The Top 12 Things I Want You to Know About Postpartum Exercise…

Written By Rhonda Chamberlain

Intro to Postpartum Exercise 

Let me start out by saying that I wanted this to be a Top 10 list… but I couldn’t narrow it down, so here is your Top 12 list! (To be honest, this could be a Top 100 list, but I’m trying to keep it simple for you because I know you’re busy!)

I’ve helped close to 200 women return to fitness in their pre/postnatal journeys at this point in my career, and I would say these are the topics I continue to discuss the most.

As a mom to 2 girls, I really struggled with a lot of these, so now I’m on a mission to help you avoid the mistakes that I made in my postpartum return to exercise journey! 

Learn more about me and my journey in this podcast episode: Episode #02: Meet Rhonda

Ok, let’s get into the top 12 things I want you to know about postpartum exercise! 

1. The slow road to postpartum recovery is faster in the end. 

Pregnancy and birth are hard events on the body. It’s important to honour and respect what your body went through and give it time to recover and heal postpartum. 

When you try to rush the process, you may end up with setbacks that will then take you longer to recover from (see graphic below). Versus, if you take it slow, there may still be setbacks, but they will be less drastic, so your tolerance for exercise will be better in the same amount of time. 

It’s normal to take 12, 18, 24 months for your body to feel back to “itself” and to get back to the activities you loved to do pre-kids. The examples you see online of moms “bouncing back” immediately postpartum are the exception and not the rule. There’s no prize for getting your “body back” the fastest postpartum. 

You WILL get back to the activities you love to do, it will just take time, patience, (some frustration) and a lot of self-compassion.

For continued learning:

2. It’s important to learn how to connect your breath to your pelvic floor. (And learning to relax your pelvic floor is just as important as kegels!)

Did you know that when you’re rehabbing your pelvic floor, it’s not just about doing kegels? For your pelvic floor to function at its best, it needs to shorten and lengthen fully.

Think of it like your bicep muscle: if you flex your bicep all day long, it's going to get pretty tired, and won’t be able to do its job properly. 

Now with the pelvic floor: if you constantly do kegels all day, your pelvic floor muscles will also get very tired. And the pelvic floor muscles would already be in a shortened position, so they won’t be able to flex any more to do their job well. This can lead to symptoms like leaking/ incontinence, heaviness/ prolapse symptoms, pain with sex, low back or hip pain (amongst others).

When rehabbing your pelvic floor muscles postpartum, it’s important to build strength with kegels AND it’s important to learn to relax those muscles. Holding tension in your pelvic floor is a common habit many folks have. It’s a protective nervous system response if you’re feeling anxious, overwhelmed or afraid. 

I know I dealt with a lot of tension in my pelvic floor postpartum. In fact many of my prolapse symptoms came from tension in my pelvic floor versus the actual feeling of lowering of my prolapse. Once I learned strategies to lengthen and relax my pelvic floor, my prolapse symptoms improved immensely. You can listen to more about my story with prolapse in this podcast episode. 

Part of learning to relax your pelvic floor is tapping into your nervous system and learning how to calm it. Strategies like meditation, deep breathing and gentle stretches are proven to help with this.

Try this right now: 

  • Lie on your back with your knees bent (supine lying), take a deep breath in, expand through your ribcage, belly and back (picture an umbrella opening) (place one hand on your ribcage and one on your lower abdomen to help send breath to expand each area)

  • Also be sure to relax your pelvic floor, neck, shoulders and jaw

  • Then breathe out and do a GENTLE pelvic floor lift (pick up a blueberry with your vagina). This should be a very small contraction (think 20-30% effort)

  • THEN breath in again and relax your abdomen and pelvic floor (put down the blueberry)

  • Repeat this exercise 3 times a day with 10-20 breaths. This can be useful for anyone, not just early postpartum moms.

Another favourite of mine is learning to relax the whole body (including the pelvic floor) in z-lying using this 5-minute body scan meditation. This is still a position I use to this day if my pelvic floor feels tired (e.g. after a cold with a lot of coughing, or after a hard workout). Give it a try and let me know how it goes!

