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This study contributes to a growing body of scholarly discussions around the many aspects and challenges of combining parenthood with elite-level sport, with a particular focus on the experiences of male elite athletes who are fathers. We used a caring masculinities theoretical framework, community-based participatory research, and semi-structured interviews to explore the experiences of 10 elite/international and world-class athletes (n = 9 fathers, n = 1 expectant father). Through reflexive thematic analysis, we identified three main themes: fatherhood can (1) improve and (2) impede elite athlete-fathers' athletic performance; and (3) athlete-fathers experience a trade-off between athletic performance and fatherhood responsibilities. Our findings underscore the ways in which male athletes' experiences with parenthood reflect the new era of involved fatherhood and are analogous to some of the identity tensions that have been reported with regard to the experiences of elite female athletes who are pregnant and/or mothers. Recognizing the impact of children on male athletes' athletic careers and the parallels between fatherhood, motherhood, and elite sport may lead to better support for athlete-fathers while also contributing to diminishing the expectation that women are primary caregivers to children.
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Recently, motherhood and pregnancy in elite sport have received increased attention in sport media. Through a comprehensive news media search across Factiva as well as a gray literature search using Google search engine, we analyzed 115 articles using feminist framing analysis. We developed two primary frames: 1) empowerment versus exploitation, and 2) proactivity versus reactivity. Our results show that many pregnant and parenting athletes frame their respective sponsors as exploitative for recognizing and capitalizing upon their unique marketing value, while these same corporate sponsors frame themselves as industry leaders who empower pregnant and parenting athletes. These two frames show that pregnant/parenting elite athletes commonly face discriminatory policies and practices and that there is often a lack of congruence between marketing and actual corporate practices and policies. These findings arguably reflect larger societal issues related to gender equity and highlight the importance of action over rhetoric to ensure motherhood is supported-rather than marketed-for elite athletes.
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Objective: This study investigates the concepts, knowledge, and guiding principles that inform the practice of professionals researching trauma or working directly with individuals who have lived and living experiences of trauma. These aspects are explored with the aim of identifying current practices and potential gaps which may contribute to more trauma-informed biomarker-based research approaches. Method: The perspectives of experts were explored through semi-structured interviews with seven participants; these individuals represented trauma research, clinical practice, and trauma-informed physical activity domains. Results: A thematic analysis of the collected data revealed three focal areas highlighted by participants from all disciplines: "If I want to know trauma in the body of a person I need to know the person's language" which related to experiences of discussing trauma with clients; "What all people need is a safe place" relayed the importance of safety for participants working with the trauma expert; and "the facilitator is not a bystander" framing trauma-related work as a collaborative process between participants and their care providers. Conclusion: Evidence of formal implementation of trauma-informed practices within research settings is lacking. This gap is identified within background literature, while the importance of implementing these practices is emphasized by the participants of this study. This presents an opportunity to apply the insights of the interviewed experts toward advancing trauma research methodologies. Adapting biomarker-based research methodologies to fit a trauma- and violence-informed model may have benefits for the quality of participant experiences, research data, and knowledge of effective interventions.
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This study reported on perceived benefits and barriers of exercise among men with histories of sexual violence (SV) and compared these perceptions by activity level and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) status. An online, cross-sectional, survey of men with histories of SV (N = 198) was completed using Amazon Mechanical Turk. Inclusion criteria were identifying sex at birth as male, age between 18 and 65 years, self-reported history of SV, and living in the United States (U.S.). A total of 1,260 men were screened for the study, of which 316 met the inclusion criteria, and 198 met all data quality requirements and were included in the study. Sociodemographic information, exercise behavior, PTSD symptoms, and perceived exercise barriers/benefits were collected. Comparisons by activity and PTSD status were analyzed. Additionally, two open-ended qualitative research questions were included to provide nuance to perceived barriers/benefits of exercise. The most salient benefits included physical performance, psychological outlook, and preventative health. Open-ended responses also noted the mental and physical benefits of exercise. The most salient barrier was physical exercise, with open-ended responses emphasizing lack of time, chronic pain and health concerns, and poor mental health and lack of motivation as impediments to exercise. Significant differences were found in benefits (psychological outlook, physical performance) and barriers (exercise environment, high time expenditure, and family discouragement) between active and insufficiently active men with histories of SV (ps < .05; Cohen's ds = 0.32-0.57). Significant differences were found by PTSD status on benefits (physical performance, social interaction, and preventative health) and barriers (exercise milieu, time expenditure, hard physical exercise, family discouragement) (ps < .05; Cohen's ds = 0.40-1.10). Findings provide new gender-specific strategies for promoting exercise among men with histories of SV: integrating exercise physiologists into trauma recovery programs, psychoeducation, engaging friends and family members, peer-support, and building self-efficacy.
