carry on with me for another four of these moves. Keep tucking your tail underneath you, so again we've got that vertical drop through the body. As you step back, you drop down, lift back up through, and in.

So I'm going to step back into the lunge one more time, but now I'm going to hold it here to do our upper-body exercise. This is a pressing action up, and a pulling action down. So I'm going to push up, pressing into my shoulders, and then pull back into my back muscles.

As you're doing this, try to really push and pull. If you have got hand-held weights, that's fine, but you don't have to have them. Remember, you can do this any time, anywhere.

Keep pushing and pulling, squeezing into your back muscles, and again really thinking still about those all-important inner core muscles to keep you nice and steady. Legs are still working a little bit as well, you should be able to feel that. Then just keep pushing and pulling. If you start to get fatigued, you can stop, just rest it. Or you can keep going for another four with me. So I'm going to do another four. Keep lifting through your tummy, remember. Let's go for one more, and then release it there.

So those are your three exercises. We're going to finish off with a little stretch. I'm just going to stretch out the shoulders. Put your hand on your shoulder and just press it down slightly, ever so gently stretching it through. Then change sides, so again take the hand onto the shoulder, gently press down, then take your head over to the side.

We're also going to stretch out the front thigh muscles, so you might want to hold on to something to help you balance. Then carefully take a hold of your foot, bring your knees together. Then just push your hip forward, again, use those all-important inner core muscles, pull your tummy in, and that will help you balance.

Just feel that stretch in the front of the thigh and then change legs. Remember that you can hold on to something if you need to, challenging your balance. Then push your hips forward, and then you're done. Well done!