To learn more about pelvic floor relaxation check out these resources:

Listen to these podcast episodes:

3. To keep your pelvic floor happy, try to avoid sucking in your belly and constantly gripping/squeezing your bum muscles.

Most likely if you’re holding tension in your tummy and glutes (bum muscles), you’re likely also holding tension in your pelvic floor. This can lead to symptoms like leaking/ incontinence, heaviness/ prolapse symptoms, pain with sex, low back or hip pain (amongst others).

This also rings true in exercise - you don’t need to do an aggressive extra bum squeeze at the top of a squat, deadlift or a glute bridge for example. If you’re excessively clenching and squeezing your glutes, you’re likely doing that with your pelvic floor. Doing an extra bum squeeze with each rep of an exercise can just be too much squeezing for your pelvic floor!

Always remember “tension to task” (a term coined by a mentor of mine, Antony Lo/The Physio Detective) - Only contract your muscles as much as is needed to perform the task at hand. Your glutes are contracting and building strength simply by doing the exercise. An aggressive squeeze at the top of every glute bridge, squat and deadlift just isn’t necessary and may actually be contributing to pelvic floor symptoms like leaking, heaviness or pain. We talk about tension to task this podcast episode with Antony Lo: Episode #23: Do Something Different with Antony Lo. 

Start tuning into your day-to-day habits and check-in if you are sucking in your tummy and squeezing your bum. Sucking in the tummy is common in our thinness-obsessed culture where we’re expected to immediately have a flat tummy postpartum. Ughh. Squeezing the glutes and pelvic floor muscles is common when your body is searching for stability. E.g. in prolonged standing. It is also common postpartum as your body tries to heal and regain stability and a feeling of safety after giving birth (whether vaginally or via cesarean). 

To share my personal experience - as a former competitive gymnast, it’s been a hard habit to break to let go of constant tension in my belly since I was taught from a young age to “keep my core tight”. And another habit I have is holding tension in my glutes when I’m doing the dishes or in a prolonged standing position.

Ok, so here’s what you can do if you notice that you’re holding tension in your tummy and glutes:

  • As I mentioned, the first step is awareness. So keep checking in with your belly and your glutes throughout the day to see if you’re gripping. 

  • You can use certain check-points such as before you leave the house, when you’re in the shower (this is a good time because you don’t have clothes constricting your belly’s movement), when you’re brushing your teeth.

  • When you notice the tension in your belly, do an intentional deep breath. On the inhale, picture your belly, ribcage and back expanding and opening like an umbrella. It may help to place one hand on your belly, and one hand on your ribcage to help send breath to expand each area. Practice 3-5 deep breaths this way. Over time, it will become more automatic. 

  • When you notice tension in your glutes, take a moment to give your hips and bum a little shake. It may sound silly, but it really works! It might help to sing T. Swift’s song “Shake it off” while you do it! Jiggle for 10-15 seconds each time you notice yourself gripping your glutes. 

  • Also refer back to the above suggestions under #2 for ways to work on pelvic floor relaxation in your day-to-day life. The more you practice it, the less often you’ll catch yourself constantly gripping these areas. 

For related learning have a listen to these podcast episodes:

4. Just because you had a baby, does not mean you have to accept symptoms like leaking, prolapse heaviness, pelvic pain, low back pain, shoulder pain etc. 

Yes, pregnancy and birth are challenging events on the body AND… just because you had a baby, does not mean you are doomed for a life of peeing your pants, having pain with sex, or any other type of pain/ symptoms. Pelvic floor symptoms are not something to be embarrassed about AND it’s ok to talk about AND there is help to feel better. 

The gold standard for improving pelvic floor symptoms is to have an internal assessment with a pelvic floor physiotherapist. (Check out this Global Directory for a PFPT near you).

However, there is a LOT you can do without seeing an internal therapist.

Here are some tips to keep your pelvic floor happy in the postpartum phase to help minimize pelvic floor symptoms like leaking/ incontinence, heaviness/ prolapse symptoms, pain with sex, low back or hip pain:

  • Drink plenty of water to prevent constipation

    • Drinking adequate water will help to prevent your stool from being too hard so there’s less pushing to poop and less straining of your pelvic floor muscles.

