I am not sure why society thinks that after becoming mom, personal fitness no longer matters.
Our body GREW A HUMAN! Doesn't it deserve to be treated with respect and rewarded with daily gentle movement?
Something that became very apparent to me, after having my first daughter was how little society helps moms prioritize fitness. In fact it's almost viewed as a luxury. Why have we made being frumpy and unfit a badge of honour for moms? This trend needs to go. it isn't healthy.
If you find yourself lacking in the fitness department you aren't alone. Don't feel bad. Being a mom is hard and finding time to do anything that doesn't involve childcare, cooking or cleaning is a challenge. While it may not be a practical time to start a 2 hour workout routine everyday....incorporating fitness into your lifestyle is so important.
The trouble is, society hasn't exactly made it easy for women to prioritize their fitness. It seems to be the exact opposite. Moms are overloaded with tasks and invisible labour as it is, leaving very little time for anything else. Taking an hour to go for a jog or do a yoga class should be essential....not a luxury.
We need to do a better job of educating our support systems on the importance of fitness in motherhood. Obviously the main obstacle for moms who struggle with personal fitness is needing childcare so they can stick to a fitness routine. This is where support systems need to improve. Why can't their partner watch the kids for the hour the mom needs to workout? Better yet why can't there be free childcare at every fitness centre...rather than just some of them? Why can't breastfeeding moms bring their child in a stroller to the gym with them? Really though? A baby under 12 months is typically pretty content in a stroller....they can't go anywhere ....why can't they be in the stroller while mom works out?
These are all questions we need to start asking. Fitness is so important especially as moms. We are the corner stone of our family and meeting our most basic needs, allows us to meet everyone else's. Not to mention maintaining a basic level of fitness reduces chronic disease risks drastically. It also can have a strong affect on better mental health as well. Put simply ....fitness is important.
Since society does a terrible job of advocating for pretty much anything moms need...we need to start doing it for ourselves. We cannot allow ourselves to keep being fed the narrative, that everyone else's needs should come first once we become a mom. We still have basic needs and fitness is one of them!
Starting conversations around this topic is a great starting point. Asking our support systems to provide child care so we can practice daily fitness is another. Educating our support systems on why fitness is essential is another important piece to the puzzle. Slow we can help make prioritizing fitness the new norm for moms.
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