Physical activity can be an important component of healthcare, but many physical activity guidelines don’t address the needs of postpartum women. An inclusive and safe exercise environment, accountability and exercising with other new mothers can help address the challenges women face with physical activity engagement after childbirth. Find an evidence-informed, step-by-step postpartum guide to returning to physical activity in the SIRC blog.
Use double quotes to find documents that include the exact phrase: "aerodynamic AND testing"
Use double quotes to find documents that include the exact phrase: "aerodynamic AND testing"
Women often find it challenging to return to sport after giving birth. To create inclusive sport spaces for new moms, consider how access to childcare and private, comfortable and clean breastfeeding or pumping spaces can be integrated into the venue or schedule of your sport program or event.
Move over dads, moms make great coaches too! Coaching allows moms to connect with their child outside of home and helps foster self-esteem among child athletes. As coaches, moms can become important examples of women in sport leadership positions and serve as positive role models for their athletes.
The postpartum transition (from childbirth to one-year postpartum) is among the most challenging identity shifts a woman faces. She’s navigating mental and physical health changes, while caring for an infant (Deave et al., 2008). Despite knowing this challenge exists, women have limited supports available to assist with their postpartum transition. That leaves many women disoriented about their postpartum body and how to move forward. This lack of support may be associated with high rates of anxiety and depression among postpartum women.
Physical activity has the capacity to reconnect women with their new bodies, while reducing mental duress. However, new mothers don’t receive enough education on how to safely resume physical activity after childbirth. Fatigue, stress and depression make it even harder to return to physical activity.
After having my first child, I was well versed in the mental health challenges that can happen from a lack of postpartum support. As an exercise physiologist, I knew about the benefits of physical activity. But even with expertise in this area, I was overwhelmed by the lack of direction for returning to movement. After 4 days of labour, an emergency caesarean and a post-operative infection, the only advice I received was at my 6‑week obstetric follow-up appointment: return to exercise gradually.
This blog post aims to bring light to the benefits of physical activity in the postpartum period. It also highlights the need for further support in returning to physical activity after childbirth. We’ve drawn on our research examining the benefits of an 8-week outdoor group exercise program for new mothers and the broader literature focused on physical activity after childbirth. We also provide an evidence-informed, step-by-step postpartum guide to returning to physical activity.
Exercise as medicine in postpartum
Advocating for physical activity as a component of healthcare isn’t new. In fact, Exercise is Medicine® was established in 2007, as part of a movement to change the way healthcare is delivered and chronic disease is prevented and managed. However, there’s little focus on maternal mental and physical health. And that’s despite there being many time points when intervention and support could be achieved through infant follow-up care. The concern is that physical activity levels decrease following childbirth with few women meeting the physical activity guidelines of 30 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity (Evenson et al., 2012). Research has also shown those physical activity guidelines lack postpartum specificity, in that they don’t relate specifically to these women (Evenson et al., 2014).
Given the challenges new mothers face and physical activity’s potential benefits, we aimed to assess the benefits of outdoor physical activity for new mothers. We designed a program involving outdoor group exercise for postpartum women, because the COVID‑19 pandemic restricted indoor exercise during our study period. All 21 participants had experienced childbirth less than 9 months before the program began. They could attend the outdoor classes twice per week for a 40-minute, group fitness class TONETM. Created by Les Mills International (Auckland, New Zealand), TONETM aims to strengthen core musculature, improve aerobic fitness and balance and increase muscular endurance. To reduce potential barriers to engaging with this exercise program, participants could bring their baby to the group fitness classes.
We interviewed the mothers in our study to better grasp the challenges they faced with physical activity engagement and the role the program played in their mental and physical recovery. The new moms in our study described returning to physical activity as overwhelming. They were navigating their new bodies, different schedules (or lack thereof!) and fatigue. There were parallels to my experience with postpartum.
For example, a mother stated her fear of being unable to return to physical activity:
“After I had my C-section, I felt like I was never going to move again… basically they follow you very closely [after] you have a baby and then they wish you the best… and you’re like okay, I just had major surgery but, um, what should I do?”