    • Having adequate water consumption will also help to minimize bladder irritation. Being dehydrated causes the urine to be more acidic which can bother the bladder and lead to more incontinence symptoms. Read more on this here! 

    • A good rule of thumb is to try to drink 1/2 your body weight in ounces daily. For example: if you weigh 200lbs, your goal would be 100oz (about 3L) of water daily. 

  • Get adequate fibre

    • Similar to above, having adequate fibre will help to prevent your stool from being too hard so there’s less pushing to poop and less straining of your pelvic floor muscles.

    • Some great additions to add to your day: fruits and veggies, chia seeds, almonds, whole wheat bread. Check out this list for more options. 

    • A good rule of thumb is aim to get 25-30 grams of fibre per day for women and 30-35 grams per day for men.

  • Use a step stool or squatty potty

    • The goal is to have the height of your knees higher than the height of your hips. This puts your colon  in a better position to allow the stool/ urine to pass more easily. Therefore, there’s less straining when you poop and less pressure on your pelvic floor muscles. 

    • It is also helpful to use a squatty potty or step stool when you pee. Especially if you’re short like me (I’m 5’3”) and have a tendency to be on your tippy toes when you pee. If you’re on your tippy toes, you’re flexing your calf muscles. Your calf muscles and pelvic floor muscles have the same fascial connection. So if your calves are contracted, your pelvic floor muscles will also have a hard time relaxing. (Learn more about this here). This may lead to the need to push pee out instead of relaxing to let the pee come out naturally. This downward strain from pushing to pee could lead to pelvic floor symptoms if done regularly. 

    • If you have a kid's step stool at home, use that! If you want to consider purchasing a Squatty Potty - check them out here!

  • Try not to hover, pee “just in case”, or force pee out

    • When you hover to pee, you have to contract your glute muscles and pelvic floor muscles to hold yourself stable. If your pelvic floor muscles are contracted, this may force you to push pee out instead of relaxing to let the pee come out naturally. This downward strain from pushing to pee could lead to pelvic floor symptoms if done regularly. I know, I know, it can be gross to sit on public toilets, but it’s important to keep your pelvic floor happy. So use a seat cover or toilet paper if you can!

    • When you pee “just in case” it trains your bladder to send a signal to your brain that you need to pee when your bladder’s not full. Over time, this can worsen so that your brain gets a signal that you need to pee even if the bladder is minimally full. This can lead to symptoms of urge urinary incontinence (frequent urination or increased urges to urinate). Learn more about this here.

    • Lastly - let’s talk about forcing pee out. Are you a "thunder pee-er?" I used to be! The habit of forcing pee out may not be a great idea for your pelvic floor. The pelvic floor is meant to relax and naturally let pee out. When you force pee out, you may be putting downward pressure into your pelvic floor which could contribute to issues like leaking, prolapse symptoms and pelvic pain. Along the same lines, it’s important to know that our bladder doesn’t fully empty when we pee. So we don’t have to force those last couple dribbles out. Relax and breathe when you pee and let your body do its thing! Your pelvic floor will thank you! Learn more about this here.

For continued learning:

5. Diastasis is not something to be feared. 

Diastasis recti is the normal and necessary separation of the two sides of the rectus abdominal muscles (your “6-pack” muscles) that happens during pregnancy. Diastasis recti occurs in nearly 100% of women by the 3rd trimester of pregnancy. This is a process that needs to happen to make room for the baby to grow! The fascia that holds this group of muscles together is called the linea alba. The linea alba is made up of connective tissue that is designed to stretch.

In some women the abdominal separation heals naturally 6-8 weeks postpartum. For others, the gap remains beyond 8-weeks postpartum and even years postpartum. This does not need to be regarded as a bad thing that needs to be “fixed”. Current research shows that you do not worry about the size of the gap. It’s more about building strength and tension in your core (slowly and progressively) than closing the gap. The focus should be on learning how to build tension in the linea alba and abdominal muscles leading to increased density of the tissue. Like any muscle in our body, the only way to build tension and density in our tissues is to load it. This doesn’t mean start doing a million crunches a day. Strengthening of the core should be done in a slow, progressive manner while keeping an eye on and minimizing any symptoms. It may be helpful to work with a physiotherapist and postpartum fitness coach to help you in your journey of easing back into core strengthening. Check out my FREE Ease into Fitness 10-day program! 

