Before I’d even given birth, I knew I wanted to try and get back into shape as soon as I could, even though there was no pressure to. I never really made the effort after my first pregnancy to do much fitness, so I knew I wanted to do something, and it was a couple of weeks after Teddy was born that I was offered a subscription to Joanna Helcke’s online pilates programme.
The multi award winning programme offers a week by week instructional video by Dr Helcke herself, and these start at week 14 of pregnancy, right up until 26 weeks post partum. I started at week 6 post partum, albeit apprehensively as I’d had a c-section but I genuinely needn’t have worried as this is tailored to all types of births. I would like to think that the programme was instrumental in the recovery of my c-section, because I healed very well and very quickly, much better than I could have hoped for.
Medical details are requested before the programme even starts so that any potential issues can be addressed before you begin, which I think is great. Lots of companies, I think, would just let you get on with it without first doing a bit of research about the person doing the exercise. The first 6 weeks of the programme are specifically designed for your postnatal body before your 6 week check up so it’s not tough, hard or strenuous, it’s very gentle and introductory.
Along with the videos you are given a “to do” list which appears underneath, so make sure to have a read of these. The instructions could refer to using the weekly meal planner which is a nice little extra to help out with diet suggestions, right through to referring back to older videos in order to mix up your workouts during the week.
Joanna and her team are on hand to offer you support whenever you may need it. There is a dedicated forum which you can join, and you can even email Joanna directly with any questions or concerns you may have, which I think is great.
The videos are around 20-30 minutes long, which is perfect for fitting in with naps and Joanna usually gets straight into what you’re going to be doing without wasting any of that precious time. She doesn’t use any fitness jargon and always offers easy to follow instructions, and if you’re still not sure, she’s doing it along with you so you can always copy what she’s doing.
One of the other great things about this programme is that it encourages you to make time for yourself, especially in the first few weeks after birth, which can be great towards your mental well being. You can choose to do the programme once a week, whether that be the day your weekly video is unlocked, or you can do it every day, it’s totally up to how you feel because the videos can be revisited as many times as you like.
Joanna doesn’t make you do any exercise that isn’t going to help you. She explains exactly what you’re doing, which is great, but even better, WHY it’s good for you. What muscle you’re working and how it will help you during/after pregnancy. Everything is done with longevity in mind, rather than hard and fast results.
Admittedly, in the last couple of months I have joined a gym and have been doing this as well as the pilates programme, but you don’t have to do that if you don’t want to. It’s done in the comfort of your own home without being self conscious of people watching you and the environment is much more calm and collected than in a gym, although the programme has encouraged me to try other forms of exercise.
I would recommend investing in a few key pieces of equipment to use with the videos themselves, or you can do what I did and that’s improvise at home. Something comfy to lay on, so if the carpet is good enough for you that’s great, but it’s probably worthwhile investing in a yoga mat. Equally, an exercise ball and a pillow would also be very helpful. These aren’t necessary but they will certainly help when it comes to most of the videos.
I would not hesitate to pay £12 per month for the subscription. Considering that you get a video each week, all of which you are able to revisit, a meal planner, experts on hand for questions, a forum and much more, this is superb value for money. It’s unlikely that you would find all of this in one place anywhere else, and certainly not for the same price.
All I can say is well done Joanna and team on this fantastic programme!
*For the purpose of this review, I received free access to the Dr Joanna Helcke online programme. However, all thoughts and opinions are my own