Baby Back Squats

The squat is the king of all lower body exercises and the wide (a.k.a. plie squat or sumo) squat is an excellent move to add to your routine if you are looking to strengthen your lower body and work on the shape of your glutes and the tightness of your inner thighs. If you are a new mom, and your baby can already sit, you can start using him or her as a weight. It's great fun for both mom and baby and it allows you to work with increasing overload as your baby grows up to allow you to make continuous improvements.

To do your first baby back squat:

1. Put baby on your shoulders and hold him or her by the hands.

2. Take a wide leg stance with feet slightly pointed out.

3. Stand up tall and take a breath into your lower abdomen, bracing your abs.

4. Lower yourself down as if you are sitting in a chair, making sure that your knees stay in line with your toes and your knee does not travel forward. It helps to imagine you are wearing ski shoes and your shin stays as vertical as possible.

5. Pause at the bottom and push yourself up through your glutes and hips, exhaling forcefully.

You can start with a few game reps, just to see how your little one reacts to them, but you can soon progress to sets of 10 or more. Take at least 45 seconds of rest between sets of 8-12 and do these in 3 to 5 sets for best results.

If you are looking to lose fat, log and revise your diet and keep moving.