I may earn commission from the companies mentioned or linked in this post.
I’m almost 6 months postpartum right now, and let me tell you, everything is sore, especially my back. Coming from a background in lifting from personal interest, plus my husband trains athletes for a living, I have a pretty good idea why I am so sore (aside from constantly being hunched over breastfeeding, but that’s another topic). My muscles are weak, especially my deep core muscles.
I never truly grasped how vital those deep core muscles are until postpartum hit me like a truck. During pregnancy, everyone talks about “activating your deep core” and avoiding or minimizing diastasis recti, but the how-to part often gets glossed over. Post-baby, though? It became crystal clear: rebuilding those deep core muscles isn’t just about losing the mom pooch, it’s about feeling strong, stable, and capable again in your everyday life.
Right after you have your baby, your core feels so…weird. There is all this room that once held your baby! Your organs are still squished, so they kind of feel like they are floating around. You feel really unstable, and your center of gravity is off. I didn’t end up using one because I honestly forgot about it, but it was suggested to me to use a belly band. Not the kind that are advertised to help you lose stubborn belly fat, but the kind that are designed for extra support postpartum. Essentially, what it does is help to provide extra support since your core muscles were just stretched to the max and need a little extra help holding everything together.
Now we can’t live in our belly bands forever, so what are we supposed to do long term? This is where your core muscles come in, especially those deep core muscles. They impact so much of our daily movement and mobility, it’s crazy! We can dive deeper into this in another blog post, but your deep core muscles play a role in many of the physical issues you may experience postpartum.
What Are Your Deep Core Muscles?
Your deep core is made up of four key players that work together like a well-coordinated team: the transverse abdominis (TVA), pelvic floor, diaphragm, and multifidus. They form a cylinder that stabilizes your spine, controls pressure in your abdomen, supports your organs, and keeps everything feeling secure as your body heals postpartum.
Here’s a simple breakdown of each one and why they matter so much right now:
- Transverse Abdominis (TVA): This is your deepest abdominal muscle, wrapping around your midsection like a built-in corset. It draws your belly in gently (without sucking in hard!) to stabilize your spine and pelvis, control intra-abdominal pressure, and help close any separation (diastasis recti). In postpartum recovery, a strong TVA reduces strain on your lower back, supports better posture while holding or feeding baby, and lays the foundation for all other movements so you feel less wobbly and more capable day-to-day.
- Pelvic Floor Muscles: These form a supportive sling at the base of your pelvis, holding up your bladder, uterus, and bowels while helping with continence (no more surprise leaks when you sneeze or laugh!). Post-baby, they often feel stretched or weakened, so gently rebuilding them prevents issues like incontinence or heaviness, supports sexual health, and teams up with the rest of the core to manage pressure during daily tasks like lifting your little one or getting up from the floor.
- Diaphragm: Your main breathing muscle at the top of the core “canister.” It works in rhythm with the pelvic floor and TVA. When you inhale deeply, it drops down gently, and on exhale, everything recoils together. Proper diaphragmatic breathing postpartum helps regulate pressure (so important for healing!), reduces tension in your neck and shoulders, improves oxygen flow for energy, and prevents compensatory patterns that can lead to back pain or poor posture.
- Multifidus: These small, deep muscles run along your spine, segment by segment, providing precise stability to each vertebra. They kick in before you even move an arm or leg, protecting your back from strain. In the postpartum phase, strengthening the multifidus helps restore natural spinal alignment, eases that nagging lower back ache from carrying baby or hunching during feeds, and supports smoother, pain-free movement as you chase toddlers or handle daily mom duties.
When these four work in harmony, your whole body feels more supported from the inside out! The beauty is, you don’t need intense workouts to start; gentle activations wake them up safely and sustainably.
Why Focus on Deep Core Muscles Postpartum?
Your deep core acts like an internal corset. When they’re strong:
- Back pain eases because everything supports your spine better.
- Posture improves
- Daily tasks like lifting your baby or chasing a toddler feel easier.
- It supports long-term hormone balance and overall recovery.
The key? Gentle, consistent activation. Always brace your core (imagine gently drawing your belly button toward your spine while breathing normally) and avoid anything that causes “coning” or doming in your midline.
Eliminating Back Pain After Pregnancy
Today, I want to focus on that first point: back pain. When I tell you my back has been on FIRE is an understatement. I didn’t jump back into activities postpartum because I ended up having a fourth-degree tear during delivery, so recovery looked a little different. Around 8 weeks postpartum is when I started doing some movement, so my core had a very long vacation from having to do much, and I felt it. I felt very wobbly and fragile, like I had to be so careful doing anything.
Around this time, I went to see a pelvic floor therapist, and thankfully, they determined I didn’t have any ab separation (woohoo!); however, my muscles were very weak (obviously). They gave me some gentle core exercises to do postpartum to help wake up my deep core.
