When Can I Start Exercising After Having a Baby?
Answer:
There’s no set date. Guidelines don’t agree on when to start, and your readiness depends on your body, your birth and how you’re recovering, not the calendar.
You’re also already working hard. Lifting, carrying, feeding and settling a baby is physical work, and it counts.
Most women can begin gently with movement like walking and pelvic floor exercises in the early days, and build up from there. After a caesarean, check with your doctor before starting.
Every bit of movement counts, and it’s one of the best things you can do for your health now and in the years ahead.
Why it matters for your future
Moving your body after birth isn’t about getting your body back. It’s about looking after your health for the long term.
The World Health Organization recommends regular movement for all women after birth. It lowers the risk of postnatal depression. Over time, staying active also helps protect you against heart disease, type 2 diabetes, some cancers and osteoporosis.
The months after birth are also when new routines take shape. Your baby will only get heavier, and soon you’ll be lifting a toddler, a car seat, a pram and a child who wants to be carried. Building strength now helps your body keep up, and small habits you build today can carry you through the years ahead.
What about the first six weeks?
Many women are told to wait until their 6-week check before they exercise. You might be surprised to know there’s no research behind that date. Guidelines don’t agree on when to start, and the 6-week mark isn’t explained in any of them.
In the first six weeks, gentle movement like walking and pelvic floor exercises is generally fine, as long as it doesn’t increase your pain or bleeding. Your body is still healing, so this isn’t the time to push hard.
After a caesarean, check with your doctor before you start, and build up slowly.
From six weeks on, you can start adding more, at a pace that feels right for your body.
When you don't have the time, money or energy
Most new mums don’t have much of any of these. The good news is you don’t need a gym, a class or any equipment, and you don’t need big blocks of time.
Some movement is better than none, and even a few minutes at a time counts. Light movement counts too.
Some simple ways to fit it in:
- Walk with the pram. Around the block, to the shops or to a friend’s place. Add a few extra minutes when you feel up to it.
- Get down on the floor with your baby. Getting down and back up again during play is real strength work for your legs and core.
- Squat to lift. When you pick your baby up from the floor or the cot, bend your knees and use your legs.
- Dance or sway with your baby. Settling a baby to music counts as movement.
- Take the stairs or park further away when you’re out.
- Move with a friend. A walk with another parent is free, social and easier to stick with.
On the days you’re running on empty, rest is the right choice. Movement will still be there tomorrow.
How much is enough?
Australia’s guidelines for pregnancy and after birth recommend that women aim for the same amount of activity as all adults. That’s 2½ to 5 hours of moderate activity a week, plus strength exercises on at least 2 days. They also recommend pelvic floor exercises.
There’s very little in these guidelines written just for the time after birth. The amount is a general guide, not a target made for new mums.
Think of it as something to build towards over time, not where you need to start. Any movement is better than none.
Don't forget your pelvic floor
Guidelines disagree on a lot when it comes to exercise after birth. Pelvic floor exercises are the one thing they all agree on.
They’re free, you can start in the early days, and they support you in everything else you do, from lifting to walking to getting back to the activities you love.
Building strength
Being strong helps you lift, carry and keep up with a growing child, and it protects your bones as you get older.
You don’t need weights or a gym to start. Your own body weight is enough at first:
- Squats. Sit back towards a chair and stand up again.
- Bridges. Lie on your back, knees bent, and lift your hips.
- Wall push-ups. Stand facing a wall and push away from it.
- Step-ups. Step up onto a low step and back down.
Start with a few and add more as they feel easier. Over time you can add light weights or a resistance band.
For core exercises, read our article Can I Do Sit-Ups After Having a Baby? | WHEN
Make it about you
You may see exercises that use your baby as a weight. When you can, leave your baby out of it.
You’ve just spent nine months carrying extra weight, and your pelvic floor has carried a lot of it. A baby also wriggles and moves without warning, so you can’t control the load the way you can with a weight.
We know time without your baby can be hard to find. When you do get a few minutes, even if it’s just while they sleep, it’s a chance to focus on your own body.
Signs to ease back
Your body will usually let you know when you’ve done too much. Signs to ease back include:
- Leaking
- A feeling of heaviness or dragging in your vagina
- Pain in your pelvis, back or abdomen
- Feeling completely wiped out afterwards
These are signs to adjust what you’re doing, not to stop moving. Try doing less, going slower or choosing a different exercise. If a sign keeps coming back, it’s a good time to get support.
Where to get support
You don’t have to work this out on your own.
- National Continence Helpline: 1800 33 00 66. Free, confidential advice from a nurse continence specialist if you notice leaking, heaviness or other pelvic floor changes.
- Pregnancy, Birth and Baby: 1800 882 436. A free national helpline staffed by maternal child health nurses, open 7am to midnight, 7 days a week.
For hands-on support, a women’s health physiotherapist or an exercise professional with postnatal training can check how your body is recovering and help you build up in a way that suits you.
For more, read our articles How Long Does It Take to Recover After Birth? | WHEN Can I Do Sit-Ups After Having a Baby? | WHEN Is Diastasis Linked to Pelvic Floor Problems? | WHEN
References
American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. (2020). Physical activity and exercise during pregnancy and the postpartum period: ACOG Committee Opinion No. 804. Obstetrics and Gynecology, 135(4), e178-e188.
Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care. (2021). Australia’s Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour Guidelines for Adults (18-64 years). https://www.health.gov.au
Better Health Channel. (n.d.). Osteoporosis and exercise. Victorian Department of Health. https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/osteoporosis-and-exercise
Brown, W.J., Hayman, M., Haakstad, L.A.H., Lamerton, T., Mena, G.P., Green, A., Keating, S.E., Gomes, G.A.O., Coombes, J.S., & Mielke, G.I. (2022). Australian guidelines for physical activity in pregnancy and postpartum. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, 25(6), 511-519.
Bull, F.C., Al-Ansari, S.S., Biddle, S., et al. (2020). World Health Organization 2020 guidelines on physical activity and sedentary behaviour. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 54(24), 1451-1462.
Davenport, M.H., et al. (2025). 2025 Canadian guideline for physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep throughout the first year post partum. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 59(8). https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2025-109785
Schulz, J.M., Marmura, H., Hewitt, C.M., et al. (2023). Navigating the ‘new normal’: what guidelines exist for postpartum return to physical activity and sport? A scoping review. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 57, 1573-1578.
Developed by the WHEN Clinical Team
Clinically reviewed by the WHEN Clinical Governance Committee
Last reviewed: 01/10/2026
With clinical input from Peta Titter, RN, Grad Cert Continence Nursing, Advanced Diploma of Pilates. Honours by Research (diastasis recti). PhD candidate, University of Tasmania. Founder and CEO, WHEN.
