Balloon Breathing for Core & Pelvic Floor Rehab: 4 Advanced Exercises for Moms

If you’ve been working on healing prolapse, improving core control, or stopping leaking after kids, you’ve probably heard of resisted breathing—but have you tried using a balloon?

It may sound simple, but balloon breathing is a powerful and advanced technique that can dramatically improve your core and pelvic floor connection, especially during postpartum recovery. When done properly, it helps manage intra-abdominal pressure, strengthens your diaphragm, and activates deep stabilizing muscles—without the risk of bearing down.

In this post, I’m walking you through 4 balloon breathing exercises that I use inside my CoreLIFT Method to help moms rebuild strength, heal pelvic floor symptoms, and lift with confidence again.

🎈 Why Balloon Breathing Works

Using a balloon during core workouts adds resistance to your exhale, which challenges your deep core and trains your body to handle pressure properly. It helps moms:

• Reconnect to their deep core muscles

• Strengthen the pelvic floor without Kegels

• Improve breath control and pressure regulation

• Train smarter, not harder

But a quick warning—this is not a beginner technique. If you’re new to prolapse recovery or unsure whether you’re bearing down, start with strong intentional exhales or use a straw before progressing to a balloon.

🚨 Safety First: Before You Begin

Do NOT do balloon breathing if you:

• Are early in your postpartum recovery

• Haven’t mastered diaphragmatic breathing

• Feel lightheaded or dizzy

• Are unsure whether you’re bearing down

• Have respiratory issues

✅ Always exhale into the balloon—never inhale from it.
✅ If in doubt, use a straw or stick with regular resisted breathing until you’re ready.

🎥 Watch the Full Video:

 4 Core Exercises Using Balloon Breathing

1. Bear Hover with Balloon Breathing

This advanced hands-and-knees variation challenges your core under load. Use a yoga block between the knees to activate adductors and support pelvic floor lift. Inhale through your nose, then exhale into the balloon while holding a hover.

👉 Great for: pelvic floor activation, transverse abdominis engagement, breath control.

2. Wall Dead Bug with Resistance

One of my favorites for restoring deep core control. Press your hands into a wall as you move through the dead bug motion, then add the balloon to challenge your exhale coordination.

👉 Great for: posture, rib expansion, and cross-body core integration.

3. Side Plank with Balloon Breathing

Start with a supported variation (bottom knee bent). Add resisted breathing to enhance lateral rib expansion and strengthen deep stabilizers. Reaching the top arm forward can help create space for the breath to expand into the back.

👉 Great for: oblique activation, shoulder stability, breathing into tight areas.

4. Wall Sit + Yoga Block + Balloon

This full-body move strengthens the lower body while coordinating breath and pelvic floor lift. Use a yoga block to activate the adductors and exhale into the balloon at the bottom of the wall sit.

👉 Great for: total core control, posture, and full-body breath mechanics.

When Should You Implement These Exercises?

You don’t need to do all four exercises at once!
I recommend choosing one and including it in your warm-up or core circuit—especially on days when you’re lifting or doing pelvic floor rehab.

Start with 5–8 breaths per set or inflate the balloon fully 2–3 times. Replace the balloon each session for optimal resistance.

Pro Tip: The first blow is the hardest. You can pre-stretch the balloon before use to make it easier to inflate.

Ready to Heal Prolapse & Lift Again?

These techniques are part of the CoreLIFT Method, my signature strength training approach for moms navigating prolapse, leaking, or core dysfunction. Whether you’re newly postpartum or years into motherhood, you deserve to feel strong again.

👉 Join the CoreLIFT Method waitlist here: https://www.modernfitmoms.com/coreliftwaitlist 

✨ Get Instant Access to:  

✅ 12 weeks of Full Body strength training to heal your core, eliminate leaks, reduce prolapse and build muscle. 

✅ Full follow along workouts 35 minutes or less 5 days per week. 

✅ Exercise video tutorials & workout tracker for reps & sets 

✅ Education, targeted exercises & workouts for specific barriers (diastasis recti, rib flare, anterior pelvic tilt etc)

✅ Education from Pelvic Floor Physical therapist on internal massage, running and pessaries 

 ✅ Pelvic-Floor Workouts: Rebuild your strength & confidence with specific pelvic floor workouts (no kegels!)