Our program was described as a required component of postpartum care, necessary to help mothers find their path to return to physical activity. Specifically, women described the need for an exercise program with other new mothers. One that created an inclusive and safe exercise environment, provided accountability and allowed them to gain confidence exercising with their baby.
Participants described access to a supportive physical activity program as essential. A participant stated:
“I think it should be mandatory for all new moms… it should be like you need to take postnatal exercise classes…so we can build some confidence… I’m more confident now. I’m emotionally strong, I’m physically getting stronger.”
A guide to becoming physically active after childbirth
This advice is based on our research findings, my experience as an exercise physiologist and my knowledge of the broader literature on the benefits of physical activity postpartum on mental and physical health. We strongly advocate for an increase in education about and opportunities for new mothers to return to physical activity. We also suggest the following evidence-informed, step-by-step, postpartum guide to returning to physical activity:
- 6 to 10 weeks: Have a maternity physician or obstetrician assess your readiness to return to physical activity.
- 10 to 16 weeks: Seek advice from a pelvic physiotherapist for clearance before you move on to more vigorous forms of physical activity.
- 16 to 24 weeks: Learn to gradually increase your strength and fitness. Ideally get instruction from a kinesiologist who specializes in postpartum fitness.
- After 24 weeks: As you return to your prenatal strength and fitness, you need access to continual education about how to overcome obstacles and form habits to get past mental and physical barriers that are likely present in the postnatal transition.
Lastly, to further reduce barriers, it’s vital that postpartum programming provides childcare during physical activity or allows women to bring their babies. Ensuring women are set up for optimal success as they navigate their identity in motherhood will have benefits for the whole family.
In conclusion, there’s a need for further education and support in the postpartum period. Physical activity has many benefits for new mothers. Additionally, group-based, supportive exercise for new mothers creates a socially supportive environment and accountability for them. New mothers should be given more specific guidelines on learning to return to movement, after childbirth and beyond.
When moms get regular physical activity, they report feeling better, sleeping better, and feeling better able to ‘unwind.’ But finding the time to be active or experiencing feelings of guilt or selfishness over prioritizing oneself can stand in the way. For SIRC’s Mom’s Got Game initiative, read about the experiences of Olympic and Paralympic athletes, including Beijing 2022 curlers Jennifer Jones and Ina Forrest, as they navigate motherhood at the highest levels of sport.
Fourteen months ahead of the 2014 Olympic Winter Games, curler Jennifer Jones had a nasty accident, tearing a major ligament, the ACL in her knee. She was pregnant with her first child and hoping to represent Canada at the Olympics.
“Because I was pregnant, a lot of people never thought that I would be able to have a baby, be a mom, and come back and rehab after the knee surgery,” she said during an interview in early 2022. “A lot of people wrote us off.”
But Jones’ Winnipeg-based team overcame the adversity to win the qualification tournament and the right to represent Canada in Sochi. There, they became the first-ever women’s team to go undefeated through an Olympic curling competition. They won 11 straight games on the way to the gold medal for Team Canada.
New mom. Reconstructed knee. Day job as a lawyer. Olympic gold medalist. Jennifer Jones has game.
“Just because you’re a mom doesn’t mean that you can’t rehab an injury or you can’t have a successful career or you can’t do all of these things and still be a great mom,” she adds. “It may not be how other people envision you being a great mom, but you can still find a way to achieve all the things you want in your life.”
Getting moms in the game, and why it matters
Through an extraordinary athletic career that has seen her recognized by peers as Canada’s greatest female curler of all time, Jones is equally proud of her role as a mother. Her story involves determination and resilience. But, as many moms will relate, Jones is quick to point out that it hasn’t always been easy.
Women report significant decreases in their physical activity levels after giving birth to their first child (McIntyre & Rhodes, 2009). Moms tend to be less active than dads and women of a similar age without children (Bellows-Reicken & Rhodes, 2008). Despite the fact that many moms want to participate in physical activity and sport (CFLRI, 2020), often feelings of guilt, parenting duties and limited access to fitness facilities and organized activities create extra challenges to being active, especially during a global pandemic.
