Written by

Gina Conley, MS

August 13, 2026

Postpartum Return to Squatting: A Step-by-Step Progression Back to the Barbell Back Squat

Fitness, Postnatal

Returning to strength training after having a baby can feel exciting, but it can also come with a lot of questions. When can you start squatting again? How much weight should you use? Should you start with bodyweight squats, a box squat, or jump right back into the barbell?

The answer isn’t necessarily the same for everyone.

A postpartum return to lifting is a process of rebuilding your ability to manage pressure, coordinate your breathing with movement, restore strength, and gradually expose your body to heavier loads. Rather than viewing postpartum recovery as a race to get back to your pre-pregnancy numbers, it can be helpful to think of it as an opportunity to build a stronger foundation.

In this guide, we’ll walk through a gradual progression for returning to the barbell back squat postpartum, beginning with supported breathing mechanics and eventually progressing to loaded squats.

This progression comes from the MamasteFit postpartum fitness approach, which has been developed through years of working with postpartum clients as well as personal experience returning to fitness after pregnancy.

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel for more weekly workouts and educational videos! We publish one new workout video and 2-3 educational videos a week on our channel.

Why Your Postpartum Squat Progression Matters

The barbell back squat is a complex movement. It requires coordination between your feet, ankles, knees, hips, trunk, abdominal wall, pelvic floor, and breathing mechanics.

After pregnancy and birth, those systems have experienced significant changes.

Instead of simply asking, “How quickly can I get back to squatting heavy?” a better question may be:

How can I progressively rebuild my ability to squat while maintaining good pressure management and without developing symptoms?

The MamasteFit progression begins with breathing mechanics and gradually adds movement, range of motion, stability demands, and eventually external load.

The progression looks something like this:

Supported squat breathing
Kneeling squat
Unweighted box squat
Weighted box squat
Air squat
Weighted air squat
Barbell box squat
Barbell squat with progressively increasing depth and load

The goal isn’t simply to complete each exercise. The goal is to make sure your body can handle each new demand before adding another.

Step 1: Reintegrate Your Breath Into the Squat

The first step is surprisingly simple: learn how to breathe and manage pressure in a supported squat position.

Instead of immediately performing repetitions, you can start at the bottom of a squat with your feet supported against an elevated surface or wall. The hips can be slightly elevated for comfort.

A long resistance band around the rib cage can provide helpful feedback.

How to perform the breathing drill

Begin by taking a large inhale into the band.

Think about expanding your rib cage:

Out to the sides
Into your back
Around your entire torso

Then, as you exhale, press your feet into the elevated surface and focus on gently lifting through the front of the pelvic floor while drawing the belly button toward the spine.

The goal isn’t simply to “suck in” your stomach. Instead, you’re practicing coordination between your breath, rib cage, abdominal wall, pelvis, and pelvic floor.

The original progression uses this supported position to teach the pattern of expanding the rib cage on the inhale and engaging the front side of the body on the exhale.

Why start here?

Before adding load, you want to establish your ability to manage pressure.

Think:

Inhale → expand → exhale → engage → move.

This creates the foundation for everything that follows.

Step 2: Progress to the Kneeling Squat

Once you’ve established your breathing mechanics, the next step is a kneeling squat.

This variation removes the ankles from the movement, allowing you to focus primarily on the hips, knees, and torso.

Because you’re not dealing with ankle movement yet, you can concentrate on maintaining your trunk position while extending through the hips and knees.

This is where we begin turning your breathing practice into breath-to-movement coordination.

Add a Band Pull-Apart

One option is to add a resistance band pull-apart.

Start at the bottom of the kneeling squat.

Inhale as you lower.
Exhale as you come up.
Pull the band apart during the ascent.

The pull-apart gives your upper body another task while you’re maintaining your squat position.

Or Try a Press

Another option is to hold a small ball between your hands and press it as you stand.

Again:

Inhale to lower.
Exhale to press and rise.

Neither variation is inherently better than the other. Some people feel that pressing helps them maintain their rib cage and pelvic connection, while others prefer the sensation of pulling the band apart. The important thing is finding the variation that allows you to maintain good control.

Focus on a Stacked Rib Cage and Pelvis

One of the most important concepts during this stage is maintaining a stacked position.

Think of your rib cage and pelvis as being stacked on top of one another rather than allowing your ribs to flare or your hips to shift forward.

As you come to the top of the movement, think about the rib cage and pelvis drawing toward one another through abdominal activation.

Avoid finishing the movement by leaning backward or extending excessively through the lower back.

Add More Variations as You Build Confidence

The kneeling squat can eventually include:

Weighted holds
Banded rows
Banded presses
Pull-aparts
Different loading positions

These variations allow you to challenge your ability to maintain your torso position while breathing and moving.

