TKD and expectant mothers

[wimwag]

I've lost a child and nearly lost my wife in my arms due to complications during pregnancy. To even risk such a thing happening is idiotic.

Sorry for your loss. I narrowly escaped losing my first born along with my girlfriend due to the complications caused by exercise and fitness regimens, which her OBGYN supported. I have lost a few friends, but cannot imagine how it feels to lose a child.



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[Dirty Dog]

There is no need to be bubble wrapped. Most women on this planet work, and work HARD during this time. A little TKD (as long as you don't insist on hardcore full contact! ) should only help you along.

As to the hormone and ligament thing, I am referring to DD for that, but I seem to remember that this isn't an issue until later in the 3rd trimester. Don't quote me on this but up until then the body is geared toward retaining everything.

Just be attentive to your body.

The loosening of the joints caused by such hormones as relaxin (yes, that's really the name...) doesn't really occur until late in the pregnancy, when it's needed to facilitate delivery. It does sometimes lead to joint laxity following the delivery, but I've not seen anything in the literature to support the idea that this is a reason not to exercise. I don't know that I'd try to take advantage of the relaxin to do a full split if you couldn't do it before, but there's no reason not to maintain the flexibility that had already been achieved.

While I applaud you for continuing training, I'll state bluntly (no offense meant) that it is irresponsible to risk the health of your unborn child sparring in order for you to feel good about yourself. There is quite a lot to TKD training, sparring is only one of those parts. And no, you don't have to have medical training to know that a blow to the abdomen or a fall can cause damage to the fetus. I'm surprised that anyone would even question that. Our agency (and every agency I'm aware of) puts female officers on light-duty to ensure the safety of the child. That is 'just in case' while what you're talking about is putting yourself (and your child) deliberately in harms way. And for what? To stay fit? Don't need to spar to be fit or to enjoy the other aspects of TKD.

Percieved risk is not the same thing as real risk. Your agency, and others, are not protecting women with their restrictions. They are protecting themselves from being sued. Being sued is expensive. And reality has little or nothing to do with the monetary awards. Consider the millions paid out to women with silicone breast implants or those who lived near powerlines. Neither of these well known and phenomenally lucrative cases is supported by science.

 

[Mamatiger]

Please Re Read My Posts. I Am Not Being Kicked or Punched In The Abdomen. I Originally Posted This Thread In Hopes To Connect With Other Women In MA Who Have Trained During Pregnancy. Not To Be Ridiculed And Have My Words or my OB's Twisted. Yes EveryoneIs Entitled To An Opinion As This Is A Public Forum After all.

 

[Kong Soo Do]

Please Re Read My Posts. I Am Not Being Kicked or Punched In The Abdomen.

Yes I know, you said the target zones were the chest and hips. So you're saying that with both you and your partner moving there is absolutely no possible way for you to be accidentally kicked in the abdomen? Is this what you're saying? Or that there is no possibility that you could fall? Is this what you're saying?

 

[Rumy73]

Yes I know, you said the target zones were the chest and hips. So you're saying that with both you and your partner moving there is absolutely no possible way for you to be accidentally kicked in the abdomen? Is this what you're saying? Or that there is no possibility that you could fall? Is this what you're saying?

My thoughts exactly. Sorry to be frank, but it sounds reckless. It also sounds incredibly selfish. Say an accident happens during a drill or such, think of the weight the other person will be burdened with. Then again, it sounds all about an ego that will do tkd come hell or high water.

 

[jks9199]

Please Re Read My Posts. I Am Not Being Kicked or Punched In The Abdomen. I Originally Posted This Thread In Hopes To Connect With Other Women In MA Who Have Trained During Pregnancy. Not To Be Ridiculed And Have My Words or my OB's Twisted. Yes EveryoneIs Entitled To An Opinion As This Is A Public Forum After all.

Please stop typing in all caps; the forum software automatically reduces it to capitalizing the first letter of each word, and it's kind of hard to read.

You've got people expressing concerns with varying degrees of legitimacy and tact. That's going to happen. I still would discourage you from sparring, and encourage you to have a frank & specific discussion with your OB about activities. He or she is the person with the training that can evaluate your specific risks. Honestly, from experiences of my wife's pregnancy, my students, and my training partners, I'd be a little surprised at a blanket endorsement of sparring. My wife was enrolled in a Combat Hapkido based college self defense class when she was pregnant with our son. Her OB gave her some restrictions on falling & rolling -- but not a "drop the class" until she was put on bed rest. I suspect, given HER specific physiology and pregnancy history today, she'd be told from the first OB visit to drop the class. You've said you've modified the targets. But, even with modified target areas, accidents can happen. People -- even highly ranked black belts -- miss. Floors get slippery and people fall. One training partner zigs when the other zags. Are you so confident of yourself and your partners that you can say an accident can't happen?

However, even if the OB permitted it, I would suggest that it might be a courtesy to your classmates and instructors not to spar and not to do things like hold kicking shields. Even if the OB said that there was absolutely zero risk -- put yourself in their shoes. If something were to happen and you lost the baby, would you want them to have to cope with the slightest thought that they were responsible for you losing your baby? Honestly, for that matter, would you want to live with it yourself if you did something? I can tell you from experience that you will second guess EVERYTHING if you lose the baby -- even if the odds are simply that human gestation is an incredibly complex process with many things to go wrong and that the body naturally terminates many pregnancies for many reasons, and that's likely all that happened. You'll still second guess every decision you made.

Look, I'm not at all saying don't train. DO TRAIN. DO TRAIN! But modify your training, just like you might were to have a sprained knee or broken finger or just plain feel a little off from allergies. Modify it to recognize that your body will be constantly changing during your pregnancy. Modify out of consideration for your classmates and teachers. And, ultimately, follow the guidance of your OB and your own sense of your body.