Written by Sarah Strong

So you’re a new mom and you want to get back into your normal powerlifting routine. Is it safe? Will the baby be affected? Can you be as strong as you were pre-pregnancy?

As a powerlifter and certified personal trainer who specializes in pre & post natal fitness, I want to address some common concerns with nursing and lifting and also provide my personal testimony on the subject. I am currently nine months postpartum with my second child and he is exclusively breastfed. I powerlifted throughout my entire pregnancy and took a six-week break after the birth.

Once I got back to lifting heavy after that break, it took me a bit longer than normal to rebuild strength. I felt weaker than I was when I was lifting at nine months pregnant. But still, I persisted and kept training. I didn’t rush my body into lifts that I wasn’t ready for. I focused on form and consistency. At 5 months postpartum, I competed in a USPA meet and took first place with a total of 687lb in the 148lb weight class. For that meet, I didn’t cut weight. I had gotten back down to my pre-pregnancy weight of 141lb, and I felt comfy there.

In the four months since that meet, I have added more pounds to the bar while shedding pounds off my body. I competed again at nine months postpartum weighing in at 128lb and increasing meet bests for squat and deadlift. I wasn’t able to bring my son with me to the meet, so I pumped between lifts so I wouldn’t get engorged. And, while shedding over ten pounds off my body, I have still maintained my milk supply and my son is growing healthy and strong.

I get asked a lot about lifting heavy while breastfeeding. I hope the following can help some mamas out there:

• Does powerlifting (or any vigorous exercise) affect your supply? No, powerlifting or any exercise should not affect supply. The big factor here is to make sure you are properly hydrated and eating enough. When you are exercising, you are burning calories and increasing your basal metabolic rate. Breastfeeding has the same effect (especially in the first 6 months when baby nurses more frequently). If you notice your supply starts to tank, start tracking your water and caloric intake. Chances are, you need some adjustments there, not in your exercise routine. I don’t count calories or macros personally. I eat intuitively and aim for a lot of protein and healthy fats in my diet. If I notice my supply dwindling, I increase my water and make sure I’m not skipping meals—something that happens from time to time as a busy single mom.
• Does breastfeeding make bench weird? I had to laugh at this one. Because until I had been asked, I never considered it. Short answer: yes, it can. Sometimes my breasts are super full. Sometimes they’re deflated. Sometimes one is full and the other is flat. It’s a lot of fun looking like a Picasso masterpiece. If you’re not competing, this probably won’t affect your bench much. But when you are training for a competition bench press, it can be a little difficult because your range of motion can change day-to-day. That being said, my bench has been strong postpartum. As time goes on, you become accustomed to the fluctuations.
• Can I cut weight for a meet if I am nursing? It depends. This question is really dependent on the individual. As I mentioned earlier, I did not cut for the meet I did at 5 months pp. However, I did cut for my second postpartum meet while still nursing. I know a lot of people in the powerlifting community attempt to drop a good 10lb on the week of the meet. I would not suggest this for anyone personally, but especially not for a nursing mother. If you are going to cut, do it in a healthy way that can be maintained long term. I lost those ten pounds gradually over five months, not right before the meet.
• Does breastfeeding negatively impact your strength? For me, this is a no. Again, I think this comes down to nutrition. If you are intaking enough calories and water, you should still see strength gains while nursing. My pre-pregnancy 1RMs were 245/135/303. At 6 weeks postpartum my 1RMs were 185/105/265. Now, at 9 months pp, they are 250/150/320. I am stronger now while breastfeeding at least 6 times a day than I was pre-pregnancy. The female body is AMAZING.

 Written by Sarah Brenner

Powerlifting coaching can be pretty expensive. For some, like myself, a coach is essential to progressing and totally worth every penny spent. For others, coaching may not be reasonable or necessary.

I think that hiring a powerlifting coach is worth it when:

• You are serious about your strength progression
• You have no prior knowledge or experience in strength sports
• You can pay for coaching without putting yourself in financial hardship
• You have the time and dedication to follow your coach’s plan

Hiring a coach may not be worth it when:

• You are still making significant gains using a free program
• You are experienced, knowledgeable, and confident in your ability to coach yourself
• You have an injury that prevents you from following a plan effectively
• You aren’t sure if powerlifting is for you or have no plans to compete

With that being said, not all coaches are created equal. Here is what makes a good coach, in my opinion:

• At least once-weekly communication/check-ins
• The program is altered based on check-ins
• Program/Accessories are tailored to you as an individual
• They are available for meet day coaching (if local). If they are not local, they are available for contact and support via phone or other forms of communication
• They provide you with a meet day game plan
• They know the rules of your federation (Note: they don’t have to compete in the same federation, just know the rules)
• They offer encouragement and support
• You have been with them for at least a few months and are making progress

What to watch out for in a potentially ineffective coach:

• Everyone who is under their coaching running the same exact program
• Everyone who is under their coaching does the same accessories regardless of individual weaknesses
• They do not offer meet day coaching (if local) OR are not available for contact on meet day (if remote)
• They do not know or pay attention to the rules (i.e. allowing their athlete to step onto the platform wearing items that are not allowed)
• You have been with them for at least a few months and are not making progress
• They are really just a “template guy/girl” (No, seriously, you can find free templates online. Don’t pay someone $50+ monthly to just send you a template program.)