In the MamasteFit postpartum program, the kneeling squat progression is typically used for approximately one week, with several variations incorporated during that time.

Step 3: Introduce the Unweighted Box Squat

Once you’re ready to bring your ankles back into the movement, it’s time to stand up.

The next progression is an unweighted box squat.

The box provides support at the bottom of the squat, which reduces some of the stabilization demands while you continue practicing your breathing and movement mechanics.

Set up with a box or other stable surface behind you.

Then:

Inhale as you lower.
Lower toward the box.
Keep some tension through your legs rather than completely relaxing.
Exhale as you stand.
Maintain your rib cage and pelvis connection throughout the movement.

The box gives you a consistent depth target and provides some support at the bottom of the movement.

Don’t Overarch at the Top

One thing to watch for during your box squat is excessive spinal extension.

You don’t want to:

Overarch your lower back as you stand
Excessively arch as you lower
Lose the stacked relationship between your rib cage and pelvis

Instead, continue to think about maintaining your trunk position while coordinating your breathing with the movement.

Add Your Previous Variations

The same variations from the kneeling squat can now be incorporated into the box squat.

You might use:

A band pull-apart
A banded row
A weighted hold
A loaded box squat

The box allows you to gradually add these elements without having to manage the full stabilization demand of an unsupported squat.

The MamasteFit program typically spends about two to three weeks working through box squat variations and progressively adding these different elements.

Step 4: Progress to the Air Squat

Once you’ve developed confidence with the box squat, it’s time to remove the support.

Now you’re performing a full-range air squat.

But “full range” doesn’t necessarily mean you have to squat as deeply as possible.

Your depth is part of your progression.

You might initially squat to a relatively shallow depth and gradually work toward a deeper squat as your body tolerates it.

For example:

Higher squat → moderate depth → deeper squat

You can also use a heel wedge if that helps you access a comfortable squat position.

The goal isn’t to force a particular depth. Instead, find a depth that feels comfortable and allows you to maintain control and good pressure management.

Explore Your Squat Depth

Your squat depth can be its own progression.

You may start with:

A shallow squat
A moderate squat
A deeper squat

You can also gradually reduce your reliance on a heel wedge if your ankle mobility allows.

There is no requirement to immediately perform the deepest possible squat.

Step 5: Add Upper-Body Resistance to the Air Squat

Once you’re comfortable with the basic air squat, you can bring back some of the loading variations you’ve already practiced.

For example, you can add a band pull-apart.

Air Squat + Pull-Apart

Inhale as you lower.
Exhale as you stand.
Pull the band apart during the ascent.

You can also perform a banded squat row, pairing the rowing movement with your ascent.

These variations increase the stabilization demand because you no longer have the box providing support at the bottom.

This is an important concept throughout postpartum training:

You’re not just increasing weight to make an exercise harder.

You can increase difficulty by changing:

Range of motion
Stability
Tempo
Breathing demands
Upper-body involvement
Loading position
External resistance

Step 6: Add External Weight

Once you’ve developed confidence with the air squat, you can begin adding weight.

Two options in the progression are:

Goblet Squat

Hold a single weight in front of your body.

This can be a particularly useful way to introduce external resistance because the weight stays relatively close to your center of mass.

Front-Rack Squat

Hold weights near your shoulders, with one weight on each side.

Whichever variation you choose, continue to focus on your breathing mechanics.

Inhale to lower.
Exhale to stand.

And continue to use your squat depth as a progression rather than forcing yourself into a depth that doesn’t feel comfortable.

Step 7: Introduce the Barbell

Now we can finally bring the barbell back into the picture.

At this point, you have already practiced:

Breathing
Pressure management
Squat mechanics
Hip and knee extension
Rib cage and pelvic positioning
Different ranges of motion
Different loading positions
Increasing stabilization demands

The first barbell variation can be a barbell box squat.

You can use either a back squat or front squat depending on your goals and personal preference.

The box continues to provide support while you become accustomed to the barbell and the additional load.

Step 8: Adjust Your Breathing for Heavier Loads

As the barbell gets heavier, your breathing strategy may need to change.

With lighter loads, you may have been using:

Inhale to lower → exhale to stand.

But as you begin lifting heavier, you may benefit from a more braced breathing strategy:

Inhale at the top → hold the breath as you lower → begin exhaling during the ascent.

This approach can provide additional spinal stabilization as the load increases.

The important takeaway is that your breathing strategy can evolve as your training evolves.

You’re not necessarily going to use the exact same breathing pattern for a bodyweight squat and a heavy barbell squat.

And, as always, your symptoms and individual response matter.

Step 9: Remove the Box and Progress Your Depth

Once you’re comfortable with the barbell box squat, you can remove the box.

Now you’re working toward your barbell back squat without the additional support.