I would do one or two of the ab workouts they gave me when my son was napping or on his mat, but it wasn’t as consistent as it needed to be.
What Is a Realistic Postpartum Deep Core Workout?
Around this time, my husband started doing something he called the “Daily 50s,” where every day he’d do 50 reps of 4 exercises. (More about this on his Instagram @thewellnessathlete_). It was simple, and with consistency, he was seeing results. I really liked the idea and adapted it to what you would need in a postpartum workout. I incorporated some deep core muscles exercises from the physical therapist, along with some body-weight squats and adjusted the reps to 25 each. I’ll share exactly what I used for my postpartum ab workouts at the end of this blog!
Doing this every day, I felt myself getting stronger, and I saw progress. If you’re someone who needs quick and effective workouts that you can squeeze into your day, I highly recommend you give the Daily 25s a try!
I did my Daily 25s for a little over a month, and then I decided I wanted to incorporate more resistance training into my routine. I made my own plan to follow, but I’m sure you could find a good postpartum workout program as well. The key is that you want to find a program that fits into your season of life. I created my postpartum workouts to be gentle but still challenging and something I could do at home using resistance bands or in my apartment complex gym. Because that’s what works best for me. You could also find a postpartum workout program where you go to an actual gym if that fits the season of life you’re in!
My New Postpartum Workout Plan
My plan now is to keep my 3-4 days a week for resistance training, where I will do one deep core exercise on those days, and then to add in additional deep core muscle exercises as a postpartum ab workout program to do along with my resistance training. This way, I can continue strengthening my deep core to aid in my postpartum recovery without overworking myself by doing full workouts.
When I stopped doing my Daily 25s and moved over to my resistance training workouts, I found myself going a few days without doing anything. Normally, I wouldn’t be concerned with that, and I wasn’t at first, but after I saw how sore I was, especially my back, I knew it was important to be more consistent.
Incorporating some form of movement postpartum is something I would suggest to everyone. You don’t need to jump right into lifting heavy weights or running for miles, but going on a 10-minute walk outside does wonders for your body and your mental health. Make sure you start out slow and honor the season of life you’re in. If it takes you a full day to complete your Daily 25s, that’s okay! One day, you will have the time and freedom to go to the gym and enjoy a full hour workout by yourself again, So, grab your baby monitor (or your baby if they won’t take a nap!) and let’s do the Daily 25s together!
Your Simple Postpartum Ab Workout: The Daily 25s
Important note: Always chat with your healthcare provider or a pelvic floor specialist before starting exercises postpartum. Everyone’s recovery is unique, especially if there’s any healing from tears, C-section, or diastasis concerns.
The goal here is to complete each exercise for a total of 25 reps or seconds for holds. You don’t have to do it all at once, just make sure to keep track throughout the day. I’d sometimes do my squats while changing a diaper (this was before my son could roll) or some of the floor exercises while we did tummy time! These are designed to be body weight, but feel free to adjust the intensity as you’re ready! I’d use my son as a weight on a few of these, and he loved to be involved for a mini mommy and me workout!
- Bodyweight Squats Stand with feet hip-width, brace your core, and lower like sitting back into a chair. Keep your chest up and knees tracking over toes. Squeeze your glutes at the top. (Pro tip: These double as functional strength for picking up baby!)
- Glute Bridges Lie on your back, knees bent, feet flat. Brace your core, then lift your hips by squeezing your glutes. Hold for a second at the top, then lower slowly. This wakes up your posterior chain while gently engaging the deep abs. Start with your arms on the ground next to you. Slowly progress to arms overhead or even your baby on your hips!
- Modified V-Up Start sitting on the ground with your knees tucked toward your chest. Your arms should be behind you with palms on the ground. Using your arms for extra support, lean back while simultaneously extending your legs as far as you can while maintaining a strong core. Bring back to center with control. Very small movements are okay here, you don’t need to fully extend to activate your deep core muscles.
- Hover Hold On hands and knees, brace your core, and hover your knees just off the floor (stay on toes and hands). Hold 25–30 seconds. Add gentle kickbacks for extra challenge. Focus on keeping your back neutral. No arching!
Quick tips for success:
- Start with diaphragmatic breathing (deep belly breaths) to reconnect if your deep core feels “asleep.”
- Always engage your pelvic floor too
- Listen to your body—if something feels off, modify or pause.
- Track progress over weeks, not days. Small, consistent wins add up.
That’s it! Just 4 exercises every day to help you build a strong foundation. All of these exercises, if performed correctly, will activate your deep core muscles and help in your postpartum recovery.
If you enjoyed this post, make sure to pin it for later and send it to a friend who’s going to do the Daily 25s with you!