These challenges prevent moms (and their families) from experiencing the many benefits that sport and physical activity have to offer. Being active in sport isn’t just for elite athletes as there are benefits for every mom. For example, physical and mental health benefits, an active and connected family unit, and more.
Encouraging and supporting moms to play sports and be physically active are among the main goals of a Sport Information Resource Centre (SIRC) public awareness campaign. With support from the Government of Canada, SIRC developed the Mom’s Got Game (Vas-y, Maman!) campaign and launched it as a pilot in 2021. Mom’s Got Game (Vas-y, Maman!) is a bilingual initiative to encourage, celebrate and support mothers in physical activity and sport.
An expanded campaign featuring digital, radio and television ads is rolling out in spring 2022, ahead of Mother’s Day. It will be amplified by AthletesCAN, the association of Canada’s national team athletes. The campaign will feature an updated web hub offering resources and support to help families and sport organizations support mothers’ sport and physical activity participation. There’s also a new grant program to help sport organizations get moms in the game.
“I had to make every moment count”: Getting over mom guilt
Few new mothers face the kind of challenges that Mandy Bujold had in the lead-up to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Summer Games. The Canadian boxer was in a highly publicized legal battle to earn a spot in the Olympic competition after the pandemic caused a key qualification event to be cancelled. The International Olympic Committee based its selections on earlier events that had happened while Bujold was pregnant and when she was preparing her body to return to high-level competition.
Just weeks before the Tokyo Games began, the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne ruled that qualification decisions must include an accommodation for women who were pregnant or post-partum. Following this ruling, Bujold fought hard for the chance to represent her country as a two-time Olympian.
“It was a completely new experience for me,” recalls Bujold, whose career includes podium performances at both the Pan Am and Commonwealth Games.
“My whole world shifted. As an athlete, you’re always thinking about yourself. Then my daughter, Kate, comes along and that whole perspective totally changes. I had to make every moment count, whether I was being a mom with Kate, or training at the gym.”
Mandy Bujold
Mountain biker Catharine Pendrel decided to wait until later in her competitive career to start a family. The Olympic bronze medalist and former world champion gave birth to daughter Dara in January 2021. Pendrel was back on the international mountain bike circuit when World Cup competitions resumed in May 2021. A couple of months later, she joined Bujold in Tokyo to represent Canada at her fourth Olympic Games.
“The reaction has been really positive from so many of the women that I compete with because it shows them that you don’t have to retire to have a family,” says Pendrel. “But that doesn’t mean I haven’t struggled with feelings of guilt when I’m away from Dara for training or competition.”
Pendrel has discovered that she’s actually a better parent when she makes time for physical activity. Shortly after her daughter was born, she got into the habit of leaving the baby with her partner and getting out of the house for a workout.
“It felt good to have time to myself and to be really focused on my training. And I could do it guilt-free.”
Catharine Pendrel
The experiences of these Olympic moms aren’t unique. Studies confirm that when mothers take time for themselves, they often experience feelings of guilt and selfishness. They feel as though their own physical activity takes time away from their children, partner, or household duties (Bean & Wimbs, 2021; Dixon, 2009; Hamilton & White, 2010; Ritondo, 2021). On the flip side, physically active mothers report feeling healthier and happier, which in turn makes them feel like better parents (Hamilton & White, 2010).
“Sport has helped me become a better mom”: Connecting sport with family life
Paralympian Ina Forrest became a hall of famer in her sport after her children were well beyond diapers and midnight feedings. But that doesn’t mean she hasn’t felt guilty whenever she’s on the road, which in her case, is quite often. After discovering a unique aptitude for wheelchair curling, Forrest has competed in 12-straight world championships and has earned 3 Paralympic medals (including gold in 2010 and 2014).
