
Stroller workouts are the best postnatal workouts — spend time with your baby outdoors getting fresh air and vitamin D; AND get a workout in! Designed for busy moms with kids in tow, this 20-Minute Stroller Workout pairs cardio exercises with lower body strength training to target the butt, legs and thighs. It’s the ultimate mom workout!
This is one of the most common questions I get asked. My response(s):
To be honest, I prefer to workout without my kids around. Which often means waking up early to get my ‘mama time’ without the kids.
But we all know motherhood throws us curveballs and unexpected wake up times. So on the days I need to be flexible and workout with the kids I default to stroller workouts.
A quick and effective 20-minute stroller workout that combines cardio exercises with bodyweight strength training to target the legs, butt and thighs.
Just your bodyweight and a jogging stroller.
This outdoor workout is done in timed intervals. I personally like to use the timer on my phone or use the Tabata Pro Timer App.
I love this stroller workout because you can gradually increase the intensity as you regain strength and muscle postpartum.
Postnatal Workout Beginner (3-6 months postpartum): Default to a stroller walk for the warm up and for exercise number six. As you regain pelvic floor strength you can increase intensity to a slow jog.
Postnatal Workout Intermediate-to-Advanced (6-12 months postpartum): As you regain pelvic floor strength you can increase intensity to a stroller run for the warm up and stroller sprint for exercise number six.
Learn more about how to regain pelvic floor strength in this post — 10 Things You Need To Know About Your Pelvic Floor Postpartum.
Walking lunges are a great way for postpartum moms to regain core strength and balance. Lunges also specifically target the leg muscles:
I love adding a chest opener because moms spend so much time hunched over feeding babies; so it’s a great way to open the chest and relax the shoulders.
Benefits of bodyweight squats:
Lateral squat walks are a great way to strengthen your glutes, hips, and thighs.
This stroller exercise strengthens the gluteus maximus, medius and minimus; which helps to stabilize your knees and hips, and prevents injury.
More walking lunges to build strong leg muscles while also building core strength and balance.
Adding a rear leg lift helps to lengthen and tone the leg muscles, while also increasing core strength after baby.
As mentioned above, lateral squat walks are a great way to strengthen your glutes, hips, and thighs.
Not surprisingly, this study found that when compared to normal, stroller-free running, pushing a stroller with two hands while running burned around 5% more calories.
If you enjoy stroller workouts I suggest looking up a local stroller workout group in your area, like — stroller strides, stroller fit, or 4 moms.
These groups offer great after postnatal workouts and support for active moms.
Aren’t you supposed to run with only one hand on the jogging stroller and periodically switch, that way you can keep some of the arm swing and avoid over-reliance on the legs?
Hi Rebecca, great question and ultimately it’s up to whatever you feel most comfortable with. That said, these are more like 40 second stroller ‘sprints’ if you’re up for the ‘sprint’ which typically requires a lot of legs and both hands on the stroller with good core control!