Prenatal and postnatal pain can turn everyday tasks into careful negotiations: a lower back that aches when you stand too long, pelvic pain when you walk, hip stiffness when you try to train. If you have been told to "just take it easy" without a clear plan for what you can still do safely, the frustration usually outweighs the relief. We work with women through pregnancy and postpartum at ActiveX Physio in Singapore who want to stay active rather than default to rest.
Why does pregnancy make your back and pelvis ache?
Because more is changing than the added weight. Rib cage expansion, abdominal wall changes, and shifting pelvic alignment all contribute, which is why adjusting your sleeping position and wearing a support belt, scaling activity back, can all be reasonable steps that still leave the drivers untouched. We assess pelvic stability and lumbopelvic control, then hip strength and how your body is managing the postural and loading changes of pregnancy and the early postnatal months. Postnatally the questions shift: how the abdominal wall, pelvic floor, and hip complex are recovering, and where strength deficits are holding back your return to activity.
How do you stay strong through pregnancy and after?
By training what your body can do right now. The line moves as you do. Prenatally that means building and holding stability through hip and trunk and pelvis, using squats, hip hinges, lateral stability drills, and upper body work in positions that stay comfortable and effective trimester by trimester. Postnatally the focus turns to rebuilding trunk and pelvic floor control, progressing core stability from basic activation through to loaded functional movement, and clearing any pain or restriction pregnancy left behind. If you trained before pregnancy and want that back, we build the bridge from recovery to performance with clear benchmarks along the way.
Who can help
Any of our physiotherapists can assess and treat prenatal and postnatal pain. Helen Nguyen leads our women's health work and is currently completing the APA Women's Health course. She works with women through each stage of pregnancy and the postnatal return to training, and has been through that return twice herself.
Go deeper
Our guide on strength training during pregnancy covers how to train safely through each trimester and what to prioritise. Read the full guide on strength training during pregnancy →