“I guess I justified it as sometimes I’m all-giving to others and sometimes I’m selfishly taking,” she says during an interview in the lead-up to her fourth Paralympic Games in Beijing. “But I set a clear boundary on the taking part, so that if it began to be detrimental to the family, I would quit. Having that boundary was my way of reconciling my personal guilt.”
Over the years, Forrest has come to appreciate how her involvement in sport has helped her children, Evany, Marlon, and Connor, view her not just as “Mum,” but as a person with life goals. During her time as an athlete, her children have also learned the value of family supporting one another.
“My daughter once told me, ‘Mum, you do everything for us. You should do something for yourself.”
Ina Forrest
Fellow curler Jennifer Jones has also struggled with feelings of mom-guilt that were made worse by judgement from people on social media.
“I was competing at the Olympics 13 months after my first child was born, and everybody seemed to have an opinion about that,” she recalls. “I learned to deal with it by being in the moment. Whether I’m with my kids, or on a curling rink, I am committed 100% to that moment.”
But like Forrest, Jones also sees the benefits of her active lifestyle and competitive sport career for the entire family. She says her active daughters, Isabella and Skyla, have seen that anything is possible if you work at it and believe in yourself. Jones’ husband Brent Laing is also an elite curler.
The experiences of these gold-medal moms bear out what research tells us: Physically active parents foster an active family culture in which children are influenced by healthy role modeling. Studies have also confirmed that physical activity contributes to a happy and connected family unit (Hamilton & White, 2010). In other words, when parents are happy, kids are happy too.
“I’ve talked to the girls many times about whether they’d like me to retire, and they always say ‘No,’” says Jones, who competed for Canada at the recent Beijing Olympics.
“They see firsthand the many benefits of an active lifestyle. And I think they also know that sport has helped me become a better mom.”
Jennifer Jones
“You don’t have to do it all yourself”: Embracing support from family and friends
Jones is also aware of the expectations she sets for herself, particularly as a mother. Society promotes the “Super Mom” ideal, which she says can put unreasonable expectations on new moms.
“I tell new moms to celebrate all the little accomplishments. Did you have a shower today? Did you eat well? That’s great!”
It’s equally important, she says, for those around the new mom to acknowledge small victories.
“So, when there’s laundry everywhere and the kitchen isn’t clean because it’s been a tough day, you probably don’t need to point it out,” she offers with a smile. “Help her to see all the things she’s actually doing, no matter how small.”
Social support is one of the most important facilitators of a mom’s physical activity and sport participation, according to the research. When partners help with childcare and household duties, moms are more likely to find time to be active (Bean & Wimbs, 2021; Dixon, 2009; Hamilton & White, 2010). Having the partner bring the kids to a game to cheer for mom can also support her participation (Bean & Wimbs, 2021; Dixon, 2009).
Bujold’s husband Reid brings little Kate to the gym from time to time to watch mom work out or he’ll show her videos of mom in training. Pendrel’s husband Keith stayed home from work for a year so she could resume her training and get back on the international circuit, while still fulfilling her role as a mom. Pendrel is quick to add that Keith also carved out his own workout time.
Support from teammates has helped Jones be a better parent. “We bring out the best in each other, through thick and thin, good and bad,” she says. “I know firsthand how good it feels to be uplifted by them, and so I try to be that for my children.”
The wider circle of extended family and friends are also important sources of childcare and emotional support (Bean & Wimbs, 2021; McGannon et al., 2018).
“You have to get beyond the mindset of having to do it all yourself,” advises Bujold.
“There are people out there – family members, neighbours, friends – who would love to help even for an hour so you can get out for a walk. You just need to ask them.”
Mandy Bujold
“Movement is medicine”: Supporting physical and mental health
Each of the 4 elite athletes interviewed say the upsides are as much mental as they are physical. SIRC’s expanded Mom’s Got Game! (Vas-y Maman!) campaign shines a spotlight on research confirming that regular physical activity can help improve new and expecting mothers’ mental health; in turn, this can have positive impacts on both mom and baby (Davenport et al., 2020; Atkinson et al., 2020).
“Movement is medicine,” according to Pendrel, who says that even 15 minutes of walking can do wonders for her mental state.
