Postpartum Recovery for Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) Athletes: Strength, Identity & Motherhood — with DR. PAULINA IOANNIDOU

Send us Fan MailToday I speak with Paulina Ioannidou, a former MMA athlete, PhD student in Cologne, Germany, owner of a physio facility, and mom. She educates on female athletes, as well as cultural differences of pregnant and postpartum athletes. She last competed in 2019 and then got pregnant with her son, who is now 3. Her own search for information about activity during pregnancy lead her to research how different cultures handle athletic pregnancies.  Paulina shares about pregnancy and postpartum in Germany and what it’s like to get physiotherapy. We talk about:-being a professional MMA athlete-lack of information about exercise and pregnancy-postpartum information in Germany-improving education -diastasis recti-setting realistic expectations-returning to activityTime Stamps1:00 introduction6:01 searching for information on active pregnancies10:19 social media backlash15:58 pregnancy care in Germany22:15 getting women care earlier26:45 how patients find Paulina29:05 expectations versus reality34:15 biggest challenges for postpartum moms40:01 returning to activity postpartum46:10 talking about possible scenarios48:00 rapid fire questionsCONNECT WITH CARRIEIG: https://www.instagram.com/carriepagliano/Website: https://carriepagliano.comCONNECT WITH PAULINAIG: https://www.instagram.com/paulina.balboa/Website: https://www.pi-physio.de/The Active Mom Podcast — a real mom's guide to pregnancy, postpartum, perimenopause & beyond, for active moms and the professionals who help them get there.Quick-hit conversations with moms, providers, and researchers... because you don't have a lot of free time (you're probably listening at 1.5x right now).Follow so you don't miss an episode. Rate & review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ — it's how the next mom searching for these answers actually finds them. Share it with the friend who needs it.Questions or topic requests? DM me 💌