Goodbye Mummy Tummy -15-Minute Interval Training Workout For Busy Mums!
November 26, 2009 by Wendy Powell
Filed under Blogging on Postnatal Exercise, Just Blogging..., Mummy Tummy
Every mum who attends one of my Mummy Tummy Masterclasses or starts postnatal personal training, says they need quick exercise solutions. None of us mums has the time (or the inclination 
), to spend hours in the so–called ‘fat-burning’ zone of slow, steady cardio exercise. And what’s more it won’t get rid of your mummy tummy!
The lazy gym trainer’s mantra: ‘20 minutes on the bike, 20 minutes on the treadmill, stay in the FB zone, blah blah (while I stand here & watch MTV!)’ or run the same steady route, at the same speed week in week out – & your body simply gets used to it, you get bored,you reach a plateau of fat loss & motivation… and the mummy tummy stays put.
The good news is you don’t have to.
Interval training is the quickest, most effective way to burn the baby fat (actually, any type of fat… it really is all the same stuff!)
Here’s an example: Warm up running steady for a couple of minutes, run hard for one minute, reduce speed for two minutes, run hard for one minute, reduce speed two minutes, & then do it again, & again. That’s it – That’s intervals!
You need to keep ‘surprising’ your mummy tummy (in fact your whole mummy body) by making it work in short intensive bursts.
Here’s another variation: Start jogging gently for one minute (about 4 on a 1-10 scale of exertion, where 1 would be standing still & 10 would be as fast as you could run), increase it to level 8 for one minute, increase again to the level 9 for one minute, then run as fast as you can for up to one minute (level 10), reduce it back to 9 for one minute, reduce it again to to 8 for one minute again, reduce it to 7 for another minute. Like a pyramid with the most effort in the middle.
Go up the pyramid & down again for 10 to 12 minutes. This burns a lot of body fat & stimulates metabolism. Then you need to alternate this with resistance exercise.
You don’t need weights or equipment, the latest technology or fancy choreography. You just use ‘bodyweight’ exercises such as the ones below.
Resistance training builds muscle, & more muscle means you burn more calories & more body fat. Resistance training also keeps your metabolism high for hours after you’ve finished exercising. (So you’re still burning calories long after you got home & started making the kids’ tea!)
Here’s your first 15 minute workout to be going along with!
Warm up: run up & down the stairs a few times, do step-ups over the bottom 2-3 steps for 3 minutes, take the dog for a brisk walk or dance around manically with your kids for 5 minutes – just get your heart rate up!
Then do the pyramid described above –it doesn’t have to be running, you could run on the spot, or skip with a rope, air guitar with the kids, play something energetic on the Wii… It really doesn’t matter!
The point is to get some really intensive work into the space of about 8 minutes & to go up & down the scale of intensity.
SQUAT
Don’t rest! Now do 15 SQUATS, keeping your knees behind your toes, your back straight & your core strong. Push up through the outside of your feet & your heels (so you feel your butt work!). Breathe in as you squat down, & exhale & engage your core as you push up… pull that mummy tummy in!
Use your arms to keep heart rate up even more!
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PRESS UPS
- Straight away, do 15 PRESS-UPS. Don’t be scared – from your knees is fine! Keep your shoulders over your hands & lower your face to just in front of your fingertips. Breathe in on the way down, exhale, engage Transverse Abdominus (see previous post about core activation) & push up.
LUNGES
Don’t stop, straight onto LUNGES! It’s really important to keep your knees behind your toes & don’t lean forward into the lunge. Again breathe in as you bend your knees & lower, then breathe out, engage TVA & come up. Repeat 10 times on each leg.
A plank next: a great core exercise that really works the lower back as well (don’t try a full plank until you have mastered your TVA activation exercises & belly breathing). Lie on your front with your elbows bent to your sides. Tuck your toes under & push up onto your forearms, holding you body in a straight line. Keep TVA & PF activated & don’t forget to breathe! Your goal is to hold the position for 1 minute.
PLANK
Still got some time left before the school run? Then do the whole thing again!
If you did all that in pretty quick succession, with good technique & correct TVA activation throughout – you just knocked the socks off an hour’s boring cardio in about 15 minutes – good eh?
And although there’s not a sit-up to be seen, every one of these exercises works your abs better than crunches ever will… Goodbye Mummy Tummy!
Hi there muddlingalongmummy & glad you enjoyed the pancakes!
The plank is actually one of the exercises that will help CLOSE the gap – but remember it is not your Transverse (TVA) that has parted or ’split’ it is only the rectus muscle at the front… I say ‘only’ because the TVA is the really really important deeper muscle that is vital to your core strength, & the rectus is the vertical, superficial (meaning in this case, outermost) muscle that parted to make room for your growing baby girls.
The most important aspect to the plank is that the RIGHT muscles are working. This means you need to think ‘belly button to spine… pelvic floor IN’ as you hold the position, whilst breathing normally (don’t hold your breath). If you ‘let go’ during these contactions, your lower back will take all the strain, you’ll collapse &/or your back will hurt! Try the plank from your knees, rather than right up on your toes, first. Start in the all fours position, then gradually shuffle your knees further back so your back is a slope, rather than a flat line. The further you shuffle your knees back (upper body doesn’t change position), the more work your core has to do. As soon as you feel your back ’sagging’ & taking the strain, or you can’t keep TVA / pelvic floor engaged, you’ve gone too far for now.
Exact same principle applies to progressing your press-ups… the further back you shift your knees from the all fours position (with the eventual aim that you’re on your toes), the harder it is.
With both exercises, start on all fours & progress a little at a time. Remember too (& reading a little of your blog, I think this is pertinent too) the core is not just the ‘belly button to spine’ movement – it’s pelvic floor too – always work the 2 in tandem (it will become second nature after a while). Think of the core as having a top, sides & a BOTTOM, & all must squeeze at the same time to engage effectively.
Hope that made sense! Good luck!
Those sound great – are things like the plank ok to start on when you’ve still got a bit of a gap in your TVA ? Or best to wait until they fully re-engage ?
Perfect! Next time – do the upper body & core stuff after the cardio intervals, instead, then back to your kettlebell squats & lunges again. Go girl!
Thanks Wendy! Whilst i am not a busy mum, i definitely fall into the category of not having the inclination (or time) to spend hours in the gym so i gave your 15 minute workout a go (slightly modified) – 15 mins of intervals on the treadmill – 1 min hard / 1 min walking, and then the squats and lunges with a 12kg kettlebell. Certainly felt like i’d done a much longer session!!! Thanks!