Helping new Leighton Buzzard mums lose their '˜mummy tummies'

So she has set up baby-friendly Mummy & Me Pilates classes to demonstrate safe and effective exercises for post-pregnancy recovery.

They start at The Studio, Boss Avenue, from April 27 and are suitable for mums after the six week check or eight weeks after a Caesarian or instrumental delivery.

“They’re for my benefit as much as theirs,” Jo smiled. “I’ve shared many of their experiences.”

She had a Caesar when three-year-old Sam was born and a natural birth with Joshua, who’s now one.

Jo, of Brooklands Estate, said: “There’s so little out there for new mums after their babies are born.

“They’re given a leaflet about pelvic floor exercises and that’s about it.

“They often go back to traditional exercises like sit-ups, and sometimes that can make a problem worse.

“I’ve seen women come for physiotherapy for back pain or stress incontinence years after having had a baby, which can be traced back to that post-natal period when the problem was never really fixed or addressed.”

Many women suffer from diastasis recti or DRA – commonly called ‘mummy tummy’ – which is basically the separation of the two abdominal rectus muscles. It’s a complication experienced by 30 percent of women in the second trimester and over 60 percent in the third trimester.

The separation should reduce considerably in the first eight weeks after birth but if it doesn’t continue to improve, help should be sought from a chartered physiotherapist.

Jo said: “I‘m really excited about starting the classes. We have a lovely venue, free parking, a place to feed baby and change nappies and a cafe.”

> Call 07748 784420 or visit www.jodyson18.wixsite.com/mummyandmepilates