3 Common Mistakes Women Make When Training During Pregnancy and Postpartum

Jen Landry Author

Are you making these 3 common workout mistakes during pregnancy or postpartum? Learn how to avoid them and train safely.

Welcome to part three of our series! Earlier this week, we covered [10 Things You Didn't Know About Pregnancy and Postpartum Training] and I shared [the personal story of how my own difficult recoveries led me to this career]. Today, we are looking at the practical application of all of this. Navigating fitness around motherhood is tricky, and because there is a lack of widespread education on the topic, it is incredibly easy to make errors that stall your progress or cause pain.

Here are three major mistakes people make when training during pregnancy or postpartum:

1. Not learning how to breathe and activate the core in pregnancy.

Proper training in pregnancy is exactly what sets you up for successful postpartum recovery. One of the biggest mistakes women make is assuming that because their belly is stretching, they should just ignore their core entirely until after the baby is born. In reality, learning how to utilize 360 breathing and properly activate your deep core muscles while pregnant is essential. It helps manage the increasing intra-abdominal pressure, minimizes the severity of diastasis recti, and creates muscle memory so you know exactly how to reconnect with those muscles once the baby arrives.

2. Doing nothing at all before 6 weeks, then jumping back into the “old way.” 

The traditional six-week postpartum checkup often creates a dangerous illusion. Women tend to completely avoid movement for six weeks out of fear, and then the moment they get "cleared" by their doctor, they jump straight back into running, heavy lifting, or high-intensity interval training. Your body has just been through a massive trauma. The first six weeks should be used for gentle, restorative breathing and basic daily functioning. Once you hit six weeks, it is not a green light to sprint; it is the starting line for a gradual, progressive rebuilding of your strength. Jumping back into your old routine too soon is a primary cause of pelvic floor dysfunction and injury.

3. Not understanding the power of the "stack." 

Your "stack" refers to the alignment of your ribcage directly over your pelvis. Many women naturally adopt an anterior pelvic tilt (dumping the pelvis forward and arching the lower back) during pregnancy to counterbalance the weight of the belly, and this posture often sticks around for years postpartum. When you work out without a proper stack, your diaphragm and pelvic floor cannot work together effectively, meaning your core can't engage properly. Good posture isn't about stiffly forcing your shoulders back; it’s about dynamically strengthening your body to hold a neutral alignment naturally.

You can easily avoid these mistakes—and the lingering pain and frustration that comes with them—by learning the right way to move. By joining Fit Foundations, you get a step-by-step, 4-week roadmap to breathing, alignment, and core recovery. Click here to stop guessing and start healing.

Categories: : Pelvic Floor & Core Health, Programs