This is a guided, outdoor YouTube workout by Autumn Calabrese aimed at new mothers wanting to restore abdominal strength and appearance after pregnancy (including C-section). The instructor presents seven targeted core exercises (pelvic-thrust crunches emphasizing lower abs, oblique heel reaches, reach-through crunches, knee drops, plank holds and plank twists, side/plank rotations, and "starfish" sit-ups with alternating leg lifts), provides form cues ("draw the belly button in", keep shoulders down, controlled movement), beginner modifications, and encouragement that regaining a six-pack is possible with consistent effort. The video closes with practical tips for exercising with children and a channel subscription call-to-action.
Questions this video answers
March 18, 2014
Chapters
All right, mommies, number one complaint. I hear my stomach. I had a baby. I can't have a six pack. I also get. I've had a C section, so there's no way I'll ever have my abs back. They're not gonna be strong enough. Here to break the bad news to you that those are all just excuses because I had a baby. He's five now. He's not really a baby anymore, but I also had a C section, and I got the six pack back, and I actually even had a hernia. Nothing to do with anything other than trying to push him, but that's been repaired. Point is, is that I've had the baby, I've had the C section, I've had the hernia, and I still have the six pack. So I'm proof that if you're willing to put some work in, you, too can have the abs you've always wanted, even after the baby. So we're outside today. Spring's around the corner. We're enjoying nature. It's always easier when you bring the kids outside. You can let them play while you get your workout in. So that's what we're doing today. I've got seven of my favorite ab exercises for you. Let's get to it. Laying flat, belly button always drawn in tight to your spine. Hands are going by the ears. We're doing 10 reps. You're gonna do a crunch, and you're gonna do it with a pelvic thrust. So you're gonna crunch, squeeze your abs lower down. Crunch and lift and down. Really get that extra squeeze on the lower abs every single time. Now, those are the hardest ones to get after having the baby and after having the C section, but they're not. You just gotta work a little harder for it. Good. Give me two more right here. Last one. Get that big squeeze. Squeeze, squeeze, and release it. Okay, so now we're gonna work the obliques. So those are those muscles along your side that give you the nice V shape going down when you put your bathing suit back on. Arms at your side, belly button drawn in. Bend and reach for your heel. Reach for your heel. Key here is to keep the belly button drawn in every time. And exhale.
Five.
Four.
Two more.
Last one each side and relax it down. Good. So now we're gonna do reach through. So what I want you to do is stack your hands. You're gonna reach through the center of your legs. When you crunch up lower down, reach to one side, reach to center, reach to the other.
Draw the belly Button in tight. Gotta work for it. Like I said, it's not impossible to get those abs back after the baby. It just takes a little bit more work.
Two more.
And good. All right, rest it down. So next one, we're going to go into knee drops. I want you to bring the legs up into a 90 degree angle. That bird is just chatting up to me. Arms out to your side. Draw that belly button in tight. This is a little bit of a harder exercise, but that's okay. We can do it. So to start, if you're a beginner, when you drop them to the side, you don't have to go very far, but you want to squeeze your abs to pull you back to the center. And then you go to the other side, and then you bring it back in. Now, harder is to go a little bit lower. If you can get all the way to the side. Side. You want to keep both shoulders down on the ground. Squeeze and drop back up. So you see, it's not momentum lifting me here. This is one of my favorites. I like working the obliques. I like to have that line that runs down my thigh.
Keep going right here.
Last two.
Give me one more.
And very nice. Okay, so we're gonna sit up, we're gonna flip over because we're going into a plank. Plank is an isometric hold for your abs. It's great for stabilizing the whole core. So your abs and your pelvic area. You're gonna come onto your forearms.
On your toes, we're gonna lift up and you're gonna hold right here. Now, when you start these, you might only be up here for 15 seconds. Maybe it's only five, 10 seconds. But the goal is to be able to hold for a minute. I'm not gonna hold for quite a minute, but I'll stay up here with you for a second. Keep squeezing, drawing the belly button in, squeezing your butt, squeezing your inner thighs, sinking the weight back into your toes. I love planks because really, it's a full body exercise. Everything's getting work right now. My shoulders, my abs, my butt, my inner thighs, my outer thighs. Let's stay here for 5, 4, 3, 2, and good. Drop it down to your knees. Take a little stretch back. So now we're gonna come right back up into that plank position. And again, we're going for those obliques. So on the toes, we're gonna drop side to side. So you're gonna twist. Tap, lift, tap, lift. You see, I'm not rushing anything here. Everything's controlled that way. I really Work the abs side and side.
Four, Three.
Two, Last one.
Good. Again. Stretch it back.
All right, so now you're gonna come on your side. One more plank. Ex.
So you can either be on your hand or on your forearm. If being up on your hand hurts your wrist, then take it down to the forearm. I'm going to come up on my hand, though. It's actually going to give me more space for this exercise. So I'm going to stack my feet one arm up, belly button in. I'm going to rotate and lift. Squeeze.
Up. Plane going overhead. No big deal. We're just by the Santa Monica airport. Is that right? And lift now. Now keep going. If it's too hard for you to have your feet stacked, you can take one in front of the other, and that'll just give you a little bit more balance. Three more right here. Three.
Two, last one.
And flip it to the other side. All right, guys, you're not gonna get a lot of stories out of me in this one because I'm trying to breathe. And count. Here we go. Rotate. Belly button in.
Like I said, if this is too hard, you can always stack that foot in front. If even that is too hard, you can always come right here. There's always a beginning place. It doesn't matter what your fitness level is. You can progress. I'm coming back up. Three.
Two, last one. Oh, very nice. I have one more exercise for you. These are fun. They're called starfish. So you're gonna lay all the way flat on your back. Your legs are a V, your arms are making a V like a starfish. You're gonna do a full sit up with an alternating leg lift. So my right hand is gonna lift to my left leg. So I'm lift and lower. I'm gonna do five on this side and then I'll switch to the other side.
One more like this. Good. And then we're going right to the other side. Lift. If you need to, you can use this hand for a little bit of support, but really try to make it all come from the abs.
Last one.
There you go. Stretch it out. Nicely done.
Abs. I know they're not always fun. It's hard. I know when I get on the ground, my son's usually trying to jump on top of me on my back. All those fun things, take it outside, give them a ball to play with so that they can have fun. You can get your workout in, but remember, you can do it. You will get that six pack back. You just have to put the work in subscribe get two new videos a week from me. Fitness tips, recipes. Thanks for joining me and I will see you next time.
