Now that you've gone through pregnancy, YOUR BUTT IS DIFFERENT. And did you know it's all related to your pelvic floor?

‍

I know, I know. You didn't expect me to say that. But it's a real thing!

And let me just say, I think it's okay to have preferences for what your body looks like. Like, we live in these bodies after all, don't we? It's important that we don't obsess over our appearance or find our worth in how we look BUT I think it's also okay to say "I wish I had a rounder butt."

​Of course the MOST important thing is how your body feels. And generally speaking, a flat mom butt means your body isn't feeling good somewhere: whether it's the pelvic floor, the lower back, or the glute muscles themselves.

So let's get into it.

I know pregnancy is just 40 weeks, but being pregnant just once in your life affects you for the rest of your life.

We recover from birth, but we're really recovering from pregnancy, too.

Before baby (before pregnancy, really), you had this nice round perky tush to boast about. And actually, you probably weren't even that concerned with your butt's appearance--at least not compared to now. Then baby came, and everything changed. And of course this is something moms everywhere face--not just new moms.

(Speaking of perky…you know what, no. The boobs are done for. Honestly I’m at the point where they just kinda get in the way. Okay, back on topic.)

BUTTS.

Obviously a big player here is your glute muscles, but remember: everything is connected!

Glutes are connected to pelvic floor muscles are connected to your lower back and your hips and and and...EVERYTHING. IS. CONNECTED.

(Side note here: you know "the glutes" are not just your glute max aka gluteus maximus but also your glute medius and gluteus minimus? Fun fact for ya!)

Let's start with the basics: A lot of what's going on with your glutes has to do with the way your pelvis is positioned. Pretty much everyone has a natural tendency to their pelvis based on their genetics and anatomy: either a posterior pelvic tilt or an anterior pelvic tilt.

No amount of strength training is going to cancel out your pancake butt if you're living in tilt either way.

And in pregnancy, your body experiences some pretty significant postural changes because of the shift in your center of gravity. Your belly gets bigger and heavier. Your hips and pelvis push forward as you embark on the great balancing challenge that is carrying around a growing baby.

If you noticed any challenges in balance--you're not making it up! That shift in your center of gravity is a real thing and can really throw off your balance! That's one reason we practice balancing postures in prenatal yoga.

Anatomy 101 tells us muscles make body parts move, so this whole hip/pelvis moving forward thing? That’s all thanks to the glutes.

Your glutes are turned on basically any time you’re standing up and allowing yourself to settle into this “pregnancy posture,” and then it becomes normal. We learn this posture in pregnancy and then our body kind of adopts this new habit longterm unless we do something about it. Most of us thrust our hips forward or to one side to help us carry our babies postpartum--this only exacerbates the problem!

So, we learn it in pregnancy, and we carry it with us forever: Our glutes are engaged.

(Glutes 101: When I say “your glutes are engaged,” I mean “your butt is clenched.” Got it?)

Holding your baby? Hips forward, glutes engaged.

Washing dishes? Hips forward, glutes engaged.

Brushing teeth? Hips forward, glutes engaged.

And all this engagement is actually working against you.

​

​Of course, if you have a sedentary lifestyle, that's not doing you any favors either.

So instead of doing a million glute bridges and hip thrusts every day for days on end--

​

What you need to do first is understand how to properly activate glute strength--and then find the best exercises to go from there.

‍

I know it feels like if the muscle is engaged, it's strong (look! I'm clenching my cheeks! Look how rock hard these buns are!) but it's actually the opposite. You see, if you’re constantly engaging a muscle, you’re actually weakening it. Muscle strength happens through the cycle of contract and release.

But what's happening in this dreaded "pregnancy posture" is stretched out hip flexors, tight muscles (esp in the gluteus maximus, the largest muscle of your butt), and a tight and non-functioning pelvic floor. And probably lower back pain too because of weak core muscles and and and...it's all related!

So a clenched butt = engaged glutes = tight glutes = muscle loss = flattening the tush.

​

And weak gluteal muscles are often a contributing factor in weak or tight pelvic floor muscles. A lot of people think in order to build muscle mass and have those elusive "shapely glutes" (ha!) they just need to either get into a good exercise routine (focusing especially on glute exercises to build strong glutes), wait for the hormonal changes of pregnancy / postpartum to pass, pray to the gods for more butt fat, and when all else fails, just accept this new "mom's butt" version of their bodies.

But the good news is you don't have to just live with this!!

Here's what we're gonna do about it:

1. Stop clenching your glute muscles all the time. Be really aware of your daily habits and daily routine to see when and where you're doing this.

2. Tune into your posture. Are you standing tall, or kind of slouching and pushing your hips forward?

3. Be mindful of your pelvic position in daily activities, when you're standing still, and when you're moving from one yoga pose or exercise to another (anterior pelvic tilt vs posterior pelvic tilt). Imagine your pelvis is a bowl of water. Don't let that bowl of water spill forward or spill back; keep it perfectly balanced. 

4. Practice strength training hip exercises and glute exercises, focusing on fully relaxing in between the strongest/hardest parts. Make sure of course that you're using proper form in all your body parts, but especially in and around the pelvis and lower back. (Remember body weight exercises like yoga are just fine, but you can of course work with resistance bands too for more traditional strength training.)

So remember: unless you really want a mom butt for your mom jeans, remind yourself to UNCLENCH THE CHEEKS. LET THE GLUTES GO. RELEASE THE RUMP!

These small changes can go a long way in rounding out your flat mom butt--not just for aesthetics but for strength and well-being, too!