Trussell and Ritondo discuss mothers’ participation in sport – The Brock News
This article by Dawn Trussell, Associate Professor of Sport Management at Brock University, and Talia Ritondo, PhD student in Human Kinetics at the University of Ottawa, was originally published in The Conversation.
There are success stories of mothers being physically active after childbirth – especially in individual activities like yoga, running, walking and other exercises. But what can be done to make it easier for postpartum mothers to participate in team sports?
Team sports are an important activity to explore because they offer opportunities to build community, improve health and wellbeing, and counteract the often unrealistic and self-sacrificing expectations of motherhood.
These expectations can include dedicating all of your time, energy, and resources to being considered a “good mom” and running a household, while at the same time forgoing recreational and sporting activities.
Stories of pressure, resistance, support
As researchers in the field of leisure studies and sport management, we recently published a study in which we worked with postpartum mothers (six weeks to one year after birth) who participated in team sports.
Because we chose a research design that leverages storytelling, below we share some excerpts from the stories of postpartum mothers that describe the successes and challenges they experienced in team sports.
Michelle’s History of Pressure
“Team sports help me withstand the pressures of motherhood more than any other sport. It’s something I do for myself and you don’t get much of it when you have kids. But there is also the pressure of motherhood. You want to give your children everything, but you constantly question yourself. Am I giving enough time? am i good enough When can I take time for myself? Do I interfere with the children because I want to be free? It never stops, but you learn to live with it. I always wonder if what I’m doing is enough. I feel like a perpetrator when I take time off.”
As Michelle’s story shows, the women felt the tension that comes with successfully participating in upholding the ideal of the “good mother” — and that tension was always there.
Some participants told us about all the mental and physical work they had to do before they could participate in team sports. This included arranging childcare, preparing family meals before departure, and only leaving the house after the children were in bed. Guilt, social expectations of being “perfect moms,” and self-doubt lingered, especially before they went to play.
Jennifer’s History of Resistance
“Coming back to hockey made me feel really empowered. I got great compliments from the other moms who said, “We can’t believe you’re back so soon!” Just being part of a team of moms is empowering. I was also proud to have come back and was terribly out of shape. I’ve never been this out of shape in my life… But I was proud of myself for taking time for myself. I usually stay in the dressing room a little longer than usual after games. I would be the last or second to last person there because I literally enjoyed the two and a half to three hours out of the house.”
Mothers’ participation in team sports has often been associated with overcoming challenges such as lack of time, childcare and breastfeeding.
But the mothers shared how much they loved team sports. Taking time out for self-care through exercise was an act of defiance against the expectation of being the “perfect mom.” Postpartum mothers also felt empowered to defy this expectation, which helped them feel more confident as women, athletes, and mothers.
Celia’s story of support
“While I was free, I was really looking forward to getting back into exercise because I’m not someone who enjoys going to the gym or doing bodyweight exercises at home. When I returned to tennis we made sure we had an extra player with us so there was always an extra person to look after our babies. You all know that we have children. People share the duty of sitting on the bench and just moving the stroller so they can continue sleeping. I was also keen to have another player to look after my baby when I returned to volleyball.
The other day our fifth player was late. We played and (my baby) slept most of the first set so I didn’t have to cut corners because exercise is important for our mental and physical health.”
Women in our study shared stories about the importance of support. Partners, family and friends provided important support in caring for the baby.
Similar to previous research, these support networks were also important in providing postpartum emotional support and encouragement to mothers to participate in team sports.
Also importantly, the teammates encouraged the sense of community and support that encouraged player participation. They encouraged mothers to return to exercise after childbirth, nurtured relationships with participants during vacations, and helped care for their babies on the sidelines.
The return to team sports is a chaotic process marked by feelings of resistance, empowerment, community and tension.
This research underscores the need for increased postpartum support for women to return to sport that is meaningful and empowering. However, it also shows the importance of changing societal expectations of a self-sacrificing motherhood testing her well-being during a difficult life transition.