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Ancy K Sunny
Ancy K Sunny

FITNESS

What Indian women can learn from Serena Williams, Gal Gadot

serena-gadot

In India, these days, pregnancy is not seen as a normal physiological process

In April this year, the world went into a frenzy when news broke out that Serena Williams won the Australian Open while she was eight weeks pregnant. That too, without dropping a single set. Now seven months pregnant, Williams is not ready to set down the racket yet. On Monday, she posted an Instagram video of herself practising a few drills. Williams, 35, has vowed to get back on the tennis court just four months after giving birth in September.

As Williams continues to charm us, another piece of news from the world of entertainment, too, took us by surprise. Israeli actress Gal Gadot recently revealed that she was five months pregnant when she did a couple of reshoots for the action-packed Wonder Woman. Wonder woman, indeed. At five weeks, most pregnant women would have been struggling with the baby bump, and general pregnancy grumpiness. Gadot, however, was busy filming actions sequences in the freezing cold.

Wimbledon got me like: Easy standing drills this morning. Go easy.

A post shared by Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) on

That brings us to an interesting question. How would have things turned out if Gadot, or Williams were Indians or were performing in India? Would they have been caught in the avalanche of pregnancy do's and don'ts, and advice from mothers and aunts. Getting out on the tennis court, or slogging it out for a film would probably be the last thing on their mind. And they would be told to take it slow, and relax.

While relaxing in not a bad thing to do, too much of it isn't good either. That is where Indian pregnant women need to take a leaf out of these women's books.

“In India, these days we tend to take pregnancy as something which is unnatural, not as a normal physiological process. In olden days, pregnant women would do the household work, and work in the fields. But these days, new-generation pregnant women are being pampered more,” says Dr Bandita Sinha, obstetrician and gynaecologist with Hiranandani Hospital, Mumbai.

With so many restrictions, some women are not even ready to step out for simple walks, let alone workouts, she adds. Nowadays, we are more to prone to gestational diabetes and mothers are putting on more weight than our ancestors. Moreover, with exercise, the body muscles become more flexible and labour becomes smoother.

“Gestational diabetes is a huge trend these days, because most conceive at an older age, and their body health is not great,” says Lakshmy Ramanathan, mother of a six-year-old and author of For Bumpier Times, a book which chronicles pregnancy and motherhood myths from across the country. “In our ancestral rural households, they'd even tell you to go milk the cows. This is because the squatting position is a way to stretch the muscles. This is also what they teach in many of the antenatal classes.”

How much exercise is enough exercise?

“During pregnancy, the body undergoes a lot of changes due to hormonal changes, and a growing baby. So, regular exercises help keep the mother healthy,” says Sinha. What kind of exercise and to what expend solely depends on the mother. High intensity workouts are usually not recommended for the first three months, she adds.

Being involved in a high-intensity workout or sport during pregnancy is not everyone's cup of tea. However, if a woman has been actively involved in such workouts, she can continue them if her pregnancy is normal, says Sinha. However, she has a word of caution. “Whatever workouts you do, should be done under the supervision of a trainer who knows the dos and don'ts of pregnancy.” Walking, swimming, and pregnancy yoga are common forms of activities for pregnant women.

If the woman has been moderately physically active, she can continue to exercise. But she should avoid activities that could be harmful to the baby. Today, there are sessions of antenatal exercises in hospitals, tailor-made for each woman.

Moderation is the key to a healthy pregnancy and motherhood, says Lakshmy. She feels some things are done the wrong way in India—during and after pregnancy, women are fed a lot of ghee and high-calorie food, leading to unwanted weight gain.

As Lakshmy says, every woman is different, and bodies react differently to pregnancy. So, figure out what works best for you.

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