Claim OwnershipActive Mom Podcast: Pregnancy, Postpartum, Perimenopause, Menopause & Beyond
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© 2025 Active Mom Podcast: Pregnancy, Postpartum, Perimenopause, Menopause & Beyond
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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!
186 Episodes
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Send us a text In this episode, I’m joined by Tina Tang—a former Wall Street trader turned jewelry designer and now strength coach. At age 40, unexpected life changes led her to the gym for the very first time, and by 42 she had completed an intensive personal training course. Since then, Tina has coached over 3,800 sessions, discovered her own love for strength, and created the Return to Strength Mentorship, designed to help women 45+ get stronger, leaner, and more confident. We dive into ...
Send us a text In this episode, I’m joined by Dr. Sabine Vesting, a pelvic health physiotherapist and researcher whose work explores how exercise impacts the pelvic floor and abdominal muscles postpartum. Her research dives into common symptoms like urinary incontinence, pelvic girdle pain, and vaginal heaviness, and how they affect daily life for new moms. Now based in Ottawa, Dr. Vesting leads cutting-edge studies at the Motor Function Measurement (MFM) Lab, including research on running-in...
Send us a text In this episode of the Active Mom Podcast, I’m joined by Dr. Brooke Winder, physical therapist and Associate Professor at California State University Long Beach, where she leads the Dance Science program and mentors young dancers on optimizing their health, performance, and injury prevention. Brooke specializes in supporting artistic athletes—including dancers, aerialists, and circus performers—through orthopedic rehabilitation, pelvic floor physical therapy, and hypermobility...
Send us a text No lie...one of my favorite episodes of all time. Sit back and be prepared to learn A LOT (no matter if you're a mom or pelvic floor professional!) This week I’m joined by Dr. Hedwig Neels, pelvic floor physiotherapist at Antwerp University Hospital, professor at the University of Antwerp, and author of The Pelvic Floor Book. Hedwig specializes in pelvic floor and cyclists and real time ultrasound imaging integration into pelvic health. A mom herself, Hedwig b...
Send us a text Nervous about a breech baby or C-section? Think again. Planning a VBAC? It deserves more than a footnote in your chart. In this episode, I’m joined (again!) by Dr. Elliot Berlin, DC — prenatal chiropractor, labor doula, and founder of the Informed Pregnancy Podcast & One Way or A Mother serial podcast. With over 50,000 pre- and postnatal patients treated, and more than 450 podcast episodes featuring celebrity moms, birth professionals, and real birth stories, Dr. Berlin is ...
Send us a text In this episode, I’m joined once again by Laura Green—comedic content creator, runner, and self-proclaimed queen of self-deprecating humor in the fitness world. Laura’s known for her hilarious takes on running culture, her background as a physical therapist, and her ability to make the internet laugh one reel at a time. We dive into Laura’s experiences with postpartum running after each of her births, her transition from travel PT to digital storyteller, and the reality o...
Send us a text What happens when your postpartum comeback collides with the Boston Marathon start line—and you need to pump? Kaitlin Goodman aka @runnerKG has worn a lot of hats (and running shoes): former pro runner, 4x Olympic Trials qualifier, public health advocate, and now—toddler mom. In this episode, we talk about what it actually looks like to juggle elite running and early motherhood. Kaitlin shares how her own return to sport inspired her to create @running_joyfully, a coa...
Send us a text Ever lost your period, struggled with food, or felt completely misunderstood as a pregnant or postpartum athlete? You are not alone. In this episode, I sit down with Heather Caplan—registered dietitian, running coach, and co-founder of @lane9project—to have a real, unfiltered conversation about REDs (Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport), amenorrhea, and what recovery actually looks like. We cover: ▶ Getting your period back (not just for fertility!) ▶ Disordered eating in the...
Send us a text Ever wonder how much impact you're really putting through your body when you do skipping drills, single leg hops, or sprint starts? 🎙️ Don't miss a new episode with Celeste Goodson of @recorefitness—and we’re getting nerdy (in the best way) about external load, impact progression, and how to apply her 2022 research to real-life postpartum rehab. Yep, we’re talking about her 2022 article from Physical Therapy in Sport—"External loading of common training drills"—and how it h...
Send us a text 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 researc...
