Motherhood: A time in our lives where so much is unknown, yet so much is at stake.

Our questions range from which prenatal vitamins to take, how to take care of our physical and mental health, and how to receive support from our friends and family.

Luckily, 4 brands have been created by moms, for moms, to help carry us through this beautiful and challenging journey. Binto, Motion Melissa, Fit4MOM Philadelphia and Bumpdate are committed to supporting women through all stages of motherhood as we try to conceive, become pregnant, experience postpartum and grow into the role of “mom”. 

Women’s health needs have transformed over the course of history as we continue to learn more about our bodies and our minds.

The pandemic marked a trying time in history when women’s reproductive health required extra support, and these 4 brands rose above to bring solutions. Expecting mothers require support for not only their physical and mental health, but their social well-being too. 

Over the past few years, we have been forced into an environment where children were born during a pandemic, and a remote work environment became the norm. It was a time where we were separated from our support systems unlike ever before, during a time when we needed them most. 

As we continue to grow into a post-pandemic world, we are seeing female-founded brands solve problems using technology to improve the health of our population using resources that are just a click away, a historic moment for women and a win for our generation.

Women’s History Month is a reminder to recognize women, their strength, and their contributions to history and society. Today, we celebrate and share resources from 4 female-founded brands in the prenatal and postpartum wellness world whose main goals are to support women’s physical, mental, and social well-being as they journey through motherhood. 

1. BINTO – Let’s start by talking about prenatal vitamins. Which one is right for you? 

With so many brands and variations on the market, how are we supposed to choose the one that best fits our individual needs? A simple google search reveals that many commonly used prenatal supplements are missing key components essential for the healthy development of our growing babies. This is exactly what nurse Suzie Welsh-Devine wondered before she founded Binto, a personalized prenatal supplement company. 

Suzie worked in healthcare for many years as a postpartum nurse and then in IVF and noticed a recurring theme from all her patients, five little words, “No one ever told me”. 

A prenatal and postnatal tailored to your specific needs. 

Binto makes vitamins and supplements tailored to your specific needs. As a nurse-founded company, the health providers at Binto understand that every body is different. 

Vitamins and supplements made with no bs 

All the vitamins and supplements are made with no bs; filler-free, preservative-free, and are non-gmo, so you don’t need to worry about any of the additives that many other vitamin companies fill their capsules with. When you first enter the Binto website you will be asked to complete a simple quiz with questions similar to those on a questionnaire you would be asked to complete in a doctor’s office. This is to ensure your supplements are personalized to your specific health care needs. Your order will then be reviewed by a Binto health provider and will be shipped right to your door. 

Have questions or concerns whether it be related to fertility, pregnancy or postpartum?

Something we really love about Binto is they recognize that it really does take a village and they are there to help you build the house and maintain it. If you have questions or concerns whether it be related to fertility, pregnancy or postpartum, you can schedule an appointment on telehealth with a Binto health provider. That’s huge!

BINTO discount code

If you’d like to try out your personalized Binto vitamins, use code BDA20 for 20% off at checkout. 

2. Motion Melissa – Now, let’s talk about how to move your body to prioritize physical health. 

There is a lot of noise out there about what workouts are safe for which stage of pregnancy and motherhood. After her own personal health and fertility journey, Melissa Gambone took it upon herself to create Motion Melissa, a virtual personal trainer and wellness coaching service that helps women feel their best by tuning out the noise of toxic diet and fitness culture so they can tune into what their body actually needs to feel strong, healthy, and ready to take on all the many challenges of motherhood — both mentally and physically.

How can moving your body mindfully help you through pregnancy and motherhood? 

From preconception to postpartum, the mindful approach to fitness is helpful for moms  because it helps manage stress, strengthen mind-body connection, balance hormones, improve body image, and prevent pain and injury. Our society puts so much pressure on mothers, particularly when it comes to our bodies. Intuitive movement helps strip away these harmful external motivators so you can honor your body’s internal signals and work with your body instead of against it throughout every stage of motherhood.

So what exactly is intuitive movement and how do you get started?

Intuitive movement is the practice of connecting with your body and its internal cues (aka your intuition) to determine what type of movement you’d feel best doing.

The first step to get started is to practice mindfulness. 

Mindfulness is the key to unlocking your intuition and strengthening your mind-body connection. But, how do you fit in mindfulness as a busy mama? Keep it simple:

1. Take deep breathing breaks throughout your day to pause, be present, and notice how you are feeling in your body.
2.  Add mindfulness to everyday tasks by being in the moment and noticing the details around you. What do you see, what do you hear, what do you feel, what do you smell?
3. Focus on the present by honoring your body where it is right now instead of striving to look a certain way, reach a particular weight, or “bounce back”.

The second step is to ditch diet culture. 

Toxic diet culture has taught us to constantly change and “fix” our bodies. Unlinking movement from weight (or body) management helps remove shame, guilt, & harmful habits from your fitness practice and improves body image. Start to:

1. Unlink movement from weight (or body) management, and shift your fitness focus from weight loss to health. Think, “I’m working out because it makes me feel good.”
2. “Detox” your social media feed by unfollowing accounts that put you into comparison mode and make you feel less than. Follow accounts that inspire you and make you feel good. Follow folks that you admire.
3. Challenge your inner critic by speaking to yourself as you would to your child.
4. Cultivate gratitude for what your body can do at this stage in motherhood and celebrate all of the things you love about yourself that have nothing to do with your appearance.

