Since returning to the gym postpartum you’ve probably already recognized that things are feeling different.

Maybe you’re getting some symptoms – like heaviness or bulging in your pelvic floor.

Maybe you’re feeling a heck of a lot weaker than you used to feel.

Maybe you didn’t expect to have a tough time doing even a pretty basic exercise like a lunge or plank.

The truth is that your body just went through an insane amount of change in a relatively short period of time.

And if you want to feel stronger, and capable of lifting heavy weights, skipping, running, going to HIIT classes and doing all the fitness and active adventuring you loved pre-baby, then you need to know this.

This is critical to your success in the gym (and it’s absolutely tied to your capacity to feel like a healthy, happy mom).

[Read more…] about Why You Won’t Get The Results at the Gym You’re Hoping For Unless You Know This One Critical Thing

Do you ever see a post on Instagram and think, “YESSSSSS!!!”?

That’s the feeling I got when I recently read a post by Dr. Carrie Pagliano. She’s a women’s and pelvic health physical therapist with nearly 20 years of experience and she’s also a mom (so you know she gets it).

Carrie was posting about running postpartum and I couldn’t help but nod along as she said things like, “OB said you’re back to everything at 6 weeks. Whaa? In most cases at 6 weeks you’re just starting to feel human again. There’s nothing physiologically that says that you’re ready to hit the trails just like you did before baby.”

And I was definitely empathizing with her when she said, “My most horrifying run made me dash into the local gas station convenience store, less than a mile from home, barely making it another mile to a local high school restroom & then just making the final mile back. I was devastated.

The urgency had been excruciating, the leakage constant & my ❤️ was broken. I’d been a runner since 7th grade.

Was it over?

Would I ever run again?”

If you’ve heard or can relate to any of this, then you won’t want to miss today’s interview. It’s full of relatable, actionable advice that will have you shaking your head yes and feeling like finally someone gets what it’s like and has the tools to help you get back into running safely postpartum.

[Read more…] about How to Safely Return to Running Postpartum

A common question I get asked is whether a certain core exercise is safe – especially for things like diastasis recti or pelvic organ prolapse.

And there are so many ideas floating around the interwebs on what core exercises are “mom safe”.

I get how easy that makes things.

You can put certain exercises in a box labelled “safe” and other exercises in a box labelled “unsafe”.

But the truth is that it’s not that black and white. There’s a whole lot more grey going on.

And another truth is that, if you want to feel stronger, faster, then you’ll actually want to avoid this idea of only doing mom safe core exercises.

Here’s why…

[Read more…] about The Fastest Way to Feel Stronger After Baby is to Stop Doing “Mom Safe” Core Exercises, And Do This Instead

Let’s talk about the guilt game going on right now.

You see, we’re in the middle of a pandemic, that swung right into a human rights revolution, that’s caused so many people (myself included) to re-evaluate how we’re doing life, parenting and business.

And this has probably brought up a lot of stuff for you.

Like guilt.

We feel guilty for

… not exercising enough because life feels overwhelming right now

… turning to food, Netflix binges, and hour-long Instagram scrolls to try to distract ourselves

… trying to be the present parent while working a full-time job at home and feeling like we’re failing at both

… not talking about racism with our friends, family, and kids sooner

… making unhealthy choices that we know aren’t good for us but we choose them anyway

… feeling exhausted, burned out, and just done (even though we have so much privilege and nothing to complain about compared to so many other people in the world right now so who are we to feel these feelings anyways, right?!)

And none of this is helping you feel good.

None of this is helping you show up for yourself and your family in a positive, powerful way.

So what do you do? How can you move forward? What steps can you take to feel less overwhelmed, make healthy choices that you know are going to make you feel better, and let this guilt go?

[Read more…] about Here’s the Plan Going Forward

I’ll be honest, I had a whole different post planned for today but I decided you probably need this. I know I sure do.

I don’t know about you but the past couple months have been challenging (and that’s putting it mildly, isn’t it?)

And I sometimes catch myself wondering if this whole pandemic situation would be easier if I wasn’t a mom.

Would I be less stressed?

Would it feel less hard?

Would I have more patience?

Would it feel less painful if I didn’t have to worry about trying to get work done without childcare support?

Would I just get to sit down and relax for more than 5 minutes without needing to get someone a snack, wipe a bum, or attempt to be a Pinterest-worthy Mom and make some elaborate craft out of popsicle sticks and glitter glue that they’re only going to play with for five minute anyways?

And then as soon as I think these thoughts I immediately feel guilty.

[Read more…] about Does It Feel Like Things Are Extra Hard Right Now?

There’s one thing I recommend every single one of my clients do.

Go see a pelvic health physiotherapist (or sometimes called a physical therapist).

If you have the option and ability to get even one appointment with a pelvic health physio, you’re going to learn so much about recovering from birth, healing and strengthening your core and pelvic floor, and getting help with any issues you might be dealing with (like leaking, prolapse, diastasis recti and more).

And you know what?

With the COVID-19 pandemic happening right now pelvic health physiotherapy has never been so accessible.

Many clinics are offering telehealth sessions where you can have a virtual session with a physio.

Now before you ask, let me make it very clear that you don’t have to get naked from the waist down and expose yourself on camera to get great physio care through telehealth sessions.

So what exactly does it look like? What should you expect from a pelvic health assessment? Who should book an appointment?

[Read more…] about What to Expect From a Pelvic Health Physiotherapy Telehealth Session