And remember: 

  • It’s ok to have a “mummy tummy” and look like you just had a baby.

  • You can have a round belly and still be strong and fit.

  • Your worth is not defined by the size and shape of your belly.

For continued learning on diastasis recti:

6. Your return to exercise journey is more like a roller coaster than a straight line (there are a lot of things impact your symptoms and healing). 

I know the feeling. Your pelvic floor symptoms start to ramp up and you can’t help but think about all the things you did “wrong” to cause them. Maybe you start thinking things like “ I pushed too hard in that workout”, “maybe I carried my son/daughter too much today”, “I shouldn’t have walked that far today”... and the self-blame/shame spiral begins.

But what if I told you that’s only part of the story? Symptoms are your body’s way of talking to you. And there are MANY reasons your body may feel an increase in symptoms.

To share my personal experience: I remember trying to get back into exercise while dealing with a bladder prolapse. Every time I tried to workout or go for a walk, my symptoms of heaviness would worsen. I felt so confused. Even as a physiotherapist, I felt I had no information about how to return to exercise while dealing with pelvic floor symptoms. I blamed myself initially thinking things like “what did I do wrong?”, “did I do too much during my pregnancy?”, “did I push wrong in my delivery?”, “am I doing too much exercise?”. I stopped all exercise for several weeks before I began learning about my pelvic floor and how to rehab it from amazing teachers like Brianna Battles, Jessie Mundell, Anita Lambert, and Antony Lo. I realized I needed to honour what my body went through and take my time and EASE back into exercise. My bladder prolapse symptoms didn’t immediately go away, but I learned how to manage them. I learned that there are MANY reasons my symptoms might come and go. And a stopped blaming myself. I want this for you too.

My advice: when you have an increase in symptoms try not to jump to self-blame/shame. Instead, get curious about your symptoms and try to find relief in the fact that there are many factors that could have led to an increase in pelvic floor symptoms.

Some of these potential reasons for an increase in symptoms are listed below (and this is a non-exhaustive list):

  • Lack of sleep

  • Stress

  • Increase or decrease in chest feeding

  • Anxiety/ Depression

  • Fear

  • Trauma

  • Caffeine intake

  • Constipation

  • Lack of water intake

  • Change in eating habits (e.g. lack of fibre)

  • Lack of variety of movement

  • Increase or decrease in activity level

  • Repetitive postures/ positions/ activities

  • Tension habits (e.g. sucking in your tummy/ squeezing your glutes

  • Beliefs/ fears about pain/ symptoms

  • Previous injury experiences

  • Negative body image

  • Hypervigilance with pain/ symptoms

  • Decreased self-efficacy

  • Sensitized nervous system

  • Lack of support

  • Hormonal fluctuations

Remember that healing is never linear. It’s more like a roller coaster. Try not to get too discouraged in the “downs”. An “up” will eventually follow. Stick with the slow, steady path and you will get there! It may be helpful to work with a physiotherapist and postpartum fitness coach to help you in your journey of easing back into exercise. Check out my FREE Ease into Fitness 10-day program! 

For continued learning, check out these podcast episodes:

7. Tune in to your self talk and try to talk to yourself like you would a friend or child. 

Story time: When I was early postpartum with my second daughter, I felt SO GUILTY that I wasn’t working out “enough”. I told myself “Rhonda, you’re on mat leave, you have time to workout, why are you lying on the couch?” (My early postpartum self was NOT kind). 

The most challenging, but most rewarding work I did for myself postpartum was healing my relationship with exercise, food and my body. I realized how all-or-nothing my mindset was with exercise. I told myself “if you’re not working out hard 5 days a week, you might as well do nothing”. I slowly but surely changed my mindset about what “counts” as exercise, and let me tell you it’s been life changing. 