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Delitos Sexuales , Trastornos por Estrés Postraumático , Recién Nacido , Humanos , Masculino , Adolescente , Adulto Joven , Adulto , Persona de Mediana Edad , Anciano , Estudios Transversales , Ejercicio Físico/psicología , Salud MentalRESUMEN
The primary objective of this community-based participatory research is to explore the impacts of COVID-19 and the delayed Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games on world-class and elite/international-class parenting and pregnant athletes. Participants in this study include 11 female and 10 male parenting and/or pregnant middle and distance runners. Combined, the participants have competed at 26 Olympic Games and 31 World Championships. Drawing on the general concepts of stressors and psychological resilience, we use thematic analysis to develop four themes to understand the stressors for world-class and elite/international-class parenting and pregnant athletes due to COVID-19 and the delayed Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games: (1) lack of childcare support, (2) family planning, and (3) needing to stay away from sources of COVID-including their children. Despite the stressors identified in the aforementioned themes, we identified a fourth theme: (4) participants demonstrated adaptability to stress in spite of-or due to-their athlete-parent identities.
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Parenting education interventions and parenting programs are important for health promotion efforts among children and families; however, the majority of parenting programs are directed towards and attended by mothers. This is problematic because research has consistently demonstrated that fathers' active participation in the family can have a positive influence on mothers' well-being, children's self-esteem, success in school, and interpersonal relationships. In this paper, using an intersectional poststructuralist framework, document analysis, and Bacchi and Goodwin's "What's the problem represented to be" approach (WPR), we analyzed the program policies of 12 organizations that provide family-centred services in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. We identified the following three discourses: organizations strive to be client-centred and provide choices; organizations want to empower their participants; and women need safe place to raise their families. Our analysis revealed that fathers are absent or represented as problems in program policies, and that this has consequences for not only fathers but also mothers and children.
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Physical activity can be a conduit for improving men's social connectedness as well as physical gains for well-being. However, marginalised men, and fathers in particular, can be challenged to engage in leisure time physical activity. This qualitative study reports how fathers, who experience complex and significant social and health inequities, conceptualise and experience barriers to physical activity. Drawing from focus groups with 17 fathers, and semi-structured interviews with seven service providers about their perspectives on men's physical activity in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside (DTES), a highly marginalised neighbourhood. A masculinities framework was used to describe and contextualise physical activity in fathers' lives. Three themes were inductively derived through the analyses: (1) 'they're busy surviving' a finding referencing the work and limits invoked by poverty wherein survival was triaged ahead of leisure time physical activity; (2) 'there is no activity centre' chronicling the lack of physical activity spaces, programmes and resources available to fathers; and (3) 'lifestyle affects our capability to exercise' a theme detailing how social isolation amplified by factors including housing and opioid crises, and being a father in a resource poor setting imposed significant barriers to physical activity. The findings support reconceptualising physical activity programmes with men who are living in marginalising conditions to address behavioural and structural health inequities in tailoring father-centred programmes and resources.
