STRONG WITH IONA #55

Why I Built a Toolkit to Support Recovery (after learning from my own mistakes)

As someone who trained all the way through my first pregnancy, I thought recovery would be ‘easy’, and in many ways it was. However, suffering from pelvic floor dysfunction for months after birth was not something I thought would happen to me. I’d trained, I’d had a relatively ‘straightforward’ birth - why was I still wetting myself on every run? Why did I need to wear maternity pads for every workout? These questions were only really answered much, much later - at the time I just carried on, maternity pads with me wherever I went!

Fast forward 2 and a half years to my second pregnancy - more experience, more knowledge & expertise, and more learning under my belt, and my postnatal recovery plan looked very different. First time around, my sole focus was getting back to running and CrossFit as fast as possible - ‘I feel fine and ready,’ I’d tell myself time and again, proving myself and comparing myself to my pre-baby performance. I was adamant I would run long distances again quickly, with very little consideration for my post-baby body that needed a little more TLC than I was giving it. After my second baby, my focus was different - I followed a structured postnatal program, I focused on breathwork, mobility & pelvic floor recovery from early on, and left my return to running longer until I was symptom-free - something I hadn’t even considered first time around.

After building my Trimester Toolkit in pregnancy, I wanted to add a ‘Trimester 4’ section, not postnatal in general, but to specifically focus on those early days and the movement we can do to aid our recovery and help us reconnect with our bodies - something I felt I had little support with first time around. I wanted to film the sessions in real time - during the sore boobs, hormone fluctuations (as wild as this was), the tiredness, and as I rebuilt my body from the ground up - I wanted to support others doing the same. A friend who had a baby a couple of months ago and who has been using the toolkit sent me a message this week:

‘The most amazing thing about it is that you are literally going through it with us. I searched for a lower body session on YouTube last week, and the coach was like 25 and didn’t look like she’d had kids - I just couldn’t relate!’

This is exactly why I built this - training for pregnancy & recovery is so much more than exercise, fitting your workout in or picking something random to squeeze in between feeds; it’s about repairing, reconnecting and rebuilding from a strong foundation and that takes time.

Here are a few things you can find in the toolkit:

1. Breathwork - breath is the foundation of everything; it grounds us, it helps us reconnect, we need to be breathing effectively to give our pelvic floor the best chance of recovering well, we need it to control movements - it all starts here, and I guide you through this.

2. Gentle movement from early postpartum - it’s not about rushing, it’s about mobilising, connecting movement to breath & gently and progressively moving our bodies again with movements that will support recovery & rebuild strength.

3. Strength work - let’s rebuild this together, from the ground up. We use fundamental movements, rebuild strength where we have lost it and build confidence in these movements once more.

4. Realness - I share my experiences, I chat away like nobodys business, I won’t be showing up with a face of makeup, in a studio with a glam looking matchy matchy outfit on - I’ll be showing up as myself, probably covered in sick and complaining about the mess - but in all seriousness, being in the same season as the people I’m coaching and supporting feels pretty special - so for anyone out there also covered in sick and knackered - I see you!

Postnatal support around recovery is pretty limited - for those who have had ‘an easy time’, but also frighteningly, for those who haven’t. I feel privileged to work in this space and to have the trust of so many women on this journey. Thank you for allowing me in, and if you are reading this and think I could help you or someone you know, please share as always!

Iona x

If you’d like to know a bit more about my Trimester Toolkit, which is aimed to support women through trimesters 1 to 4, please head to this link and please share with someone you think might benefit

Have you loved reading this week’s issue? Want some more positivity, motivation, and energy to help you with your overall health and fitness? Check out the ways below you can work with me:

👩🏾‍🤝‍👩🏼 🤰🏻🏋️ 1:1 personal training/ coaching - fun, energising and motivating workouts tailored to your goals (including pre/ post-natal, strength training focus & run coaching)

🧠 coaching beyond the body - help me connect your body and mind and use this to make significant changes in your daily life. From mindset to motivation and beyond.

📒 personalised training plans - think motivation and support in structuring workouts, forming healthy habits, and smashing your goals (whatever they may be!)

🎥 filmed workouts personalised to you that you can do anywhere, anytime.

Get in touch here if you’d like to work with me