Movement Through Motherhood
Whether you’re an expecting, new, or seasoned mom, you already know that motherhood changes nearly every aspect of your life. When you take on the amazing responsibility of caring for your kids, you find yourself shifting in all kinds of ways. Here are just a few areas of life that can start to look different in motherhood:
Unsurprisingly, many moms find that exercise becomes one of the hardest practices to maintain. After all, every one of those categories can have a direct impact on your movement routine.
We often hear the exhortation for mothers to make space for self-care, but sometimes that can feel like just another burden to carry on top of everything else. So, how do we navigate the desire (and need) for movement through motherhood? Keep reading for a perspective that might help make your movement practice both realistic and even enjoyable.
Lowering the bar might actually result in gains
If, before motherhood, you were someone who dedicated a lot of time and energy to your exercise routine, it might feel deeply discouraging to face all the things keeping you from getting back to what you once did. Whether it’s time, energy, finances, or physical limitations, it can feel like the odds are stacked against your attempts at self-care.
But what if, instead of giving up because you can’t get through your 60-minute yoga video before the baby wakes up, or because you can’t afford to keep your 12-class membership, you simply lowered your expectations?
Maybe all you need that day is a few sun salutations. Perhaps a once-a-week Pilates class is what fits in this season. As you make your standards more achievable, you might actually find more room for movement than you thought you had, along with greater motivation as you experience the satisfaction of simply showing up for yourself.
Move the goal line
Our bodies are continually changing, and for women, pregnancy, postpartum, aging, and perimenopause can all bring significant physical and hormonal shifts. There may be seasons when it makes sense to pursue fitness goals like weight loss, increased strength, or muscle gain. But those goals may not be realistic, helpful, or even particularly important during every stage of motherhood.
So, what if you moved the goal line?
Instead of measuring the value of exercise only by changes you can see in the mirror or numbers you can track, consider the many other benefits of movement:
Sometimes maintaining your mobility, clearing your head, or simply feeling better in your body is a worthy goal in itself.
Honor your needs
Returning to that concept of self-care, consider the fact that every day is different, especially in motherhood. Maybe you sign up for an advanced Reformer class on Tuesday morning but end up staying up all night with a sick kid. You might choose to cancel your class, or maybe you still come but take every foundational layer available.
Instead of powering through or feeling defeated, you can celebrate the fact that you’re responding to the signals your body is giving you. Adjusting your movement to meet your needs isn’t failing to follow the plan. It’s allowing the plan to serve you.
No matter where you are in your motherhood journey, practice gratitude for the ability to move in whatever way that looks like today. Give yourself permission for that movement to change from season to season, and take pride in learning to listen to what your body needs along the way.
Explore our online prenatal Pilates workouts and find a class that meets you where you are today.
Our Prenatal Pilates Instructor Training is not only for aspiring instructors. It’s also a valuable educational experience for Pilates practitioners, fitness professionals, birth workers, and anyone who wants a more informed understanding of how the body changes during pregnancy and how to support movement safely and thoughtfully.