But just like with the air squat, depth can be progressed gradually.

Start at a depth that feels comfortable and does not produce symptoms.

Then, over time, gradually increase your range of motion as your body adapts.

At the same time, you can gradually increase the load.

This creates two separate progression variables:

Depth + Load

You don’t necessarily have to increase both at the same time.

How Heavy Should You Lift Postpartum?

This is one of the biggest questions people have when returning to strength training.

The MamasteFit approach generally begins with a higher-volume loading pattern and avoids going above approximately 50–70% of maximum for the first six months postpartum. However, the script emphasizes that every person is an individual and that your body’s response should guide your progression.

The percentage itself isn’t the only thing that matters.

More importantly, pay attention to how your body responds during and after your workout.

Watch for Pelvic Floor Symptoms

The goal is not to simply complete the lift.

You want to be able to squat without experiencing symptoms such as:

A sensation of bearing down into the pelvic floor
Pelvic heaviness later in the day
Urinary leakage
Other pelvic floor symptoms associated with the movement

If these symptoms appear, that doesn’t mean you have failed.

It means your current level of loading, range of motion, or pressure management may be more than your body is ready to handle right now.

Take a Step Back When Necessary

Sometimes the best progression is actually a regression.

You may need to return to:

A box squat
A shallower squat
A lighter weight
A slower variation
A supported position
A breathing-focused drill

Going backward temporarily doesn’t erase your progress.

It gives you an opportunity to rebuild the capacity you need to move forward again.

Postpartum Strength Training Takes Patience

One of the most important messages from this progression is that postpartum return to lifting doesn’t need to be rushed.

The MamasteFit approach intentionally uses a slow, patient process with rehab-style exercises and accessory work to build the smaller muscles and foundational strength that can sometimes be overlooked.

And there’s a bigger reason for this.

After birth, you’re rebuilding more than muscular strength.

Your body also has connective tissues and tendons that are recovering. This means your active support system—the muscles you can consciously strengthen and control—and your passive support system—the tissues that contribute to stability—are both part of the equation.

For many clients, four to six months postpartum is around the timeframe when heavier lifting begins to feel more comfortable. But this isn’t a deadline.

Some people may feel ready sooner.

Others may need considerably longer.

And being years postpartum doesn’t automatically mean you should be able to jump back into heavy lifting if your body isn’t ready.

Your timeline is your timeline.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Gina, MS, & Roxanne, CNM (@mamastefit)

Think of Postpartum as a Chance to Build a New Foundation

Postpartum recovery is often framed as getting your “old body” back.

But there is another way to look at it.

You can build a new foundation.

Pregnancy and postpartum can give you an opportunity to reassess how you move, breathe, brace, squat, hinge, and lift.

Rather than trying to recreate exactly what you were doing before pregnancy, you can use this period to develop better movement strategies and address patterns that may have contributed to previous aches, pains, or injuries.

The goal isn’t simply to return to your old strength.

It can be an opportunity to become stronger and more capable than you were before.

What Should Your Postpartum Squat Progression Feel Like?

A successful progression isn’t necessarily the one that gets you lifting the most weight the fastest.

Instead, you’re looking for a movement that feels increasingly coordinated and controlled.

You should be able to:

Breathe effectively
Maintain your rib cage and pelvis relationship
Control your descent
Generate force through your legs
Maintain trunk stability
Progress your range of motion
Gradually tolerate additional load
Perform the movement without pelvic floor symptoms

The progression is essentially a process of teaching your body to handle one demand before adding another.

The foundation is pressure management and learning how to breathe in the squat position. From there, you build breath-to-movement coordination and gradually add loading to challenge the system through progressive overload.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Gina, MS, & Roxanne, CNM (@mamastefit)

Final Thoughts: You Don't Have to Rush Back to Heavy Squats

Returning to the barbell back squat postpartum is not a single exercise decision. It’s a progression.

You begin by learning how to manage pressure.

Then you learn to coordinate your breath with movement.

Then you increase your range of motion.

Then you add resistance.

Then you introduce the barbell.

And finally, you gradually work toward heavier loads.

The process can take time—and that’s okay.

If you are experiencing pelvic heaviness, leaking, bearing down, or other symptoms during or after squatting, consider reducing the intensity or returning to an earlier progression rather than pushing through. The goal is to build capacity, not simply tolerate symptoms.

Postpartum strength training is an opportunity to create a strong foundation that can support you for years to come.

Be patient. Build gradually. Pay attention to your body. And remember that your postpartum timeline doesn’t have to look like anyone else’s.

If you’d like a more structured, step-by-step plan rather than figuring out each progression on your own, MamasteFit offers postpartum fitness programming designed to support the return-to-lifting process. Be sure to use code YouTube10 for 10% off MamasteFit’s online offerings.