Send us a text Ever feel like you're constantly switching hats—chauffeur, snack-maker, therapist, work-meeting ninja—while trying to figure out why your body suddenly doesn’t feel like yours anymore? Same. In this quick hit solo episode, I’m talking straight to my fellow perimenopausal moms. If you’re in that messy middle of shifting from school-year structure to summer chaos—and trying to make sense of all the conflicting wellness advice—you are 1000% not alone. We were raised on “you can ha...
Send us a text What does fitness really look like for moms? It’s not matching sets and flawless form. It’s stopping mid-workout for a diaper change. It’s navigating diastasis, prolapse, leaking, exhaustion, and a brain that hasn’t slept in three years. It’s figuring out how to move in a body that’s been through pregnancy, postpartum, and perimenopause—without the judgment. In this episode, I sit down with Lindsey Bomgren (@nourishmovelove), certified trainer, mom of three, a...
Send us a text Feel like midlife movement advice is either “just walk more” or “go beast mode or go home”? You’re not alone—and you’re definitely not doing it wrong. For perimenopausal and menopausal women, movement isn't about shrinking, snapping back, or forcing intensity when your body’s screaming for support. It’s about learning to move with your body—not against it—when hormones, energy, and life feel like a moving target. This week on the pod, I sit down with the brilliant @physio...
Send us a text Still leaking, dealing with pelvic pain, or feeling stuck—even after doing all the “right” exercises? In this episode, I’m joined by Dr. Flávia Ignácio Antônio, PhD, physiotherapist and clinical researcher at the University of Ottawa, with over 15 years of experience in pelvic health, geriatrics, and cardiac rehab. We unpack the real reasons pelvic floor symptoms persist—and why strengthening alone isn’t always the answer. From hormones like estrogen and relaxin to centra...
Send us a text In this episode, we are trying something new! Friend of the podcast, Dr. Elliot Berlin, is launching a new serial podcast called One Way or Another. Each ten episode season follows one pregnancy and all the decisions, emotions, preparations, and history that goes along with it. Interviews feature the expectant mother along with husbands, parents, doctors, doulas, and surrogates. In season one, listeners meet Arianna, who is pregnant with her second baby. Follow along as we le...
Send us a text 💥“Wait…you’re STILL lifting?” “Won’t you hurt the baby?” If you’ve ever picked up a barbell during pregnancy & felt the judgment—or second-guessed yourself thanks to outdated advice—you’re not alone. On this episode of the #ActiveMomPodcast, I’m joined by @amymoolyk—certified strength coach, clinical exercise physiologist, & former Canadian National Olympic weightlifter—who lifts the lid on what it REALLY looks like to train heavy during pregnancy & return to spor...
Send us a text Ever feel like your body’s betraying you—just when you finally hit your running groove? 🥹 That nagging foot pain that won’t quit. The hip that flares up halfway through your run. The weird mid-back tightness after school drop-off and squatting a million times to pick up toys. That frustrating feeling like no matter how much you stretch or foam roll, it’s not getting better. If you’ve been there with that early morning hobble down the stairs after getting out of...
Send us a text 😩 You're trying to do EVERYTHING right after childbirth—pelvic floor PT, backing off workouts, giving it time… but that pelvic heaviness, bulging, or pressure is still there. It’s exhausting. It’s defeating. And no one seems to have real answers. If you’ve been told “it’s just your new normal,” this episode is your reminder: it doesn’t have to be. I’m joined by Dr. Imran Siddiqui (@thesiddiquimd), a Washington DC-based sports medicine physician who’s taking his background in ...
Send us a text In this solo episode, we’re talking directly to the new moms—especially those in the first six weeks postpartum—who are feeling heaviness or pressure in their pelvic floor and wondering what it means. If you've been told to “just wait it out” or felt dismissed by your provider, this conversation is for you. This episode is all about giving you clarity, confidence, and a roadmap to move forward—without fear. We talk about: -Why you might be feeling heaviness early on -Common r...
1Send us a text In this episode, I’m joined by Dr. Susan Clinton—a clinician, educator, and coach with over 40 years of experience helping women move through complex health transitions with clarity and confidence. Susan brings deep insight into the connections between the gut, hormones, and nervous system, and how those intersections can impact women in midlife and beyond. We explore the nuances of perimenopause and menopause, from autoimmunity shifts to digestive challenges, and the power of ...
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Note : In the first part of this podcast when Rachel mentions eating four Awesome Sauce gels in a one hour workout, it was believed that these gels contained 45g of carbs. Since then, studies have found that these gels actually contain ~18g of carbs which equates to 76g/hour, a very normal amount for an ultra runner like Rachel.