We talk on this podcast often about those who START their pregnancy or postpartum journey having done some resistance training. It makes it a bit easier to understand ways to make modifications and how to change your exercise routine because you know what these movements are supposed to FEEL LIKE.

But what if you don't?
What if you didn't start strength training unitl AFTER babies?
What if you started and you already had some pelvic issues on board?

Carrie Pagliano is a FORCE in the pelvic health space. She is a clinician with almost 20 years experience, a past president of the APTA Pelvic health division and a podcast host herself to the Active Mom Postpartum podcast! She is also a mom of two that found barbell training after babies. 

This is a fantastic conversation where Carrie blends her own clinical experience with her personal experiences. The conversation just FLOWED. 

For lots of reasons, people are delaying having kiddos. It is now very common to begin thinking of kids in your late 30s and early 40s.  How do we set you up for success if you're postpartum AND perimenopausal?

There were SO MANY gems in this conversation!
We can't wait for you to give it a listen 

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It is hopefully coming from a good place but no one gives more advice about your body and your cgoices than when you are pregnant. 

Don't do this. Watch out for that. You're going to ruin this. 
Ick 

It's also really harmful and potentially hurtful

We put it out to all of you on "what is the worst advice you got when you were pregnant" and we got SO MANY RESPONSES. 

Christina goes through them in this week's podcast episode and where they came from/ what is true vs isn't. Gosh you all delivered!

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So often, as mamas, we get told that we shouldn't do this or that because we are going to cause permanent damage or RUIN something. 

This isn't true. 
And it isn't that simple. 

There is no other area of rehab where we would worry about a change in symptoms.
We know that recovering from an injury isn't linear.

WHY would this be different with birth?!

The Barbell Mamas is around EMPOWERING for your motherhood journey. And that starts with not being afraid of pelvic floor symptoms ...and knowing that there is something that we can do about them. 

There's a lot of power in a reframe :) 

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WHAT A WEEKEND!!!

The Rogue invitational is the one of the biggest competitions of the year in the CrossFit space. It's heavy, there's a lot of fun toys and there is a heated competition pool,

The big news and gossip that surrounded the weekend was 6x CrossFit Games champion Tia-Clair Toomey. There was so much speculation, opinion and conjecture about her return. 

In today's episode, Christina goes OFF on her thoughts about Tia's return. The thoughts on her recovery and why we may actually be working AGAINST the drive towards change in policy around postpartum return.
 
This episode is definitely a hot take and we would love to know your thoughts!

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There is so much FEAR around diastasis recti. This is a lengthening of the linea alba that happens in 100% of pregnancies and something that can create a lot of concern postpartum

Many mamas are worried about what their bellies are going to look like after babies 

They start googling about what is going to “Ensure” they don’t have diastasis recti postpartum. 

This causes people to stop doing anything that causes “coning” or “doming” …. but is that necessary?! 

We dive into all topics related to the core during pregnancy and into the postpartum period in this episode of the podcast! 

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Interested in our programs? Check us out here!

Nutrition and how much food we take in is a super important conversation for the pregnant and non-pregnant person.

If we aren't eating enough, our body goes into energy saver mode. We turn down our other body activities that are considered optional. For many women, the sign of this is that they stop getting their period. (If you haven't checked out our menstrual cycle episode, check it out here).

No period is called amenorrhea. When we aren't eating enough and not getting our period, we are in a state called REDS or Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport. We are learning SO MUCH avbout this condition and how it effects the female body. The latest issue of BJSM did a big deep dive!

Another time we can get into REDS is when we're nursing or in the early postpartum time. 

In this episode, we dive into the PERFORMANCE side of REDS. Let us know your thoughts :) 

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Finding CrossFit at 25, Mekenzie Riley spent her time after her swimming career learning CrossFit, competing in the Open, then quarterfinals making her debut to the Games as an individual in 2018.

When COVID hit, she had already started to think about motherhood and spent her 2020 season embracing her new role as a mom. She didn't think she would make it to the Games again but in 2021, to her own surprise, she did.

Now as a mother of 2, she spoke about the differences in her own journey, her own pelvic floor issues, her mindset about the way she has approached training and that motherhood is just MESSY.

If you want to work with Kenzie, she is also a registered dietician and works with individuals going through pregnancy, postpartum, as athletes or with eating disorders. You can check out her website here. Or follow her on Instagram here.

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Interested in our programs? Check us out here!

There are so many questions we can have when thinking about exercise during pregnancy and into postpartum. We question EVERYTHING. Knowing the research while building in your own experience, allows you to make the informed choice for YOU. 

We put up a question box and LOVED the questions but they werent "30 second" answers. We picked 5 and did a deep dive 

Here are the timestamps:
6:20 Can I exercise when I got diagnosed with placenta previa at 20 weeks? 
8:30 What are your thoughts about Tia going to compete at Rogue? 
13:40 How can I increase my chance of success for a VBAC?
22:40 How to get back to GHDs postpartum 
24:54 When can I get back to gymnastics after C-section? 

Let us know ifyou like this type of episode and thank you for trusting us at the Barbell Mamas!

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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!

Being a high-level athlete is hard on the body. Being pregnant is hard on the body too.

Talayna Fortunato is a CrossFit OG, being on the podium at the Games in 2012.

Fast forward 10 years and Talayna is still CrossFitting but now has had two pregnancies including twins and is pregnant with baby 4!

In this week's podcast, Talayna talks about her fertility journey (she was advanced maternal age when she started her motherhood journey at 37), the differences between pregnancies, her pelvic and core rehab journey and how CrossFit has fit into that journey.

What about the goats?! We talk about them too! If you follow her on Instagram (you can find her here), then you'll see the busy life Talayna 

It was so great to hear from Talayna who has been so influential in the CrossFit space - hope you enjoy this episode!

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Interested in our programs? Check us out here!

When you are pregnant, you start thinking about labor a lot. 
People like to tell you their horror stories. 
You start reading things online. 

Pregnant women into fitness can be told that "labor will be a cinch! No problem for you because you work out so much"

But is this true?
What happens if for YOU it doesn't go that way?

In this week's episode, Christina talks about the stages of labor, what to expect at each stage and then how SPECIFICALLY for the barbell athlete, how to prepare for labor and delivery. 

This is a jam-packed episode and we can't wait for you all to listen to it. 

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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!