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Brand new PT. Skilled nursing. Asking her patients what kind of exercise they enjoy. Women there for heart disease, osteoporosis, a broken hip.
And over and over, the same answer. They hadn't exercised since they had a baby.
That's where Dr. Lisa VanWiel's research started. She's a pelvic health PT and researcher at the University of Wisconsin La Crosse, and her work links leaking to a lot more than your bladder. Mental health. How women see themselves. Even heart health.
Not to scare you. Because if leaking is a signal, it's also a chance to get in early.
What we get into:
🔹 Why Lisa sees leaking as a signal about the whole body, not just the pelvic floor
🔹 What her research found about leaking, postpartum mental health, and how women see themselves
🔹 Whether every mom actually needs pelvic floor PT (my answer might surprise you)
🔹 Why nobody needs permission to move their own body
🔹 20,000 medical records and a surprising link between leaking and heart health
🔹 Association vs causation, in plain English
If you've ever wondered whether leaking means you should stop moving, press play. Then tell me: did anyone talk to you about your pelvic floor before you had your baby?
Find Lisa on Instagram at @empower_lab.
This episode is education, not individualized medical advice. Talk with your own provider or pelvic floor PT about your situation.
Chapters:
00:00 Welcome
00:36 Meet Lisa
02:19 Taking PT boards eight months pregnant
03:20 From pediatrics to pelvic health
05:50 Why prevention became the mission
10:04 Reproductive transitions and lifespan health
12:21 Leaking as an alarm signal, not the ending
14:21 Leaking and postpartum mental health
17:32 Leaking and identity
20:57 Active moms, and a system not built for them
22:28 Awareness vs actually getting care
27:01 Does every mom need pelvic floor PT?
28:53 Why gatekeeping activity is paternalistic
33:55 Pelvic floor PT is strength training
36:05 20,000 charts: leaking and heart health
39:12 Association vs causation, explained
41:25 The two competing theories
42:45 What’s next: female athletes and return to exercise
44:39 Teaching our daughters about their bodies
47:53 What it means to be an active mom
49:24 Where to find Lisa
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).
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