When choosing a coach, you can ask questions before hiring them. If they are unwilling to take the time to answer your questions, you may want to find somebody else.

If it comes down to money, and you are unable to afford a coach but want one, there are tons of free resources out there. Dedicate some time to educate yourself on programming or utilize any of the free templates available on the internet. For the additional support that coaches provide (like form critiques, advice,  encouragement, etc.) you could join an online community or forum, much like Girls Who Powerlift Strong Girls Club.

Pelvic Floor Dysfunction and Powerlifting

Who has ever peed while powerlifting? Raise them hands.

I’m not ashamed to say it has happened to me and I would say it’s a pretty common thing for women in lifting sports. And thankfully I don’t think it’s something that is surrounded by shame. BUT are these small breaks from our bladder ok?

The Pelvic Floor

You can’t talk about pelvic floor dysfunction without talking about the pelvic floor. Your pelvic floor is composed of the levator ani muscle group, the coccygeus muscle, and connective tissue. Additionally, the pudendal nerve runs through this region to supply sensation, motor and autonomic function. The pelvic floor’s role is to support the pelvic organs while also maintaining continence of your bowel and bladder. We do this be tightening and relaxing our pelvic floor consciously and also subconsciously. There is also a role in sexual function for both men and women.

When Something Down There Goes Awry

As with any muscle in the body, it is possible to have dysfunction of the pelvic floor. One of the biggest misconceptions out there, however, is that if you have issues with your pelvic floor it’s because it’s weak. Signal the kegels. BUT you can also have issues from your pelvic floor because it’s too tight or you’re not firing these muscles at the right time. Any of these impairments can lead to the common disorders of this region such as incontinence (leakage), prolapse or pain.

Some signs and symptoms of a pelvic floor include:

• Incontinence
• Lower back pain
• Pain in the pelvic region
• Discomfort during sexual intercourse
• Frequent need to urinate

Don’t Lift Too Heavy... Your Vagina Will Fall Out

Who has ever been approached by someone in the gym and told this. I have. Where does this even come from and is it true?

Bring in the Valsalva maneuver. Some say that women shouldn’t lift heavy because of the pressure from using the Valsalva maneuver will cause distention of your pelvic floor and will cause your vagina to fall out, or prolapse. A little dramatic I’d say. A study by Thompson, et al (2005) found that the pelvic floor has been shown to co-activate with the abdominal muscles during numerous movements, particularly those of the core. This co-contraction causes a supportive sling of the pelvic organs, aka doesn’t push them out.

So why do we get leakage sometimes? Thompson found that when the Valsalva is paired correctly with a pelvic floor contraction, the pelvic floor lifts and prevents incontinence. HOWEVER, when the Valsalva is paired incorrectly with a straining maneuver instead of a pelvic floor contraction, the pelvic floor descends down. This would cause a relaxation effect of the pelvic floor and the potential for leakage.

When It’s Not Leakage

As I mentioned above, urinary incontinence is only one symptom of pelvic floor dysfunction. This has been my experience. For the last two years, I have been dealing with a sharp searing pelvic pain that occurs during arousal. Ok, why did I just tell you that as I’m supposed to be talking about powerlifting? After seeking guidance from 3 gynecologists, my PCP, and now a women’s health PT, we have finally dialed in on that my symptoms are most likely a result from improper pelvic floor function while lifting.

In my 5 or so weeks of physical therapy, we have found that I have

• Terrible L ankle mobility
• R meniscal tear (happened 2 years ago)
• Decreased VMO size B
• The tightness of B piriformis, adductors, and pelvic floor muscles all L > R
• A tendency to bear down on my pelvic floor during Valsalva
• AND a mild prolapse associated with Valsalva. Yup. I’m mildly pushing my vagina out when I lift.

Goodness that a long list. And why do we care that my L ankle is stiff? My issues boil down to two issues:

1. Decreased ankle mobility (which resulted in my R meniscal tear) has caused increased stress and weakness of my L hip muscles. With my frequent lifting, this has caused irritation and trigger points of my L side – the piriformis, adductors and pelvic floor. These trigger points of the pelvic floor will spasm around the pudendal nerve causing my symptoms.
2. I inappropriately bear down through my pelvic floor when I Valsalva. This paired with a too tight belt has caused a mild prolapse during lifting which has in turn caused increased tension on my pelvic floor.

