The first thing that goes out of the window after the arrival of a baby is the father’s exercise routine. Though physical exertion remains limited for the mother during her pregnancy, the same is not true for the father, and he was likely hitting the gym on a regular basis. But with the new member in the family, both the parents find themselves with no time or energy left to do anything else besides taking care of the baby.

With healthy meals giving way to irregular snacking and spare time devoted to catching up on  the lost sleep, it is quite natural for a new father to forgo his exercise routine as he gets busy in his new role.

Though, the mother needs to take her time to recover after nine months of pregnancy and should take it easy for a while the father can continue this fitness regime very well

Not many new Dads realise that they can combine their fatherly duties with their exercise routines. However, impossible this may sound but more and more physical trainers and even doctors are recommending men to combine their fatherly duties with a physical fitness regime.

Read on to find out  how your baby can help you stay in shape. We will take the exercises from top (or the arms) to bottom (or the legs).

6 Exercises you can do with your baby to maintain your fitness regime

Exercises for Biceps and Arms

 1. Bench Press:

Pick up your baby and lie flat with your back on the floor. Your knees should be bent, and feet should be on the floor. Now, hold your baby underneath his or her arms and slowly raise him or her up. Once you have stretched your arms fully, bring the baby down until his or her feet touches your chest. Then move your arms back up and repeat the process.

It is better to start with 1-2 bench presses at first so the baby and you are comfortable. You should then move on to one or two sets of 10-15 bench presses. You will feel the strain on your triceps soon enough. Increase the sets and the number of bench presses gradually.

Also, remember to play with the baby as you exercise. Mimic sounds, make faces, make him or her laugh and you will soon find yourself doing more bench presses than you have ever done in the gym.

2. Biceps Curl:

For this, you will need a baby car seat. Tuck the baby comfortably into the car seat. Now, stand straight and use the car seat handle at the top to do a bicep curl. Start with a straight hand and the seat near the floor. Then, slowly lift your forearm to raise the handle and lift the seat. You will feel the tension on your biceps. Once you have reached the upper position, slowly bring the baby down until your hand is straight back down.

As with the bench press, start slow with 1-2 curls so you know how the seat moves. Once you are aware of the movement dynamics, start the exercise as one or two sets of 15-20 curls, and increase the reps and sets as required.

Unlike bench presses where you and the baby are facing each other, here the car seat will probably be facing the other side. This means you can do this exercise when you are trying to get him/her to sleep. The gentle up and down movement will help the baby doze off in no time.

3. Front Raises:

The exercise is somewhat similar in movement to the biceps curls. You will need the car seat here too. Start with the arm straight in the down position and the baby tucked away in the car seat. Now, slowly move the car seat up, keeping the arm straight.

You will feel the strain on your forearms and the upper arms. Start with a few reps and find your rhythm the first few times. If you want, you can try 1-2 sets of 10-15 reps on the first day and then plan your schedule for the next few days.

Just like the bicep curls, the design of a conventional car seat makes it likely that the baby will face away from you. Again, another exercise for him/her to sway gently to sleep. Exercise for your legs and the lower body.

Exercises for your legs and lower body 

4. Torso Twist:

Sit on the floor with your knees bent and feet on the floor. The baby should be on your sides near where you are sitting. Lift the baby up from one side and move him or her to the other side. The movement will be same as when you move a ball from one side to another. Just remember to do it slowly.

Your baby is likely to be perplexed by what Daddy is doing but if you play with him/her, he/she will soon start enjoying the game and you are more likely than not to not even notice how many twists you have done.

5. Squat and Lift:

Hold your baby in front of you and go to a squat position. Now slowly move up, raising your child from your front to up, so that once you are fully upright your arms are fully extended upwards holding the baby aloft over you. From here, reverse the process, so that at the end you are again squatting, and you are holding the baby in front of you.

For more cooperation from the baby, follow him with your eyes and continue to make faces or other sounds that he loves when you are playing with him.

6. Squat:

This is a variation of the simple squat, the only difference being that you are holding the baby in front of you. Hold the baby underneath his/her arms and stand upright with your feet apart at shoulder length. Now, slowly move down into a squat position, all the while playing with the baby. Once down, move back up until you are upright again.

Repeat this 1-2 times at first to see how both of you are comfortable with it. And then do 1-2 sets of 10-15 reps for the first time. Increase as required in the next few days or weeks.

With these simple techniques, we are sure you and your baby will enjoy the workout sessions together! Let us know in the comment section below if these exercises helped you?

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