Working moms report feeling better, sleeping better, have personally fulfilling goals, and are able to unwind from work when they take the time to be active (Dixon, 2009). And those benefits extend to their families as well (Limbers et al., 2020).
An analysis of the Canadian Fitness and Lifestyle Research Institute’s 2014-2015 Physical Activity Monitor (CLFRI, 2020) found that 83% of mothers believe physical activity helps to manage their stress.
“Sport is part of who I am,” notes Forrest. “As a kid, I played everything I could and loved it. I came to appreciate it even more after the accident.”
A head-on crash with a drunk driver left Forrest paralyzed at age 21. For more than 2 decades afterward, she focused on her studies and her family. A chance encounter and an invitation to try wheelchair curling was, quite literally, a game changer.
“I love being a mother, but I also love being an athlete,” says Forrest.
“The opportunity to do both is tremendous. I wish for every mom who has the desire to be an athlete that they can find the support they need to make it happen.”
Ina Forrest
About Mom’s Got Game
The Mom’s Got Game! (Vas-y Maman!) campaign aims to serve as both a catalyst and a resource for women looking to find ways to remain active after having children. The campaign runs from International Women’s Day (March 8) through Mother’s Day (May 8).
Discover more about Mom’s Got Game! (Vas-y Maman!) and access a suite of helpful materials to get you started or keep you motivated. On the site, you’ll find compelling testimonials from active mothers who are proving every day that you don’t have to be a Paralympian or Olympian to reap the limitless benefits of regular physical activity and sport.
About AthletesCAN
AthletesCAN, the association of Canada’s national team athletes, is the only fully independent and most inclusive athlete organization in the country. It is the first organization of its kind in the world. As the voice of Canadian national team athletes, AthletesCAN ensures an athlete-centered sport system by developing athlete leaders who influence sport policy and, as role models, inspire a strong sport culture.
SIRC’s Researcher/Practitioner Match Grants are designed to support the implementation of research into practice through collaborations between sport organizations and researchers. Last year, researchers from the University of Waterloo partnered with the Township of Woolwich to pilot an 8-week co-participation swim program for mothers and daughters. Read about their findings in the SIRC blog.
The Winter 2022 SIRCuit is now available!
The SIRCuit is designed to highlight important research and insights to advance the Canadian sport system. With Bell Let’s Talk Day on the horizon, this edition of the SIRCuit takes a deep dive into the topic of mental health. Get up to speed on the new Mental Health Strategy for High Performance Sport in Canada, lessons learned about mental health from the Tokyo Games, and mental health considerations for youth sport moms, student-athletes, and Indigenous sport participants.
Physical activity during pregnancy has many benefits for mom and baby, but many expecting moms have concerns about the safety of exercising while pregnant. The Get Active Questionnaire for Pregnancy is a self-assessment tool that helps moms-to-be determine if exercise is safe for them, and if they should seek medical advice before starting or continuing to exercise.
After 2020 surprised us all with a global pandemic, many of us looked to 2021 with hope for a gradual return to our pre-pandemic “normal.” And with the widespread rollout and uptake of COVID-19 vaccines across the country, the activities that we put on hold as the pandemic unfolded, from social gatherings to travel, began to make a comeback.
Look no further than the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games, which brought together nearly 15,000 athletes in the summer of 2021, for an example of how the sporting world has learned to adapt and thrive in the age of COVID-19. The Government of Canada also committed $170 million in funding to support the recovery of the sport sector in its 2021 Budget, further reinforcing sport’s crucial role in our country’s broader social and economic recovery.
And while we continue to face challenges, from new COVID-19 variants to climate disasters, SIRC continues to provide credible, responsive and relevant content to meet the needs of the Canadian sport sector. For a closer look at how SIRC embraced the “new normal” in 2021, cruise through our top content in SIRC’s 2021 year in review.
January
The 2021 Winter SIRCuit put a spotlight on Masters Athletes, an important call to action for creating better sport experiences for adults that are “beyond the typical age of peak performance.” Masters Athletes (Mas) can often be an after-thought in sport organizations, but this article speaks to the tremendous opportunity and value in reversing that trend.
