The Fit for Birth Model uses Paul Chek’s Primal Movement Patterns to define function.
Functional strength is necessary to perform activities of daily pregnancy. Strength without function is like muscle without true ability. For example, when a pregnant woman uses a leg press machine at the gym, her core, posture, and balance muscles are mostly turned off while she does the exercise. The support of the machine takes the place of her core, posture, and balance muscles. This actually trains mom’s body to stop using her own support muscles.
The more the pregnant client practices her machine-based exercises, the more discrepancy occurs between strength and stabilization muscles. Machines and other supported exercises teach the global strength muscles to become strong, but also teach the stabilization muscles to turn off. Soon, the pregnant body goes to pick up the groceries and dangerously presumes what it has been taught: “Let’s turn on the global muscles but not the stability muscles.”
When the pregnant mom sits on the machine and presses the weight, she does indeed become stronger at the leg press, but there is very little carry-over to real pregnant life. She walks out of the gym feeling good, but wonders why her vertebral discs are bulging, her balance is not so great, and her aches never seem to leave.
We aim to increase function during your pregnancy and prepare you for caring for your newborn with the least amount of aches and pains. Any new mom understands these aches and pains, especially if she is breastfeeding.