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Ejercicio Físico , Aislamiento Social , Humanos , Investigación CualitativaRESUMEN
PURPOSE: The International Olympic Committee expert group on pregnancy has identified a paucity of information regarding training and performance in truly elite athletes. Thus, the purpose of this study was to quantify elite runners' training volume throughout pregnancy and postpartum competition performance outcomes. METHODS: Forty-two elite (>50% competed at the World Championships/Olympic) middle-/long-distance runners' training before, during, and after pregnancy (quality/quantity/type) data (retrospective questionnaire) and competition data (published online) were collected. RESULTS: Running volume decreased significantly ( P < 0.01) from the first trimester (63 ± 34 km·wk -1 ) to the third trimester (30 ± 30 km·wk -1 ). Participants returned to activity/exercise at ~6 wk postpartum and to 80% of prepregnancy training volumes by 3 months. Participants who intended to return to equivalent performance levels postpregnancy, there was no statistical decrease in performance in the 1 to 3 yr postpregnancy compared with prepregnancy, and ~56% improved performances postpregnancy. CONCLUSIONS: This study features the largest cohort of elite runners training and competition outcomes assessed throughout pregnancy, with training volumes being approximately two to four times greater than current guidelines. For the first time, performance was directly assessed (due to the quantifiable nature of elite running), and study participants who intended to return to high-level competition did so at a statistically similar level of performance in the 1- to 3-yr period postpregnancy. Taken together, this article provides much needed insights into current training practices and performance of elite pregnant runners, which should help to inform future training guidelines as well as sport policy and sponsor expectations around return to training timelines and performance.
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Rendimiento Atlético , Embarazo , Carrera , Femenino , Humanos , Embarazo/fisiología , Atletas/estadística & datos numéricos , Estudios Retrospectivos , Carrera/fisiología , Rendimiento Atlético/fisiología , Estudios de CohortesRESUMEN
Trauma- and violence-informed physical activity (TVIPA) is a feasible approach to improve access/engagement in physical activity for pregnant/parenting women with experiences of trauma. Through feminist participatory action research, 56 semistructured interviews were completed to understand TVIPA. Four themes were identified: (1) "I have to be on edge": Trauma and violence pervade women's lives, (2) "It should be mandatory that you feel safe": Emotional safety is essential, (3) "The opportunity to step up and be decision-makers and leaders": Choice, collaboration, and connection create safety, and (4) "It's a good start for healing," strengths-based and capacity building foster individual and community growth.
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PURPOSE: The purpose of this article is to examine the factors that influence fly-in and fly-out (FIFO) mental health service providers' experiences of vicarious trauma as they deliver services to communities in Inuit Nunangat through a constructivist self-development theory (CSDT) lens. METHOD: Using a participatory action research methodology, we conducted eight semi-structured interviews with providers to understand their perspectives on the risk of developing vicarious trauma and potential mitigation strategies. RESULTS: We identified three themes through thematic analysis: 1) vicarious trauma is a risk associated with working in communities with high rates of trauma; 2) establishing individual and organizational strategies to reduce risk of vicarious trauma may improve FIFO providers' well-being and career longevity; and 3) FIFO models of care may offer protective benefits for mental health service providers against vicarious trauma. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that FIFO models of care may help mental health service providers to manage the risk of vicarious trauma through reduced caseload and less time spent in community.
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Desgaste por Empatía , Dípteros , Servicios de Salud Mental , Animales , Investigación sobre Servicios de Salud , Humanos , OcupacionesRESUMEN
Mental health providers have rapidly pivoted their in-person practices to teletherapy and telehealth interventions to address the increased demand for mental health services during the COVID-19 crisis. The change to service delivery has emphasised challenges for mental health service providers, particularly in regions that rely on fly-in and fly-out (FIFO) mental health service providers who are no longer able to travel to their places of work. In this qualitative study, we examined the impact of COVID-19 on the delivery of mental health services in Inuit Nunangat. Using a participatory action research methodology, we conducted semi-structured interviews with eight FIFO mental health service providers to understand their experiences and implement strategies to effectively deliver mental health services in a pandemic. We identified three themes through thematic analysis: 1) Service providers identify the challenges in adapting their practices to meet individual and community needs; 2) Service providers recognise the opportunities for enhancements to service delivery; 3) Service providers identify telemental health services as a potentially effective adjunct to in-person sessions. The findings support reconceptualising post-pandemic mental health service delivery to include both face-to-face and telemental health services.
