Anyone remember when a lady in the middle of a pregnancy was described as being in a delicate condition?
When Brazilian MMA fighter Kinberly Novaes won the Noxii 115-pound title on May 17, she was 12 weeks pregnant, according to MMAFighting.com. Bruno Barros, promoter of the league, said he didn’t even think about the possibility of a woman fighting with a baby growing in her belly. That’s probably what most of us ponder.
“We did a morphology ultrasound last week and the doctor said I’m 24 weeks pregnant, almost six months, and my baby is healthy and strong,” Novaes said. “I was worried because I trained hard, fought, cut weight. I suffered a lot to make weight for my last fight, couldn’t dehydrate properly, and I was already training to fight again next week, but the doctor said everything is fine.”
Winning a championship when 12 weeks pregnant
To cut weight before her fight Novaes tried everything from laxatives to a strict diet but instead of dropping kilos she was accumulating them. The fighter though a severe “intestine issue” was to blame. Well, that’s before she found out about her pregnancy.
“I finally decided to go to the hospital, and the doctor immediately asked me if I was pregnant,” she said. “I insisted I was not, that I had an intestine issue, but he asked for a blood test. One hour later, he told us I was pregnant. I cried a lot, ran out of the hospital, but I realized that was good news. I thought I was sick, but I had a baby instead.”
What can this pregnancy teach us?
The notion that expectant mothers can’t do pretty much anything, from drinking coffee to stressing their round bellies, is the basic principle of contemporary “mommying culture”. It often seems that friends and family are more comfortable with pregnant women on the couch eating donuts. Needless to say that lifting a heavy box is the ultimate sin.
Many believe that a woman really is in a delicate condition when she is carrying a life inside her. Yes, women are strong, but it doesn’t change that fact that pregnancy is challenging on the body and a mom-to-be could use a break when creating a new life.
However, others don’t see it as a disease or an excuse to be pampered.
Pregnant, not delicate
Just because we’re pregnant doesn’t mean we’re fragile and emotional, Heather Turgeon argues. In her article, she explains how even clinical advice is on her side, here. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends that expecting moms exercise; workout may indeed lead to better heart health for the baby in the long run.
You might not want to win a MMA fight — that’s extreme, we get it — but most women around the world are active throughout their pregnancy.
“The idea that pregnant women (and our unborn offspring) are delicate flowers holds fast in the North American psyche, matched by a conviction to share opinions on their delicacy with the women themselves,” Denise Balkissoon writes in The Globe and Mail.
Balkisson explains that during her pregnancy she’s been advised against a laundry list of factors. She adds that upon looking into the data behind these assertions, she found an equally long list of flaws.
“Too often, studies of a small sample of specific women morph into draconian recommendations for all pregnant women, everywhere.” Balkisson argues that pregnant women should be treated like cautious, well-informed adults that care for the wellbeing of their children more than any stranger ever could.
What do you think of pregnancy and of MMA fighter Kinberly Novaes’ experience? Share your views in the comments section below.
More pregnancy news from Clapway:
The Ridiculousness That Would Occur If Men Could Get Pregnant
Prenatal Blood Tests Find Cancer in Moms-to-Be
4 New Ways to Use Sperm
You can have it all — unless you don’t want to/should not. Then there’s Pavlok:
