From New Mom to Rio Gold: Dana Vollmer Shares Post-Pregnancy Journey
From New Mom to Rio Gold: Dana Vollmer Shares Post-Pregnancy Journey
Dana Vollmer shares about the ups and downs of her journey from pregnancy to Rio Olympic Gold.
By Christina Pfenning Craig
High-tech racing suits are not designed for nursing mothers -- just ask multiple Olympic gold medalist Dana Vollmer.
"At the Los Angeles Grand Prix meet in August of 2015, I had to enlist the help of three teammates just to squeeze into my suit," she said with a laugh.
Vollmer was six months into breastfeeding her first child -- a boy named Arlen who was born in March this past year -- and the fact that she was racing was a surprise even to herself. After winning three gold medals at the 2012 London Olympic Games, Vollmer came close to retiring the following year.
"I swam when I was 38 1/2 weeks pregnant, and it was weird to simply workout for the sake of exercise," Vollmer said. "I was used to feeling super connected to the water and tied to my core strength. When I got back into the pool while I was pregnant I felt horrible, like I had a boulder tied to my gut."
But Vollmer kept swimming, joining her mother-in-law for sporadic 30-minute lunchtime workouts. The duo would start with a 200 warm-up, followed by a 300 social kick, 200 IM drill, and then 12 x 25 fast on 30.
"Fast was relative at that point," Vollmer said. "I was so used to having an elite stroke. I did enjoy my short workouts with my mother-in-law even though I felt ginormous. I also loved swimming with my husband. He would hold my ankles and kick and I would do the arms. He was like a propeller!"
Once Arlen was born, Vollmer eased into more regular training. She continued with the lunch-hour laps and added sessions with a physical therapist to rebuild her strength and undo bad habits that caused her back injury to linger.
"At that point I wasn't ready for hardcore practices. I had to reform my technique in a healthier way," Vollmer said. "It was about my baseline stability and core strength and making sure my shoulders were healthy. It was also three months of getting used to a newborn."
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Vollmer was committed to breastfeeding baby Arlen, powering through endless nights of cluster feeding and satiating the intense hunger that results from providing nourishment for another human being.
By the summer of 2015, the swim mom had established a routine and was ready to join the elite practices at the University of California-Berkeley, her alma mater.
"Arlen's nanny would meet me at 5:30 AM and all three of us would drive to the Cal pool," Vollmer said. "I showed up to practices with the baby, diaper bag, nanny, and my breastfeeding pillow. Before each practice, I would breastfeed Arlen in the locker room, and then I would get in the pool.
"At the first practice I maybe made it through the 1,400 warm-up -- I was dying by the end of it. But I was really gentle with myself -- I told myself it was OK that I only did warm-up. If Arlen was up many times the night before, then I didn't go to practice in the morning. I swam as long as I felt like I could while holding the healthy technique I was learning. As soon as my stroke broke down, I would get out of the pool."
And that diaper bag was chock-full of snacks.
Vollmer had to take breaks during practices to eat a protein bar or drink a shake, because she was so hungry from breastfeeding.
"I wasn't thinking about losing weight," she said. "I knew I needed to eat a lot for training and for breastfeeding. I remembered what a prenatal yoga class teacher said: 'Will your baby remember laying on your toned bicep and stomach or will they remember being nurtured by their mother?' The weight is there to help sustain the milk production."
Buoyed by this perspective, as well as support from her family, coach, and teammates, Vollmer qualified for her third Olympic team and was victorious again at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games. She was part of the U.S.'s gold medal-winning 400 medley relay team, becoming the first American mother to win a swimming gold medal. She also earned a silver medal as part of the 400 free relay and a bronze in the 100 fly.
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"Coming back to the sport post-pregnancy, I had to learn to embrace my new body," Vollmer said. "There are so many different body types in swimming. I think it's incredibly important for the coaches and the families of athletes to work to keep those athletes confident in themselves and their bodies."
Now, Vollmer's main event is being a mom to Arlen while fitting in as much training as possible.
"My husband and I are planning to have a second child, but the 2020 Olympics are still a goal for me," Vollmer said.
In the meantime she's splashing around with little Arlen, who started taking swim lessons when he was just six months old.
"He already shows a love for the water," Vollmer said. "He kicks and pulls with his arms, and we put him under water and he kicks towards my husband and me. We are having so much fun with him in the pool!"