Why?

Why have a program?
We at WAI acknowledge that the post-partum period is a recovery and should be treated as one. We believe that our unique approach to rebuilding form and function after having a baby is the most comprehensive way to work, from the inside out, on our bodies after having a baby. We focus on everything from restoring optimal breathing patterns to regaining core strength and spine realignment. We believe that each woman will approach our program in her own way, depending on her needs, but that the overall learning experience will help teach or reinforce good habits for her lifetime and avoid future aches and pains.

Pregnancy & Childbirth: Implications for Our Bodies
Bringing a baby in to the world is one of the most strenuous events our bodies can go through. Our internal organs, muscles, joints, connective tissues, bones, and spine have endured many changes. Balance and alignment have become altered and our ligaments have slackened while our abdominal wall stretches. Together, these changes cause significant imbalance in our systems and we need to find a means to become balanced again.

As mothers, we have a lot of demand placed on our systems in our daily lives while caring for our babies, juggling their heavy car seats, strollers, and all the rest. Some of the changes that occur in our bodies correct naturally, like the uterus shrinking back to size on its own and being stimulated naturally by breastfeeding. But research tells us that some recovery doesn’t happen without our own targeted attention. As an example, our deep stability muscles (core components like the transversus abdominis and deep multifidus, shown here) don’t spontaneously recover. Appropriate exercise and effort is needed to correct these changes.