What is Functional Training?
Why we Think it’s Important during Pregnancy & Postpartum Recovery
We always talk about the benefits of functional training, both during pregnancy and in the postpartum period. However, many people don’t always understand what we mean when we use the term “functional training”. So today, we’re breaking it down for you.
Functional training is really about optimizing normal/typical human movement patterns so you can move comfortably and pain free throughout the day. We want to prioritize all types of movements and patterns, including different directions and speeds, to provide lots of variety and target every muscle in the body.
During pregnancy, our series of Prenatal Fitness classes primarily focus on helping our members to Pre-Habilitate (this is essential work in pregnancy used to assist with an easier recovery after baby). After your baby is born, our Postnatal fitness classes focus on the Re-Build. Regardless of which program you participate in, you can be assured that we select the best and most appropriate exercises to support you at each pivotal stage so that you can move better and more comfortably in your every day movement patterns.
Parenting is a physically demanding job! You lift and carry a lot of things, such as:
Carry, rock and soothe babies
Pick up squirmy toddlers
Lift and rotate as you take littles in/out of their crib, bath, high chair and car seats
Lift strollers in and out of the vehicle
Push strollers and pull wagons
We often observe our parents of toddlers also carrying the bikes & scooters long abandoned by riders who wanted to power themselves to the park, only to be too tired to make it back home
In the car, you might rotate to toss epic snacks into the backseat, or reach around to find the dropped soother, blanket or favourite stuffed animal
Carrying loads of laundry, groceries and sleeping kids up and down stairs
With all of this in mind, the exercises we select build on the following functional movement patterns of every day living: Squat, Lunge, Push, Pull, Hinge and Rotate.
We add a lot of variety in our classes to keep things interesting for you, without distracting us from our goals: to help you achieve overall improvement in your strength & mobility.
Whether you just had a baby 6 weeks ago, or 6 months ago our Fitmama Strong classes are the best way to stay healthy, fit and strong through pregnancy, postpartum and beyond.
Interested in joining us? Our classes are a great way to meet other new parents. Fitmama Strong Ottawa has been operating classes in the National Capital Region since 2005. Our community is a thriving and welcoming space for you and your littles.
We offer Prenatal Fitness classes, live from our virtual studio. Our 30 minute live, online Express classes our our On-Demand library of pre-recorded workouts are a favourite for busy mamas who enjoy consistency in their workout regime. Finally, we offer in-person Stroller Fitness and Babywearing Fitness in a central location. We can’t wait to have you join us!
We can’t wait for you to #startwithus and #growwithus (Formerly FITMOM Ottawa)