February
SIRC produced an important blog in collaboration with the BIPOC Varsity Association at the University of Toronto: Tackling racism on campus. It includes an innovative approach to combatting racism within universities and colleges.
February also featured SIRC’s 2021 Concussion in Sport Symposium. The symposium focused on key research topics emerging in the concussion field, such as sex- and gender-related differences in concussions. It also featured key leaders in sport, such as Canadian Men’s National Team Head Coach, John Herdman.
March
SIRC launched Mom’s Got Game, an awareness campaign supporting and celebrating moms’ participation in sport and physical activity. In collaboration with Bell Media and other partners, we brought attention to the latest research and evidence. We also called on moms to share their stories of success and challenges, and the results were inspiring.
April
SIRC’s webinars continued into April, with a new mini-series focused on program evaluation skills. The accompanying resource helps sport organizations with all aspects of evaluation, from start to finish: Toolkit: Mastering the Art of Evaluation.
The spring 2021 SIRCuit was published, including an important article focused on addressing climate change in the Canadian sport sector.
May
On International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Intersexism and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT)—a worldwide celebration of sexual and gender diversities marked annually on May 17th—SIRC published an educational piece in collaboration with Egale Canada.
June
In June, SIRC published a unique blog diving into a new model of co-participation for women and girls in sport called “Swim Together.” The program was developed in collaboration between University of Waterloo researchers, the Township of Woolwich, Ontario, and the Woolwich Wave Swim Team.
July
The Tokyo Olympics was one of Team Canada’s most successful Summer Games ever. Our country’s 24 medals were good for 11th overall and was the second-highest total in Canada’s history at the Summer Olympics.
SIRC published a Special Edition SIRCuit in the lead-up to the Tokyo Games, including four articles that showcase Canadian leadership at the highest level of sport with regards to safe sport and concussion. The spirit of Canadian athletes shines through this article, Can you hear me now? The emergence of the athlete voice in Canadian Sport.
August
Canada’s Paralympic Team put in a strong effort at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games, earning 21 total medals and five golds, and again the leadership of Canada’s Paralympians shone through.
From the para-sport community, Stephanie Dixon, Chef de Mission for Canada’s 2020 Paralympic Team is featured in this SIRC article: Performing in a Pandemic: The Resilience and Leadership of Canadian Athletes.
September
Canada’s inaugural Concussion Awareness Week took place September 26 – October, 2021. To help the week gain momentum across Canada, SIRC published a concussion themed SIRCuit that same week. These were five articles diving into the latest advances of concussion safety in Canadian sport. The article that’s resonated the most has been Concussion in Para athletes: One size doesn’t fit all, featuring Dr. Jamie Kissick who speaks to the gaps in para-sport concussion research as well as the work that’s being done to address it.
October
The 15th annual Sport Canada Research Initiative (SCRI) Conference brought together more than 1,000 stakeholders in Canadian sport virtually to hear from Canada’s leaders and researchers on the latest research and innovations in Canadian sport.
All the key sessions are available on SIRC’s YouTube page, including a panel titled Truth and recognition: what this means for sport leaders.
November
To help support and advance gender equity in Canadian sport, SIRC partnered with Canadian Women & Sport to create a series of webinars titled Engaging Girls and Women in Sport Mini Series. Part 3 of the series – Engaging Black Community Coaches – takes place in Feb. 2022!
December
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, mothers continue to be put under pressure. Following the Mom’s Got Game campaign in the spring, SIRC published another new article focused on supporting moms in December, titled “Playing for team motherhood”: Returning to team sport after childbirth. Stay tuned for more content to support moms in the spring of 2022!
Thank you to everyone who collaborated, partnered, and contributed to SIRC in 2021! And a special shout-out to SIRC’s readers, viewers, and participants. Your participation and support are crucial to SIRC’s network and the knowledge-to-action process. We’re excited to welcome you back to SIRC’s channels in 2022!