19/05/2025
â¨Stress Incontinence in Sport â Itâs NOT Just a âPost-Babyâ Problemâ¨
Letâs talk about something I see often in clinic but rarely hear spoken about openly: stress incontinence in female athletes whoâve never had babies.
Yes, you read that right.
This incredible client came to me with excellent pelvic floor awareness and no concerns with bladder or bowel health in day-to-day life â but during heavy lifts, she leaked. And sheâs not alone.
When we dug deeper, it wasnât about a âweak pelvic floor.â It was about how she was bracing, how she was using her lifting belt, how her training intensity was ramping up without enough rest, and how she was pushing through without her bodyâs systems working in sync.
đĄThis is why a holistic pelvic floor physiotherapy assessment is a MUST â we are so much more than providers of pelvic floor exercises.
âĄď¸ We assess breath, load, pressure management, nervous system regulation, and sport-specific technique.
âĄď¸ We talk about your entire training ecosystem â intensity, recovery, mindset, and yes, competition prep.
âĄď¸ And sometimes, like in this case, we collaborate! I was so grateful to bring in my amazing husband, a previous Olympic weightlifting competitor, to offer insight into competition cycles and recovery strategies.
Letâs be real: science around female athletes is lagging far behind. We are not âsmall men.â
We donât train the same, recover the same, or respond to stress the same.
To the strong woman pushing herself in training but feeling frustrated by symptoms that âshouldnât be happeningâ â you are not broken, and you are not alone. There is a reason behind the symptoms, and there is a way forward.
đ§ đ¤¸ââď¸ If youâre lifting heavy and leaking, book in. You deserve to feel strong, confident, and in control â in and out of the gym.