The third step is to focus on how you feel. 

In order to connect to your intuition and honor your body’s cues, you must tune out external “noise” and focus on your own internal wisdom (aka, how you feel). Stop doing what you think you “should do” to be healthy, and start tuning into what your body actually needs to feel like the best version of you with these things:

1. Focus on internal (feelings) vs. external (weight loss, steps, calories, others’ opinions etc.) motivators.
2. Scan your body before, during, & after exercise and choose movement based on how you feel.
3. Listen to your body and respond to what your body needs (including rest!) without judgment or guilt. Be flexible and give yourself grace, mama! Know that your body, fitness level, and routine will change with each stage of motherhood, and that’s perfectly ok! Don’t add to your stress level by torturing yourself with guilt.

3. Fit4Mom Philadelphia– Now that we know how to move our bodies and practice mindfulness, we need to find a community of other parents to feel connected to.

Let’s dive into fitness and how to find your “Mom Network”. Erica Bloom, mom of two, founded Fit4Mom Philadelphia in order to provide a safe place for moms to develop connection and fitness at any stage of motherhood and any level of fitness. From pregnancy through postpartum and beyond, their fitness and wellness programs help make moms strong in body, mind, and spirit. As the nation’s leading prenatal and postnatal fitness program, they are here to support you and help you achieve your potential both physically and emotionally while offering support, movement, and community. They also help to inspire children to make fitness a fun part of their lives since they are welcome to attend classes with mama! With over 1,800 locations around the country, the brand was founded by a mom, Lisa Druxman, who was looking for a way to blend her passion for fitness with motherhood, “I decided to create a workout that I could do with my baby,” she recalls. Now, Erica has brought this resource to the Philadelphia region. 

Fit4Mom offers classes for all the different stages of motherhood.

Fit4Mom Philly workout classes encourage you to bring your baby and connect with other moms, leaving the scramble and guilt of finding childcare out of your mind. Fit4Mom offers classes for all the different stages of motherhood as well as free options to find a sense of community including play dates for little ones, mom meet ups, monthly informative workshops, and free mom walks to rotating neighborhoods in the Philadelphia area. They also provide prenatal classes for moms-to-be called Fit4baby, a 6-week prenatal program that includes weekly private group workouts that build your mental and physical endurance, strengthen your body and prepare you for pregnancy, birth, and beyond. 

Fit4Mom is offering 20% off memberships/class packs with code BUMPDATE.

So grab your kiddo and stop by one of their classes, meet a few new friends and do something for yourself!

4. Bumpdate – Get support from family and friends by sharing your journey through this app.

Many apps out there help us remember how far along we are in our pregnancies, but no app helps our loved ones remember these important details, until now. Research shows that social support reduces the risk for prenatal and postpartum depression, and Bumpdate helps to maintain these relationships when it matters most. As a private social network, expecting parents can easily share their journey with their friends and family, including due dates, # weeks and days pregnant, doctor’s appointments, etc, so they can receive support during these milestones. 

Creating a helpful tool to be the friend who remembers.

The idea for Bumpdate came to Gabrielle Iorio Sylk, Founder, when she was about 20 weeks pregnant and working full-time as a tech executive. She tried keeping track of her friends’ due dates, important appointments, baby names, birthdays, and registries, but it was hard — even with her color-coded calendar. She wanted to celebrate their milestones, provide support, check in, and let them know they weren’t alone. She wanted to be the friend who remembers.

Helping others feel less alone.

Bumpdate is also a community and a place to read real parenting stories, and a trusted home of resources to help their users navigate the ups and downs of parenthood and feel a little less alone – the ultimate goal of bumpdate. 

Pregnancy and birthday tracking for friends and family.

Now you can check your Bumpdate app to see when your friend is entering a new trimester, when their next big doctor’s appointment is, or when their kid is having their next birthday. You can do something small to show you are thinking of them or lend a helping hand. Something as little as sending a text letting them know you’re thinking of them goes a long way. 

Being a good friend is good for your health.

These small efforts not only let them know how much you care, but the evidence shows that this type of support makes your friends happy and improves their mental well-being. Being a good friend is good for your health and Bumpdate makes this even easier. The app is free for download on the Apple Store and Google Play. 

Let’s recap:

1. BINTO. Binto makes vitamins and supplements tailored to your specific needs. As a nurse-founded company, the health providers at Binto understand that every body is different.
   • Use code BDA20 for 20%
2. Motion Melissa. Tune into what your body actually needs to feel strong, healthy, and ready to take on all the many challenges of motherhood — both mentally and physically.
   • Use code BUMPDATE for a free month at Motion Studio
3. Fit4Mom Philadelphia. A home for moms to develop connection and fitness at any stage of motherhood and any level of fitness.
   • Use code BUMPDATE for 20% off memberships & class packs
4. Bumpdate. A pregnancy tracker app for friends and family. Research shows that social support reduces the risk for prenatal and postpartum depression, and Bumpdate helps to maintain these relationships when it matters most.
   • Free for download on the App Store and Google Play