The Rise of Female Sport

And it's impact on exercise for women during pre and postnatal years...

By Jane Wake MSc

Euro's 2025. Winners, England

With the post celebrations of Englands win at the Euro's, much conversation is centring around the women's game. As we watch the likes of Kelly, Bronze and Mead, it's easy to forget that women were literally banned from playing football for a large proportion of the 20th century.

Despite this, in the last 3 years alone, from the 2022 to 2025 Euro Tournament, we have seen stadium attendances and viewing rates show just how much the women's game can win on all levels. The pay debate will continue on -Englands Captain Leah Williams earning, annually (£200,000, BBC NEWS), half of what Harry Kane earns in just one week. (£400,000 Goal.com).

The success of Englands No 1 football team should be measured, not just in goals scored and penalties saved but in how they will bring women into a more even playing field.

A big part of this is about access, and a greater understanding of the challenges women face. This is where the comparisons to the mens game cease, yet it has repercussions for every woman...

Women play their highest level of sport during their reproductive years..

Men will never have to face this particular challenge. It presents a different dimension which, up until very recently, has been given little or no attention. It's of course part of who we are - and perhaps something that gives us a resilience thats unique to women. We have, after all, for centuries been told we are weak. Is this ultimately what makes us stronger? .Serina Weigman is described as 'The Mother' of the England team and the title of Lioness becomes even more apt when you view how every player shows up for their team mates.

It's not just female coaches that are changing the game. We are also seeing a lot more women coming into sports science research - this is important.

An area in which we are seeing a lot more data is around ACL (knee ligament) injuries, which appear to be much more prevalent in women than in men. (1, 2 ) Studies are looking into injury rates at different points around the menstrual cycle to see if there are patterns relating to hormonal shifts. Whilst we still don't have conclusive evidence, we are starting to learn more and this is a good start.

I have worked with many athletes who have had to approach conception and pregnancy with intrepidation. Many women either give up careers or delay having a family because sport has not been set up to support them during this time. One of the issues around this is that no one wants to study women where they push to the limits or put themselves in a contact sport situation during pregnancy.

But, pregnancy is physical, and when you look into the physiology of what the pregnant body does, it poses the question ...

Are pregnant woman the

most physically & capable humans of all?

One of my all time favourite athletes is the mid 20th Century, Dutch, track athlete, Fanny Blankers-Koen . Not only did she break the record of winning 4 gold medals in one olympic event - she did it whilst 3 months pregnant. Rather than everyone marvelling at her ability to perform, she was dubbed 'the flying housewife' and scorned for doing something that was deemed to be harmful for her child.

Much of what is seen as negative in exercise and pregnancy is assumption based. The evidence we do have however is showing huge benefits for both mothers and babies...

A recent meta analysis for example showed that exercises like abdominal curls which have long been thought as bad for pregnant women, causing adverse effects on abdominal separation, has no scientific evidence. This may not mean it's the best exercise for every woman to do - but it doesn't have to be banned or centred around fear that stops women from moving. (3, 4)

In 2025 we have seen a gathering of data that is likely to change a number of current stand points on exercise and pregnancy. These relate to levels intensity, duration and recovery - which are highly important for athletes wanting to continue in their careers but also provide important data for women who would never have previously contemplated doing longer/higher levels of exercise during pregnancy, (5, 6). For women who train in the gym, there's always been a fear around placing the body under too much pressure but research is coming through to give us a greater understanding and confidence to train. There are of course always caveats but understanding these and most importantly, giving women the knowledge to navigate all of this during her reproductive years is vital.

When you look at the increased risk factors associated with NOT exercising, we need to arm women with all the tools we can to continue to break down barriers and enable her to own her space, at any life stage, within sport, whether that's on the pitch, in the swimming pool, gym, home workout or dance class.

If you'd like to learn more, I will be doing a 2 hour workshop on Pregnancy and Postnatal Exercise at Witt Fit Gym , East Wittering on 2nd August 1-3pm .   Look out for more dates coming in September. This is suitable for anyone from pre-conception to postnatal and I would encourage Instructors, trainers & coaches to book too - especially if you are currently training women through this life stage - there's been a lot of change in the last year! Find out more about my Powerful Pregnancy Bespoke Programmes here.

Jane Wake has a Master of Science in Sport Management and a number of vocational qualifications in Fitness. Her masters research focused on the provision of exercise for women and she has, in the last 20 years of her 37 year career, specialised in women's health. In 2004 she teamed up with the world renowned Fit to Deliver Team and has coached scores of instructors, physios and midwifes as well as training 1000's of women through pregnancy and beyond. In 2020 she helped to develop the Nike Motherhood programmes, working with athletes, scripting/voicing a series of Nike Guided Runs on pregnancy and choreographing this ad....