I want this change for you too. How we speak to ourselves matters. Try parenting yourself. Talk to yourself the same way you would to your child, or to a close friend. Instead of this…“Ughhh. I suck. I haven’t worked out in 3-weeks. I can’t stick with any fitness program. What is wrong with me? I’m such a failure.” Try this…“Ughhh. I haven’t worked out in 3-weeks. But you know what? I’ve been so busy. The kids are getting back into school. I’m exhausted. I’m trying to get back into a routine, but there’s only so many hours in a day. It’s ok. I know I’ll get there. Maybe today I’m just going to try a 10-minute workout, and that’s going to be good enough.” Shame and blame may motivate you to workout in the short-term, but for long-lasting change it will never work.

Remind yourself that rest also matters. If you’re running on 2 hours of sleep, perhaps a workout isn’t your best option. Perhaps lying on the couch and napping or at least resting might be best for your overall health. I love this quote from Adam Grant on rest: “Resting is not a waste of time. It's an investment in well-being. Relaxing is not a sign of laziness. It's a source of energy. Breaks are not a distraction. They're a chance to refocus attention. Play is not a frivolous activity. It's a path to connection and creativity.”

If this is something you struggle with, I highly recommend talking to a therapist if you have the means. You can also consider checking out these books from Dr. Kristin Neff on self-compassion.

8. If you rely on intense exercise for your mental health, see if you can find other outlets during the early postpartum phase if you can

I would love to share a little bit about my journey with anxiety…

I’ve dealt with feeling anxious for as long as I can remember. It likely started when I was a young competitive gymnast. I was expected to be perfect and obedient and keep all my emotions bottled up. I didn’t realize how much these times truly affected me until talking through it in therapy. 

After having my first daughter, I dealt with postpartum anxiety. The first 2 months of her life are a blur. Lack of sleep, pregnancy hormones, dealing with a colicky baby and struggling with breastfeeding, all lead to the highest anxiety levels I’ve ever experienced. I relied heavily on intense exercise as a means to pull myself out of my anxious state after my first daughter. Luckily I didn’t deal with any postpartum symptoms, so this strategy worked. 

My postpartum experience with my 2nd daughter was different. My body wasn’t ready to return to exercise as quickly as it did with my first pregnancy. I was forced to slow down. And forced to acknowledge the fact that I used exercise as my sole strategy to ease my anxiety for a long time. I knew I had to find other coping mechanisms. The problem is when you rely solely on exercise to help with your anxiety, it may lead you to rush back into intense workouts before your body is ready. And in life, there may be other times that you have to slow down your exercise routine (like pregnancy, postpartum, sickness, injury, travel, work schedules, etc). So it’s important to have other means to manage your anxiety during times when exercise may need to be on the back burner. 

Strategies that work for me are: therapy, meditation, journaling, working on my relationship with food and my body, talking with friends and family, and choosing who/what I follow on social media. 

For continued learning:

If you are dealing with postpartum anxiety or depression, you are not alone. I highly recommend reaching out for the help of a therapist if you have the means. Check out Postpartum Support International for helpful resources. 

You can also have a listen to these podcast episodes:

And check out this blog post:

9. Pelvic floor strengthening = whole body strengthening. 

Yes, kegels have their place, but you shouldn’t be stuck doing kegels and glute bridges forever. Working on strength training movements like squats, lunges, push-ups and planks will help to support and strengthen your pelvic floor and core system. In order to build strength to get back to the activities you want to do (like running, weight lifting, rock climbing, or simply being a strong mom), it’s important to work on pelvic floor strengthening AND whole-body strengthening in a gradual, progressive way. 

If you’re dealing with postpartum pelvic floor symptoms (like leaking/ incontinence, heaviness/ prolapse symptoms, pain with sex, low back or hip pain), you DO want to be mindful of HOW you’re exercising and how quickly/slowly you progress. However, it is not unsafe to strength train when dealing with pelvic floor symptoms. In fact building strength, resiliency and capacity in your core system (in a slow, progressive way) may help to minimize your prolapse and leaking symptoms. 

Here are some important tips to remember when it comes to getting back into pelvic floor and whole body strengthening postpartum: 

  • You don’t have to wait 6-weeks to start exercising

    Pregnancy and delivery is challenging on the body and it’s important to honour your body’s needs and take it slow. However, there are some movements that are beneficial to do in the first 6-8 weeks postpartum. Some examples include: core connection breathing (connecting your breath to a pelvic floor contraction and relaxation), gentle mobility, gentle body weight movements and short walks.

