Postpartum Yoga Routine for Healing and Renewed Strength

Editor: Diksha Yadav on Sep 26,2025

The experience of becoming a mother is wonderful and life-changing, and it demands a lot from us, both physically and emotional changes. After birth, whether in weeks or months, it is essential to find a way to reconnect with your body, particularly as it recovers (and perhaps redistributes) over time. A gentle postpartum yoga class can offer time and space to heal, rest, and restore. For maternal childbirth, a tailored postpartum yoga class can become a haven for healing and self-care.

Suppose you are starting a postpartum yoga practice. In that case, postpartum yoga for beginners may be the perfect approach to being with your body in kind, deliberate, and mindful movement as it recovers. This post will provide a safe and effective postnatal yoga class with some of the most impactful postpartum yoga moves to consider practicing at home.

Why Choose a Postpartum Yoga Routine?

The period following childbirth, usually called the "fourth trimester," offers a unique adjustment time. The body is recuperating from creating and birthing a child, and the mind and emotions are trying to make sense of this new reality. A postpartum yoga practice does not mean you are looking for a vigorous workout or your most challenging pose. In fact, a postpartum practice is precisely that: an opportunity to listen to your body and to offer it what it needs the most—gentle strength, release, and restoration. 

The benefits of a gentle postpartum yoga practice can be considerable:

• Physical rehabilitation: Gently strengthens the core and pelvic floor, which have been weakened and stretched.
• Postural improvements: Counters postural habits developed from holding and feeding your baby, such as rounded shoulders. 
• Stress release: Breathing and mindful movement trigger your parasympathetic nervous system to relax and release postpartum anxiety.
• More energy: Although it sounds counterintuitive, gentle movement can reduce the physical exhaustion associated with having a newborn. 
• Community: Whether in person or online, a postnatal yoga class offers an incredible feeling of community with other new mothers.

Essential Precautions Before You Begin Your Practice

Before you begin practicing, obtaining clearance from your doctor or midwife is essential. Generally, you would receive clearance from your doctor or midwife at your six-week postpartum check-up, but if you had a cesarean section or complicated delivery, you may need to wait longer. Always pay attention to your body's signals. If something is painful or uncomfortable, please stop right away. Important: this is a healing time, not a time to ignore pain.

Foundational Elements of a Postnatal Yoga Routine

Each mother's experience differs, but a safe postnatal yoga practice follows some basic principles.

The Power of Breath: Pranayama

Breathwork is the foundation of your practice. Deep and diaphragmatic breathing massages your organs, calms your nervous system, and begins reconnecting and re-engaging the deep core and pelvic floor. Spending a few minutes daily practicing slow, full breaths (inhalation and exhalation) can be healing.

Mindful Core and Pelvic Floor Engagement 

The best postpartum yoga sequence does not include aggressive crunches but focuses on subtle, functional core engagement. Draw your navel gently toward your spine and then draw it upward, engaging the pelvic floor muscles (as if you were gently stopping the flow of urine). This coordinated engagement will need to align with your poses while you breathe.

A Sample Gentle Postpartum Yoga Sequence

This sequence is a beginner's guide to postpartum yoga. Stay in each posture for 5-10 breath cycles, taking time and moving gently and mindfully. You will need a yoga mat and pillows or blankets for additional support, specifically for comfort.

1. Constructive Rest Pose (Supported Supine Bound Angle Pose)

This is one of the most restorative postpartum yoga practices you can do. With your body supported, this pose opens both your hips and groin, which can feel tight after childbirth, and the position can be profoundly relaxing.

• How to practice: To practice, lie on your back, knees bent, and feet together on the mat. Allow your knees to fall out to the side of your body. If you want or need support, you can put pillows or folded blankets below your outer thighs. You can place your hands on your belly or out to the sides of your body and keep your eyes closed and wrists relaxed while you focus on your breath. 

2. Cat-Cow Pose (Marjaryasana-Bitilasana)

This gentle, flowing movement will mobilize the spine and relieve tension through the back, which is commonly caused by holding a baby.

• How to do it: Come to hands and knees in the tabletop. As you inhale, let your belly drop, lift your gaze, and arch your spine into Cow Pose. As you exhale, round your spine towards the ceiling by tucking your chin to your chest for Cat Pose. Flow back and forth into each shape with your breath.

3. Modified Child’s Pose (Balasana)

A standard pose for rest and inward gaze, supported Child’s Pose is deeply soothing.

• How to do it: From tabletop, bring your big toes together and widen your knees. Place a pillow or bolster lengthwise between your thighs and gently lower your hips back towards your heels with your torso and head supported on the prop.

4. Supported Bridge Pose (Setu Bandhasana)

This mild backbend helps strengthen the glutes and hamstrings while opening the chest and shoulders.

• How to do it: Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet hip-distance apart. Place a yoga block or a firm pillow under your sacrum (the flat area of your lower back). Let your arms rest beside your body. While you breathe, relax into this passive pose and let the surface hold you. 

5. Legs-Up-the-Wall Pose (Viparita Karani)

This is a lovely pose for decreasing swelling in the feet and ankles, calming the mind, and relieving tired legs.

• How to do it: Sit sideways next to a wall. From this position, lie on your back, swinging your legs up the wall. Your sit bones should be as close to the wall as comfortable. If you'd like, you may place a folded blanket under your hips for support. Let your arms rest out to the sides of your body.

Building Your Practice: Tips for Consistency

Creating a sustainable postpartum yoga routine is more about consistency than duration. Even five minutes a day is beneficial.

• Involve Your Baby: Place your baby on a blanket next to your mat or incorporate them into your practice—gentle rocking and singing can be part of your flow.
• Be Flexible: Practice when you can. Nap time might be your window of opportunity.
• Focus on Feeling Good: The goal is to leave your practice feeling more centered and comfortable in your body, not exhausted.

Must Read: Helpful Tips for New Moms for Getting to Know Your Newborn

Conclusion

A gentle postpartum yoga practice is a powerful way to care for yourself. This postnatal yoga sequence offers a caring container to rebuild your strength from the inside out. When you take the time to do these safe postpartum yoga practices, you honor your incredible work with your body and establish a foundation of wellness for both you and your baby. Remember, this is your time to heal, reconnect, and gently reclaim your power as a mother. 

This content was created by AI