Known for her thoughtful perspective on motherhood, wellness, and modern womanhood, Priya Malik believes fitness should feel empowering rather than exhausting.
In this heartfelt conversation, she opens up about postpartum body image, redefining strength, embracing mobility over aesthetics, and learning to treat her body with kindness through every stage of motherhood.
Redefining Strength Through Motherhood
Motherhood has completely reshaped the way I look at fitness and self-care. Today, movement feels less like punishment and more like play. It’s stretching on the floor while my child crawls over me, doing squats that feel grounding instead of exhausting, and choosing movement that supports life rather than just aesthetics. I still enjoy strength training, but I no longer push myself to extremes. Recently, I’ve also started Pilates, mainly to improve mobility and agility.
Choosing Movement That Supports Life
For me, mobility means being able to bend, lift, carry, run, and hold—without pain or fear. Agility, on the other hand, is about keeping up with my tiny human, who doesn’t understand the idea of a “rest day.” My fitness routine is no longer about chasing a certain body type; it’s about building a body that can truly support my everyday life and match my baby’s endless energy.
A New Relationship With My Body
The postpartum phase transformed my relationship with my body in profound ways. I became less critical and more curious. Instead of focusing on how my body looked, I began appreciating what it could do. Motherhood brings a certain humility because you realise your body is not just yours to judge—it’s yours to care for, especially when someone else depends on it too.
Breastfeeding Zorawar for two years deepened that gratitude even further, and I found myself appreciating my body for supporting me through every stage. Honestly, I stopped looking at my body like a project and started relating to it like a partner. Some days it feels tired, some days strong—but every day, it’s trying. And that feels enough.
Why the “Bounce Back” Culture Needs to Change
I believe the idea of “bouncing back” after pregnancy is deeply flawed. Why are women expected to “bounce back” from something that is, in essence, growth? We don’t ask a tree to shrink after it bears fruit, yet women are often expected to erase all evidence of creation.
The real goal is not reversal—it’s integration. It’s learning to embrace strength, softness, stretch marks, sleepless nights, and every change that comes with motherhood. There is no “back.” There is only forward.
A Message to New Mothers
To every new mother feeling pressured to lose weight quickly, my advice is simple: interrogate the pressure. Ask yourself—who am I trying to become again, and why? Your journey does not have to match someone else’s highlight reel. Your body is not on a deadline.
Start with kindness, then consistency, and most importantly, don’t let urgency rob you of presence. This phase, with all its chaos and beauty, won’t come back. Your body deserves patience, not punishment—and that is perhaps one of the most important lessons motherhood teaches us.