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COVID-19/epidemiología , Trastornos Mentales/terapia , Servicios de Salud Mental/organización & administración , Salud Mental/estadística & datos numéricos , Telemedicina/organización & administración , COVID-19/terapia , Consejo/organización & administración , Humanos , Investigación Cualitativa , Apoyo SocialRESUMEN
Although men's health promotion efforts have attracted programmatic and evaluative research, conspicuously absent are gendered insights to men's health literacy. The current scoping review article shares the findings drawn from 12 published articles addressing men's health literacy in a range of health and illness contexts. Evident was consensus that approaches tailored to men's everyday language and delivered in familiar community-based spaces were central to advancing men's health literacy, and, by extension, the effectiveness of men's health promotion programs. However, most men's health literacy studies focussed on medical knowledge of disease contexts including prostate and colon cancers, while diversity was evident regards conceptual frameworks and/or methods and measures for evaluating men's health literacy. Despite evidence that low levels of health literacy fuel stigma and men's reticence for health help-seeking, and that tailoring programs to health literacy levels is requisite to effective men's health promotion efforts, the field of men's health literacy remains underdeveloped. Based on the scoping review findings, recommendations for future research include integrating men's health literacy research as a needs analysis to more effectively design and evaluate targeted men's health promotion programs.
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Alfabetización en Salud , Promoción de la Salud , Estado de Salud , Humanos , Masculino , Salud del HombreRESUMEN
While a significant health concern for sexual minority women, there is little qualitative research investigating their experiences of childhood trauma and suicidality. In this study, we used photovoice methods and an intersectionality framework. Drawing on qualitative interviews, we inductively derived three themes (a) Traumatized and discredited, (b) Cascading marginality, estrangement, and suicidality, (c) Reconstruction and reclaiming resilience. In Traumatized and discredited, we describe the sense of abandonment flowing from childhood trauma heightened by a lack of protection and neglect on the part of parents/guardians. The lack of support to deal with childhood trauma and the layering effects of marginality characterizes the theme Cascading marginality, estrangement, and suicidality. In the third theme, we discuss strategies for reconstruction and reclaiming resilience as participants worked to overcome these challenging experiences. Our study findings offer guidance to suicide prevention counseling programs for sexual minority women and affirm actions to address health inequities.
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Adultos Sobrevivientes del Maltrato a los Niños/psicología , Minorías Sexuales y de Género/psicología , Ideación Suicida , Intento de Suicidio/psicología , Adolescente , Adulto , Adultos Sobrevivientes del Maltrato a los Niños/estadística & datos numéricos , Canadá , Niño , Abuso Sexual Infantil/psicología , Abuso Sexual Infantil/estadística & datos numéricos , Femenino , Humanos , Minorías Sexuales y de Género/estadística & datos numéricos , Intento de Suicidio/estadística & datos numéricos , Adulto JovenRESUMEN
PURPOSE: This article examines the concept and use of the term cultural safety in Canada and the United States. DESIGN: To examine the uptake of cultural awareness, cultural sensitivity, cultural competence, and cultural safety between health organizations in Canada and the United States, we reviewed position statements/policies of health care associations. FINDINGS: The majority of selected health associations in Canada include cultural safety within position statements or organizational policies; however, comparable U.S. organizations focused on cultural sensitivity and cultural competence. DISCUSSION: Through the work of the Center for American Indian Resilience, we demonstrate that U.S. researchers engage with the tenets of cultural safety-despite not using the language. CONCLUSIONS: We recommend that health care providers and health researchers consider the tenets of cultural safety. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: To address health disparities between American Indian populations and non-American Indians, we urge the adoption of the term and tenets of cultural safety in the United States.
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Carencia Cultural , Servicios de Salud del Indígena/normas , Disparidades en Atención de Salud/etnología , Salud Pública/métodos , Adaptación Psicológica , Canadá/etnología , Personal de Salud/organización & administración , Humanos , Salud Pública/normas , Estados Unidos/etnologíaRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Elite female distance runners lack guidelines regarding breastfeeding while training at a high intensity. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this research was to understand how elite female distance runners manage breastfeeding. METHODS: Semistructured interviews were conducted with 14 women who had had at least one pregnancy within the past 5 years and had achieved a minimum of the USA Track and Field 2012 Olympic Trials "B" entry standard for running for the marathon or equivalent performance for 1,500 m or longer. RESULTS: Using thematic analysis, we identified the following themes: breastfeeding as a barrier to training and competition, limited access to relevant breastfeeding information, and concerns for the baby's health. Our findings show that despite the considerable barriers with which these women contend, they breastfed at higher rates and for longer duration than members of the general public. CONCLUSION: Based on our findings, we argue that elite female distance runners' experiences of breastfeeding would be enhanced if more research were conducted on breastfeeding practices while training and competing at an elite level.
