The Barbell Mamas Podcast | Pregnancy, Postpartum, Pelvic Health

You can do everything “right” and still feel blindsided after birth. That’s the heart of today’s conversation: why so many moms reach the postpartum months and think, I wish I would have known, and how that gap in education can quietly break trust in the healthcare system.

We talk about informed consent in pregnancy and postpartum through a pelvic health lens, including what changes are expected after vaginal delivery, what can shift with pushing, and why interventions like tearing, episiotomy, vacuum, or forceps may affect pelvic floor recovery. We also name the uncomfortable truth that many people are led to believe their body will return to exact pre-pregnancy function, when reality is more nuanced. This is not about doom or blame. It’s about realistic expectations, better preparation, and clear options, including what pelvic floor physical therapy can support during postpartum recovery and return to exercise.

A big thread is communication: how do clinicians discuss risk, pelvic organ prolapse, and symptom monitoring without accidentally creating fear, pain sensitization, or kinesiophobia? I share a personal story about blood pressure anxiety and “white coat hypertension” to show how the way we talk about health can shape how the body responds. We also zoom out to the bigger system, including how new pelvic floor research takes time to reach everyday care, and why proactive preconception education could change everything for active moms and athletes.

If this resonates, subscribe for more evidence-informed conversations on exercise during pregnancy, postpartum rehab, and pelvic health, then share this with a friend who deserved clearer answers. After you listen, leave a review and tell us: what did you wish someone had explained before birth?
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Waiting for a single “all clear” date after birth leaves a lot of active moms stuck between fear and frustration. We walk through the early postpartum exercise framework I use with clients, starting from the first couple of weeks and extending into the messy middle months when progress feels slow. If you’re trying to return to strength training, CrossFit-style workouts, cardio, or just basic movement with confidence, this gives you a practical path forward that respects healing and your identity as someone who loves to train. 

We talk about when you can begin postpartum rehabilitation, including gentle pelvic floor contractions, bracing, and core canister retraining, and why I push back on the idea that you must do nothing for six weeks. Then we get specific: bodyweight exercises like squats, step-ups, and lunges can often work early for both vaginal delivery and C-section recovery, with simple modifications if scar tissue or pulling shows up. We also cover “green light” options that can feel amazing mentally and physically, like low-impact cardio on a rower or bike and lighter seated upper body work, so you can train without constantly second-guessing every rep. 

The heart of the episode is learning your “clinical buoys,” the key signs that guide your return to impact exercise, running, jumping, and heavier lifting. We break down what matters most, including increased bleeding, clotting, pain, pelvic floor symptoms, and heaviness, and how these cues help you balance work and rest while you rebuild capacity. We also zoom out to the real-life factors that shape recovery, sleep, stress, feeding demands, tearing severity, and the comparison trap, especially during the tough five-to-nine-month window when you think you “should” feel back to normal. 

Subscribe for more evidence-informed pregnancy and postpartum fitness guidance, share this with a mum who is ready to move again, and leave a review if the framework helps. What part of postpartum training feels hardest for you right now?
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You can also follow us on Instagram and YouTube for all the up-to-date information you need about pelvic health and female athletes.

Interested in our programs? Check us out here!

The internet keeps forcing women’s health into two extremes: science says one thing, your body feels another, and somehow you’re supposed to pick a side. We don’t buy that. We walk through why scientific communication breaks down online and how “helpful” wellness content can quietly become predatory when it turns nuance into binary rules, fear-based lists, and one-size-fits-all programs. 

We dig into the menopause metabolism and fitness debate, including why many women feel like their body is unrecognizable even when studies suggest metabolism does not automatically crash with menopause. We connect the dots between real symptoms and real outcomes: joint pain that changes how heavy you lift, insomnia and mood shifts that change effort and recovery, and subtle behavior changes that can lead to weight gain or weight redistribution. We also talk about estrogen conversations and why the pendulum swing from “never” to “everyone should” misses the middle where most evidence-informed choices live. 

We also use cycle syncing as a clear example of how something can be objectively unnecessary for many people while still being subjectively useful depending on how you feel across your cycle. Finally, we break down survivorship bias plus relative risk and absolute risk so you can spot misleading health claims and ask better questions without feeling gaslit. If this helped you, subscribe, share with a friend, and leave a review so more active women can find evidence-informed support.
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Don't miss out on any of the TEA coming out of the Barbell Mamas by subscribing to our newsletter

You can also follow us on Instagram and YouTube for all the up-to-date information you need about pelvic health and female athletes.

Interested in our programs? Check us out here!

Blanket rules about running during pregnancy sound comforting, until they leave you stuck between fear and frustration. We want something more useful: a clear way to decide what’s safe, what’s sustainable, and what actually fits your body right now.

We dig into what the research is saying about prenatal running safety, including longer distances, and why “safe” does not mean “identical for everyone.” We walk through the variables that shape your experience, like your pre-pregnancy fitness, injury history, fueling, and the reality that pelvic floor dysfunction is common in endurance athletes before pregnancy even starts. We also talk about why comparing your current pregnancy to someone else’s, or even to your first pregnancy, can backfire when sleep, recovery, and family demands change.

From there we get practical: how pregnancy can shift gait mechanics, why lower body strength matters more as your center of mass moves, and what to try when symptoms show up. Instead of treating pelvic pressure, SI joint pain, or knee pain as an automatic stop sign, we explore the “rehab first” mindset: small form changes, strength support, and smart training edits that may help you keep running if it matters to you, or switch to cross-training without shame if it doesn’t.

If you ran during pregnancy and you’re less than a year postpartum, we’d love your help with our research by sharing your Garmin training logs. Subscribe, share this with a running friend, and leave a review so more active moms can find nuanced, evidence-based pregnancy exercise guidance.
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Don't miss out on any of the TEA coming out of the Barbell Mamas by subscribing to our newsletter

You can also follow us on Instagram and YouTube for all the up-to-date information you need about pelvic health and female athletes.

Interested in our programs? Check us out here!

You’re cleared for pelvic surgery and then someone hands you a rule that says you can’t lift more than 10 pounds. Meanwhile, your toddler weighs three times that and your life doesn’t come with a pause button. We’re talking about the gap between real postpartum life and the way recovery advice is often delivered, and what the research actually says about returning to activity.

We walk through common postpartum surgeries and why the “right” option depends on symptoms, goals, and context: midurethral sling procedures for urinary incontinence, prolapse repairs like sacrocolpopexy, and abdominal surgery such as abdominoplasty for diastasis recti. I share how I think about conservative management first, why I’m not anti-surgery, and how pelvic floor physical therapy and prehab can support you before and after an operation. We also dig into what rehab can genuinely improve (strength, coordination, function) and what it cannot promise (a specific look at rest), especially when genetics and connective tissue play a role.

Then we get into the spicy part: post-op lifting restrictions. We unpack why “strain” is relative, why blanket limits are rarely evidence-based, and how studies comparing strict vs liberal return-to-activity protocols show that gradual progression can be safe and can reduce symptom burden faster. If you’re considering postpartum surgery or recovering now, this will help you ask better questions, advocate for individualized guidance, and protect your quality of life.

Subscribe for more evidence-informed pelvic health conversations, share this with a friend navigating recovery, and leave a review telling us what return-to-exercise question you want answered next.
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Don't miss out on any of the TEA coming out of the Barbell Mamas by subscribing to our newsletter

You can also follow us on Instagram and YouTube for all the up-to-date information you need about pelvic health and female athletes.

Interested in our programs? Check us out here!