  • You don’t have to wait to be symptom-free to start exercising

    If you’re dealing with postpartum pelvic floor symptoms (like leaking/ incontinence, heaviness/ prolapse symptoms, pain with sex, low back or hip pain etc), you DO want to be mindful of HOW you’re exercising and how quickly/slowly you progress. However, it is not unsafe to strength train when dealing with pelvic floor symptoms. In fact building strength, resiliency and capacity in your core system (in a slow, progressive way) may help to minimize your prolapse and leaking symptoms. 

  • If you’re feeling “fine”, it’s still important to take it slow.

    The 6-week check-up is just the beginning of your healing phase and journey back to exercise. Remember: It’s normal to take 12, 18, 24 months for your body to feel back to “itself” and to get back to the activities you loved to do pre-kids. The examples you see online of moms “bouncing back” immediately postpartum is the exception and not the rule. There’s no prize for getting your “body back” the fastest.

It may be helpful to work with a physiotherapist and postpartum fitness coach to help you in your journey of easing back into exercise. Check out my FREE Ease into Fitness 10-day program! 

For continued learning:

10. Use specific strategies to fit exercise into your busy schedule

Trying to fit exercise into your full life and busy schedule can feel next to impossible when you become a mom. It’s important to incorporate strategies into your life to try to make exercise happen if it’s important to you. 

Here are some of my favourite tips to help exercise fit into your life: 

  • Don't change into workout clothes or running shoes.

    Remove the barrier of having to go all the way upstairs and struggle to put on a sports bra and do the workout in what you’re already wearing. Do your workout in whatever you’re wearing. Jeans and pj workouts for the win! I originally learned this tip from my friend and mentor Jessie Mundell. Let me tell you, it’s been a game changer for me and my clients. 

  • Have your workout gear easily accessible.

    Remove the barrier of having to find and pull-out your workout equipment each time. I recommend keeping a yoga mat, pair of dumbbells and a foam roller somewhere that is quick and easy to access in your home. 

  • Habit stack your workout with something you do everyday.

    Pair your workout with something you’ll do each day. E.g. pair your workout with dinner clean-up, finishing your work day, after your morning coffee or after you put your baby down for their first nap. After you’re done cleaning up dinner, finished your workday, had your morning coffee, or put baby down for a nap, that’s your cue to workout. Learn more about habit stacking from James Clear. 

  • Write it in your calendar.

    Whether you use a paper calendar or phone calendar, schedule your workout in. And prove to yourself that you are prioritizing your needs by NOT canceling on yourself. 

  • Try temptation bundling.

    Pair a less enjoyable task you "need to do" with a pleasurable activity you "want to do" to make the less enjoyable task more appealing and motivate yourself to complete it. E.g. Pair your workout with your favourite “guilty pleasure” tv show or blare a super awesome playlist that you love to dance to.

  • Remember that perfection is not the goal.

    Expect that there WILL be interruptions and toys in your way. Break your workout up into chunks to do throughout the day instead of one continuous session. Have snacks, iPads and tv at the ready. Get used to saying “mommy will help you when her workout is done” (it’s good for your kids to see you prioritizing your needs). Remind yourself that it doesn’t need to be all-or-nothing. Even if you *only* get 10-minutes in, that absolutely counts! Aim for “messy consistency” instead of perfection. 

For continued learning:

11. Remind yourself ALL.MOVEMENT.COUNTS. 

"In theory, consistency is about being disciplined, determined, and unwavering. In practice, consistency is about being adaptable. Don't have much time? Scale it down. Don't have much energy? Do the easy version. Find different ways to show up depending on the circumstances. Let your habits change shape to meet the demands of the day. Adaptability is the way of consistency." James Clear

To share my personal experience: One of the hardest aspects of postpartum recovery for me wasn’t the physical recovery, it was more the mental shifts I had to make in my recovery journey. As a former competitive athlete I had a strong, unwavering all-or-nothing mindset when it came to exercise and food. If I wasn’t working out 5-6 days a week and eating “perfectly” then I would be doing nothing and eating “junk food”. It was very black or white thinking for me for a long time. I really had to examine whether my all-or-nothing mindset was serving me (spoiler alert: it was not). And I had to do some soul searching to figure out why my identity was so closely tied to my athleticism. Through therapy, curating my IG feed, books and podcasts, I slowly worked on improving my relationship with exercise, food and my body. And slowly started to ditch the all-or-nothing mindset. It was truly life changing for me. I want this for you too.

