S1E13: Becci Holcomb, Powerlifting National Champion and New Mom

This week’s guest is a new mother, an American record holder and powerlifting national champion—Becci Holcomb is a force to be reckoned with. Shooting to the top of the field in just four years in the sport, Becci took to powerlifting very naturally. She was raised on a farm and has always been naturally strong and powerful. Her father was an Olympic wrestler.  After a friend suggested she try powerlifting, she took an introductory class and was just lifting a PVC plastic pipe. The next day despite her body being sore and tired, she was hooked.  Powerlifting is a sport where you might only compete three times a year, as it takes a long time to build up to a competition and to recover. Becci is the ultimate competitor, normally only hitting personal bests during a competition. 

Becci and her boyfriend Jay found out she was pregnant in October 2019 and two weeks later she told her coach, knowing she was due to compete in Dubai just a month later. Following the advice from her coach and the team around her, Becci felt safe to compete so she went ahead. 

Lifting weights through pregnancy is safe so long as you are able to stay within a safe range, no more than 80% of your 1rep max. Becci found she needed to take longer rests in-between sets to recover, needed extra snacks to help hold off the nausea, and critically take extra care not to aggravate old injuries. The hormone that prepares your body to hold a baby—and eventually push it out—is called relaxin and this can make you more susceptible to over-stretching. 

Her birth plan was always to try to do it as natural as possible, even knowing her baby was breech throughout the whole pregnancy. Becci found an obstetrician who would supervise a vaginal delivery of a breech birth, and tried External Cephalic Version (ECV) which involves gentle manipulation of the baby in utero to change its position.  Alas, it did not work. Just before her due date, Becci realized something was not right and following tests, she decided to undergo an emergency c-section. For someone who puts a lot of stress on their core muscles, this was naturally a a major concern for Becci.  Fortunately all went well and she gave birth to her daughter Xoë Grace.

We asked Becci for some top tips for moms-to-be when it came to continuing their weight training during pregnancy. 

Listen to your bodyBe patient with yourself - everything feels different when you are pregnant and afterwards so don’t rush back.

Podcast length: 49 mins

Hosts: Sarah Newberry Moore & Pamela Relph Jones

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