SOUTH BEND — More than 3 million babies were born in 2020, and many women went through pregnancy, delivery, and post-partum for the first time during a global pandemic.
And now, one woman is working to help all mothers navigate the changes.
Whether it’s lifting, cardio, or both, many find mental clarity in moving our body and staying fit. Indiana native Sarah Bowmar wants women to know if they’re pregnant or in post-partum, you don’t have to give that up.
“She's so just lively, and she's just such a happy baby,” said Sarah Bowmar, talking about her 6-month-old Oakley.
“It was definitely strange obviously my first pregnancy during all of this,” said Bowmar.
As this was her first pregnancy, Bowmar noticed there was a lot of misinformation out there on what women can and cannot do, so the certified personal trainer got another certification in prenatal and postpartum fitness training while she was pregnant.
“There is so much misinformation out there when it comes to what women can do. I mean, there's this generically don't lift more than 15 pounds or like what if you have a toddler who is 20 pounds you can’t pick them up the entire time, you're pregnant?” said Bowmar.
That’s why she created a free pregnancy and postpartum guide for all women, no matter how far along they are in their post-partum journey.
“I have a lot of women that message me, and they're like well I’m five years postpartum, and I'm like you can still start now you know there's not a bad time to start,” said Bowmar, “I think that's really important for women to understand too it's like you don't have to live in a body that doesn't make you feel good just because you had a baby.”
She told me she created the guide to give women a single place to go so they don’t have to read or hear contradictory blanket statements about what a woman can and cannot do during and after pregnancy.
“You don't have to just sit at home, and you know, just sit on the couch if you want to; that's fine, but you don't have to,” said Bowmar.
The guide includes workouts you can do, workouts you should avoid, and so much more; clickhere for the guide.