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Atletas/psicología , Lactancia Materna/métodos , Carrera/psicología , Adulto , Atletas/estadística & datos numéricos , Australia , Lactancia Materna/psicología , Canadá , Ciencias de la Nutrición del Niño/estadística & datos numéricos , Femenino , Educación en Salud/normas , Educación en Salud/estadística & datos numéricos , Humanos , Irlanda , Ligamentos/anomalías , Ligamentos/lesiones , Investigación Cualitativa , Calidad de la Atención de Salud/normas , Calidad de la Atención de Salud/estadística & datos numéricos , Carrera/estadística & datos numéricos , Enseñanza/psicología , Enseñanza/estadística & datos numéricos , Reino Unido , Estados UnidosRESUMEN
The purpose of this article is to examine health/service providers' perspectives of barriers to healthy weight gain and physical activity for urban, pregnant First Nations women in Ottawa, Canada. Through the use of semi-structured interviews, we explored 15 health/service providers' perspectives on the complex barriers their clients face. By using a postcolonial feminist lens and a social determinants of health framework, we identified three social determinants of health that the health/service providers believed to have the greatest influence on their clients' weight gain and physical activity during pregnancy: poverty, education, and colonialism. Our findings are then contextualized within existing Statistics Canada and the Ottawa Neighbourhood Study data. We found that health/service providers are in a position to challenge colonial relations of power. We conclude by urging health/service providers, researchers, and policymakers alike to take into consideration the ways in which these social determinants of health and their often synergistic effects affect urban First Nations women during pregnancy.
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Actitud del Personal de Salud , Personal de Salud/psicología , Indígenas Norteamericanos/psicología , Mujeres Embarazadas/psicología , Adulto , Ejercicio Físico , Femenino , Conductas Relacionadas con la Salud , Humanos , Entrevistas como Asunto , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Ontario , Pobreza , Embarazo , Relaciones Profesional-Paciente , Población Urbana , Aumento de PesoRESUMEN
PROBLEM: Excessive weight gain and physical inactivity in pregnancy have been identified as risk factors for negative health outcomes for mothers and fetuses, particularly among Aboriginal women. QUESTION: In this paper we engage with postcolonial feminist theory and critical discourse analysis to examine the question, "how do urban Aboriginal women understand pregnancy-related weight gain and physical activity." METHODS: We conducted focus groups and semi-structured interviews with 25 urban Aboriginal pregnant or postpartum women between the ages of 16 and 39 in Ottawa, Canada. FINDINGS: Three prominent discourses emerged: Aboriginal women have different pregnancies than non-Aboriginal women because Aboriginal women gain more weight and are more likely to develop gestational diabetes; Aboriginal women feel personally responsible for and shameful about excessive weight gain; finally, Aboriginal women need culturally safe pregnancy resources. DISCUSSION: Our results illuminate the complex and often paradoxical ways in which discourses around weight gain and physical activity are produced and taken-up by Aboriginal women and their healthcare providers. CONCLUSION: Based on these findings, we argue there is a lack of accessible and culturally safe resources for urban Aboriginal women, specifically concerning weight gain and physical activity in pregnancy. We recommend the development of resources that are created for/by/with Aboriginal women to better address that issues that urban Aboriginal women themselves identify as being of key importance.
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Colonialismo , Feminismo , Actividad Motora , Determinantes Sociales de la Salud/etnología , Aumento de Peso/etnología , Adulto , Canadá , Femenino , Grupos Focales , Conocimientos, Actitudes y Práctica en Salud , Humanos , Entrevistas como Asunto , Nativos de Hawái y Otras Islas del Pacífico/estadística & datos numéricos , Grupos de Población , Embarazo , Factores Socioeconómicos , Población UrbanaRESUMEN
Cultural safety is an approach currently used in health care that is meant to address health disparities between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples and colonizing practices in health care. It has been found to empower patient decision-making and result in a relationship where patients and providers work together towards effective care. In this commentary, we argue that such an approach needs to be employed in physical activity promotion and programs as another way of addressing health disparities that continue to exist between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples in Canada. Further, we assert that cultural safety can address the critiques that have been made of attempts to use cultural sensitivity, cultural relevancy, and cultural competency training for physical activity providers and in implementing physical activity programs. Cultural safety in physical activity promotion and programs is not only an ethical practice, but also one that has the potential to significantly improve the health of Indigenous peoples, which could lead to related improvements in quality of life, lowering rates of morbidity and mortality, and resulting in considerable savings to the health care sector.
