Mamalates: Birth Recovery Method
Mamalates was created by Wendy Foster following her personal experience with inadequate care following childbirth and the resulting problems. Mamalates provides a way to safely reconnect to your core, gently stretch tight tissues, and strengthen weak and overstretched tissues.
A woman’s body is designed to change shape as it carries and prepares to deliver a baby. Sometimes it also adequately gathers those shortened and tight or overstretched and weak tissues and rebalances on its own, but not always, and perhaps not often. Unfortunately the typical woman is told not to do any exercise after giving birth and being released from the hospital only to be told at her 6-8 week check-up that she can now “do anything.” Really?
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Mamalates is a 6-7 week course of safe exercises designed to help a woman regain basic core strength and stability and restore safe flexibility before she enters into or resumes a regular fitness routine. It is designed for women who have had a vaginal or Cesarean delivery as well as those who have separated abdominals, also known as diastasis recti.
Common postpartum issues a woman may experience include:
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Lack of pelvic floor and shoulder stability
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Abdominal separation
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Pelvic floor weakness
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Abdominal disconnect
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Spinal misalignment
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Flared ribs
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Pain in neck, shoulders, and/or back
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Cesarean issues: poor alignment, complete disconnection from lower abdominals, back pain because of using poor body mechanics from weak abdominals and guarding of incision pain, and scar issues.
Barb Fetter of Movement by Design is the only licensed Mamalates practitioner in the Chicago western suburbs. If you or someone you know has recently given birth—or is about to—contact me for further information or to schedule a consult. Private sessions available now. Babies welcome!
"Mamalates should be one of the first programs all new moms should start with"
- Dr. Lara Williams
OB/GYN