This increased tension and trigger points of my pelvic floor has created tension around my pudendal nerve. Through PT, we have been working to alleviate my pain by working on the issues above.

Keeping her healthy

So how do you not end up in my predicament?

Pelvic floor strengthening

This is the standard recommendation anytime someone talks about the pelvic floor – more Kegels! While this won’t solve every person’s issue, starting with a strong pelvic floor is important. If you can’t perform a pelvic floor contraction at rest, then you definitely aren’t going to be able to during lifting.

Coordinating pelvic floor contraction with Valsalva

The Valsalva maneuver isn’t inherently bad. Actually, if you can coordinate the Valsalva with a pelvic floor contraction, it has been shown to have no harm to your pelvic floor. So how do you make sure you’re coordinating the two? For me, I breathe in and initiate the Valsalva, then I consciously make a lifting motion of my pelvic floor (kegel if you will).

How tight is your belt?

Probably the biggest change I have made is loosening my belt. I have previously worn my belt as tight as possible. This resulted in all my abdominal and pelvic organs getting pushed down. So even if I was to attempt to contract my pelvic floor upwards, the downward force from my belt would overpower it. I have worn my belt so tight that the bottom of my stomach will stay pooched for an hour post lifting. Not Good.

These are only a few simple steps to getting you started on the path to maintaining a healthy pelvic floor. If you find that with these changes you are still experiencing leakage or you have pelvic pain associated with lifting, I highly recommend you consult a Women’s Health PT.

We are so excited for Dr. Horton's live interview in the GWPL: Strong Girls Club on Facebook, Friday, October 19 where she will be discussing more on Pelvic Floor Dysfunction and answering your questions ways to help with prevention. If you haven't signed up yet, CLICK HERE! 

Written by Chelsea Nkwodimmah

Have you ever heard these words?

“OMG! Chelsea, how was your competition?”

ME: Oh, it went so well!

THEM: Do you have videos?!

ME: Of course! *shows them my squat video*

THEM: Oh, you don’t do it in a bikini?

I understand and respect that many people don’t know what powerlifting entails. I’ve had several people confuse powerlifting with Olympic weightlifting…asking me as they attempt to demonstrate the movement “How much do you clean and jerk?” Yes, both are strength sports, but I can say that confidently say that in my 28 years of life I’ve NEVER done a clean and jerk. I do, however, have actual footage of me attempting a 95lb overhead barbell squat and almost losing my life. I digress. I also have people assume that I do bodybuilding competitions. But having someone ask if I lift weights in a bikini was a first. All of that to say that the excitement that runs through me when I get to show other women my lifting videos, introduce them to this sport, and show them that “yes, we are capable” is indescribable.

Unfortunately, those conversations still usually end in…

“You’re not afraid you’re going to get TOO big?”

Sadly, I’ve come to know that question all too well. I’d be lying if I said it doesn’t annoy me, but I will say that it doesn’t bother me much anymore. I’ve even come up with a response that has the right balance of being 1) informative…but still easily digestible and that 2) says “I come in peace”…but also “What the hell are you talking about?”

Recently, however, a woman’s in my workplace responded to watching my videos with “How does your fiancé feel about you doing that?” I’m used to people questioning my own perception of my body but never has anyone asked me about his opinion of my body. My initial reaction was just to answer the question honestly and directly.

“He’s fine with it. He’s my biggest supporter. He makes sure I train when I’m supposed to, lets me vent to him when things aren’t going how I want them to, and comes to all of my meets.”

That led to her assuming that my fiancé is also a powerlifter. Even going on to say that he must be six feet tall and really muscular. All of which are false assumptions.

After reflecting, I realized how offensive her comments actually were. Yes, it was probably inadvertent, but even so, I wish I had used it as a teaching moment as I do when women ask to see my training videos or when they assume that lifting heavy makes you too muscular. In hindsight, I’d probably let her know three things:

1) Lifting is something I do for me. Therefore, no one has to accept my body for what it is and what it does aside from me.

2) The general idea of a woman lifting should not be a game changer in a relationship…and if it is, that’s not the relationship for me

3) Being as strong as or stronger than your significant other in the gym does not take anything away from you, him, or your relationship

Whenever you excel at something, someone will ALWAYS find something wrong with it and have a negative comment to follow, whether it’s in the form of a blunt insult or a backhanded compliment. How do you ladies deal with negative comments at the gym, in your workplace, etc? Do you ignore it? Use it as a teachable moment? Or address the negative comments head-on?