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Competencia Cultural , Promoción de la Salud/métodos , Indígenas Norteamericanos , Actividad Motora , Evaluación de Necesidades , Disparidades en el Estado de Salud , Humanos , Relaciones Médico-Paciente , Poder PsicológicoRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Excessive weight gain during pregnancy is a risk factor for postpartum weight retention and future weight gain and obesity. Whether a behavioral intervention in pregnancy can reduce long-term weight retention is unknown. OBJECTIVE: This randomized trial tested whether a low-intensity behavioral intervention to prevent excessive gestational weight gain could increase the proportion of women who returned to prepregnancy weight by 12 mo postpartum. DESIGN: Women (n = 401, 13.5 wk of gestation, 50% normal weight, 50% overweight/obese) were randomly assigned into an intervention or control group; 79% completed the 12-mo assessment. The telephone-based intervention targeted gestational weight gain, healthy eating, and exercise and was discontinued at delivery. RESULTS: In modified intent-to-treat analyses that excluded women with miscarriages (n = 6), gestational diabetes (n = 32), or subsequent pregnancies (n = 32), the intervention had no significant effect on the odds of achieving prepregnancy weight at 12 mo postpartum (n = 331; 35.4% compared with 28.1%; P = 0.18). Completer analyses suggested that the intervention tended to increase the percentages of women who reached prepregnancy weight (n = 261; 45.3% compared with 35.3%; P = 0.09) and significantly reduced the magnitude of mean ± SD postpartum weight retained (1.4 ± 6.3 compared with 3.0 ± 5.7 kg; P = 0.046) at 12 mo. Women in the intervention group reported higher dietary restraint through 6 mo postpartum (P = 0.023) and more frequent self-monitoring of body weight (P < 0.02 for all) throughout the study. CONCLUSIONS: A low-intensity behavioral intervention in pregnancy can reduce 12-mo postpartum weight retention and improve dietary restraint and self-weighing in study completers. Future research is needed to test the long-term effects of more intensive behavioral interventions in pregnancy. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT01117961.
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Conducta Alimentaria , Obesidad/prevención & control , Sobrepeso/prevención & control , Periodo Posparto/fisiología , Aumento de Peso/fisiología , Adolescente , Adulto , Índice de Masa Corporal , Dieta , Ejercicio Físico/fisiología , Femenino , Estudios de Seguimiento , Humanos , Estilo de Vida , Modelos Logísticos , Proyectos Piloto , Embarazo , Factores de Riesgo , Método Simple Ciego , Encuestas y Cuestionarios , Adulto JovenRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to investigate receipt of gestational weight gain advice in prenatal care and ideal and expected gestational weight gain outcomes for normal weight and overweight/obese women. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study of normal weight (n = 203) and overweight/obese (n = 198) women in early (<16 weeks) pregnancy. RESULTS: Less than half of participants (41.7%) reported receiving weight gain advice from a practitioner. In multivariate models, pregravid weight status was not significantly related to receiving advice. However, women with lower income (odds ratio [OR] 0.31, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.13-0.77, p = 0.01), younger age (OR 0.93, 95% CI 0.87-0.99, p = 0.02), and multiparity (OR 0.49, 95% CI 0.28-0.87, p = 0.02) were least likely to report receiving advice. Among those receiving advice, most (85%) received accurate advice; however, overweight/obese women were more likely to be advised to overgain compared with normal weight women (22.2% vs. 2.3%, p = 0.0001). Overweight/obese women were also more likely than normal weight women to report ideal (OR 7.2, 95% CI 2.3-22.7, p = 0.001) and expected (OR 4.7, 95% CI 2.6-8.4, p = 0.0001) pregnancy weight gains above Institute of Medicine guidelines. Further, a consistent relationship was observed between higher ideal and expected weight gains and greater first trimester weight gain (p < 0.03). CONCLUSIONS: Clinicians should be encouraged to provide timely and accurate advice to women about gestational weight gain. Interventions to promote healthy gestational weight gain may benefit from targeting women's beliefs about ideal and expected gestational weight gain.