Having been through 2 pregnancies by 20 years old and with my tiny frame of 4 foot 11 inches, there was bound to be some “damage” done. And there was.  I can tell you, I will never ever be seen in a bikini again.  Not only did my stomach muscles expand to accommodate my children, making my tummy the size of a large watermelon (I’m not even kidding. I was huge!) but so did the skin as well. So, even though I have done various workouts before, my skin will never be the same. But that’s beside the point, the point is that what I can improve is the abdominal separation issue I’ve been dealing with that has caused other health issues.  Thankfully, it has gotten better over the years, as I am now almost 2 years postpartum, and with these exercises from Be-Fit Mom.

Firstly, I haven’t seen a postpartum exercise DVD that specifically talks about and deals with the abdominal separation as this one does. Others I have owned haven’t mentioned it at all, so therefore Moms could be at risk for actually damaging their muscles rather than helping!  I was eager to see what Helene suggested to do about it and what exercises to help fix it.  I first received her book, Exercise After Pregnancy: How to Look and Feel Your Best (2nd Edition), but I was quickly discouraged by it.  It does a great job describing the muscles and explaining the terms she uses during exercises, however, trying to do the correct exercises…while holding a book up? Doesn’t work so well. I became very frustrated and notified the Family Review Network, where we agreed that I could also be sent the DVD, Bounce Back Fast! Postnatal Core Conditioning, to help complete my review. Let me just say, it made all the difference. It was so much easier to grasp the information from the book with Helene talking and visually showing the exercises rather than just through drawings and pictures from the book.  And, of course, it helped to have free hands without the book during working out!

The DVD is set up very nicely, broken up into several “training” videos of about 6 minutes each that help explain the different terms and base positions that are needed to know for the workouts (like I read in the book).  It is very informative, telling me things I didn’t pick up in the book but honestly, this section can be a little boring because there isn’t much action.  Also, the lady doing the instructions was a little awkward with her pauses during speech and eye contact with the camera so I would get distracted from the information.  However, as I moved into the exercise portions, it wasn’t as noticeable because she seemed more relaxed and less rehearsed, and ya know, I was concentrating on tightening those abs!

The exercises themselves are very gentle and easy going, much like pilates and yoga.  The instructions are very clear and I never was confused about what I was supposed to be doing (unlike with the book). I also love how there are different workouts for different needs.  You can start out with the “Gentle First Moves” for easy stretching and breathing after 6 weeks postnatal, and then move into the “Bounce Back Fast!” exercises when you are ready that are still easy but involve more focused training for not just abs, but back, arms, and legs as well. There is a section as well for those who find they have abdominal separation and need to take extra precautions with exercises. I definitely felt the burn, but it wasn’t so intense that I felt like I was over doing it. The DVD includes a fit band (mine was hot pink, hurrah!) that is used during some of the exercises, which is nice and convenient! The BeFit-Mom Website also helps explain the contents of the book and DVD, along with specific information that is helpful when preparing to get back into shape after child birth.

So, in my experiences I would recommend the DVD over the book because it’s easier to understand. Myself being 2 years postpartum now, I probably didn’t see as much benefit as other Moms would with younger children, but it’s still helpful to be able to target that last problem area I have (i.e. troublesome stomach muscles) and for just a good stretch. I definitely will be using this whenever we have another child to help get back into shape quicker!

This review opportunity provided by The Family Review Network.