Active Mom Podcast: Pregnancy, Postpartum, Perimenopause, Menopause & Beyond
Welcome to the Active Mom Podcast—where motherhood meets movement, health, and evidence-based insights!
Whether you’re an active mom navigating pregnancy, postpartum recovery, or the challenges of peri/menopause, or a professional supporting women through these stages, this podcast is for you.
Join host Dr. Carrie Pagliano, a pelvic floor physical therapist, as she bridges the gap between research and real life.
Hear from leading experts, researchers, and active moms as we explore everything from running during pregnancy to managing pelvic organ prolapse, diastasis recti, incontinence, and the rabbit hole of hormone shifts heading into peri & menopause!
Moms, gain practical tips to stay strong, active, and confident through every phase.
Professionals, sharpen your knowledge with actionable takeaways to better serve your clients.
🎙️ Honest conversations, expert advice, practical takeaways, and lots of laughs—it’s the whole wild ride of motherhood!
Active Mom Podcast: Pregnancy, Postpartum, Perimenopause, Menopause & Beyond
GRÁINNE DONNELLY-From Research to Real Life: Making Sense of Pelvic Health in Sport
Pelvic floor dysfunction. Diastasis. Returning to sport.
There’s a lot of noise online about what postpartum women should or shouldn’t do—and most of it is confusing, fear-based, or missing the bigger picture.
In this episode, I’m joined once again by Gráinne Donnelly—Advanced Practice Pelvic Health Physiotherapist, Doctoral Researcher, and Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Pelvic, Obstetric and Gynaecological Physiotherapy. She brings a powerhouse combo of clinical and research expertise to the messy, nuanced world of postpartum rehab and performance.
This conversation is a must-listen for clinicians, coaches, and postpartum athletes who want evidence-informed guidance with real-world application.
We talk about:
🔹 How running mechanics and compression garments impact performance and symptoms
🔹 Navigating diastasis recti with nuance—not fear
🔹 The influence of social media on exercise messaging and body image
🔹 Supporting persistently symptomatic athletes (and why it’s not always about fixing everything)
🔹 The role of internal exams and ultrasound in guiding care
🔹 Moving beyond generic protocols to truly individualized rehab
🔹 And why listening deeply to your patient matters more than a checklist
We also get real about how misinformation spreads online—and how to stay grounded in actual evidence without losing the human side of care.
Time Stamps
1:00 Introduction
2:50 pelvic floor dysfunction in athletes
8:55 controlling variables and where to start
14:20 what we can take away from research
17:38 assessing patients and using evaluations
24:00 getting buy-in from your patients
30:19 social media and available information
39:30 treating the individual, not the problem
51:20 encouraging activity sooner
55:30 rapid fire questions
CONNECT WITH CARRIE
IG: https://www.instagram.com/carriepagliano/
Website: https://carriepagliano.com
CONNECT WITH GRAINNE:
IG: https://www.instagram.com/absolute.physio/
X: @ABSPhysio
The Active Mom Podcast is A Real Moms' Guide to pregnancy, postpartum, perimenopause & beyond for active moms & the professionals who help them in their journey.
This show has been a long time in the making!
You can expect conversation with moms and professionals from all aspects of the industry.
If you're like me, you don't have a lot of free time (heck, you're probably listening at 1.5x speed), so theses interviews will be quick hits to get your the pertinent information FAST!
If you love what you hear, share the podcast with a friend and leave us a 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating and review. It helps us become more visible in the search algorithm! (Helps us get seen by more moms that need to hear these stories!!!!)