It’s important to change your definition of what “counts” as exercise postpartum. Expecting yourself to workout 6 days a week, for an hour, at 10/10 intensity each time is likely not sustainable as a mom. Work on ditching the all-or-nothing mindset and remind yourself that 15-20 minutes of movement, 2-3 days a week, at 5/10 intensity absolutely counts. Remember: You don’t need to be sweating buckets or breathing heavily for exercise to be effective for improving your physical and mental health.

It’s also important to adjust your definition of consistency postpartum. I love helping busy moms create consistency with exercise. One way to do this is by lowering your barrier to entry with shorter workouts. After all - Three 10-minute workouts each week is better than ZERO 30-minute workouts each week.  And the 10-minute workout you DID do is better than the 1-hour workout you didn’t do. 10-minute workouts can improve your mood, decrease joint stiffness, increase your energy, build your strength and stamina over time. So 10-minutes absolutely COUNTS! Every time you commit to 10-minutes, you build trust in yourself. This is how habits are formed. Perhaps when you have more time, capacity (and get more support), you’ll be able to fit longer workouts in. In the meantime, stick to 10-minute workouts, 1-3 days a week and see what happens. You may be surprised how much better you can feel!

For continued learning:

12. Re-examine your “why” with exercise. 

Society has taught us that the sole benefit of exercise is weight loss. And therefore it has to be super intense to “count”. If you only focus on weight-loss and you’re not “successful”, you may have a tendency to quit.  The truth is there are many reasons to exercise that have nothing to do with changing your body. Does it help you feel less tired? Does it give you more energy to keep up with your kids? Does it allow you to have fewer aches and pains? Focus on these “why’s” as opposed to weight loss to create a more sustainable relationship with exercise.

Perhaps you have a hard time thinking about goals that aren’t appearance-based as you’ve never had a fitness coach allow you to have other options. I am here to remind you that you are so much more than your body. And you deserve to have a fitness coach that not only recognizes that but helps you to discover that for yourself. We live in a society that values a white, thin ideal above all. And tries to sell us products based on learned insecurities. Do I think having weight loss as a goal is wrong? No. I believe in body autonomy and so what you do with your body is your business. AND I will challenge you to have other reasons for working out, because…

  • Weight loss is not a guaranteed outcome of consistent exercise.

  • Weight loss does not automatically equal better health. You can 100% be healthy in a larger body.

  • There are innumerable benefits to exercise that have nothing to do with weight loss. 

To share my personal experience - one of the reasons I was terrified to ditch the all-or-nothing mindset with exercise is that I thought that if I stopped working out 5-6 days a week at a high intensity, that I would gain weight and no longer fit the mould of the “fit physiotherapist”. After working through my body image issues in therapy, I began to realize that my worth did not need to be tied to my body size. And my expertise as a fitness/ healthcare pro had nothing to do with my appearance. (My body is not my business card!) Healing my relationship with my body, food and exercise was not easy (and I still struggle at times), but it is so worth it! I want this for you too!

Disclosure:

I acknowledge my thin privilege in this conversation. It can be so much harder to make these decisions for those in larger bodies that have insurmountable pressure from society, the medical community, family/ friends to lose weight.

My hope is one day we live in a world where body size isn’t our primary measure of someone’s health and worth.

Ps - if you're in a space to take a deep dive into unlearning diet culture and improving your relationship with your body, I HIGHLY recommend Chrissy King's book The Body Liberation Project.

For continued learning:

Next Steps…

I hope you found this list helpful!

If you're looking for more advice and guidance from a physiotherapist and postpartum fitness coach, I'd love to work with you!

Rhonda Chamberlain https://www.rhondachamberlainpt.com
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