Fencing and Pregnancy

[QT_Pie]

Hi, I hope that I wont regret asking this, but have any of the female fencers on here been pregnant during their fencing careers?

If so, did they do any fencing/training whilst they were pregnant and/or did they return to fencing after they had the baby?

I am aware of Laura Flessel-Colovic and her situation, but am interested to hear of any personal opinions of women (or men who have known pregnant fencers) on here.

I am just doing "research" - have babies at the back of my mind, but don't really want it to be the end of fencing... although, I guess that your priorities change after having children (and fencing may seem rather insignificant for a while...). Is it just a case of waiting to win the lottery to afford live-in childcare???

QT_Pie

[ThornOfTheBlood]

Uhm, I'm no expert here, but fencing while your pregnant, seems to be a VERY VERY bad idea, and if something bad happened because of it, can you imagine how bad the person who did it would feel?

[mrbiggs]

Uhm, I'm no expert here, but fencing while your pregnant, seems to be a VERY VERY bad idea, and if something bad happened because of it, can you imagine how bad the person who did it would feel?

Seconded, you don't have a whole lot of protection on your belly while fencing, and you're really not supposed to get hit there alot if you're pregnant. Definately ask a doctor, but the answer will almost surely be no to fencing.

[Grasshopper]

Bad idea. Take the time off and relax.

[Zelda]

IIRC Sarah Osvarth (Australian Epeeist) won the national championships years ago while pregnant (About 6 months I think), I see her son at comps and he doesnt seem to have been affected at all by the fact his mum fenced while pregnant. Sarah is still fencing and regularly making top 8's at a national level.

A good friend of mine in Brisbane had lessons up to I think it was 7 months pregnant. She stopped fencing competitvely at about 3 months though. Mind you she came to a directing and armoury seminar a day or two before she went into labour. She is no longer fencing due to other reasons (family, allergies etc) but last I talked to her she was wanting to get back into it.

I honestly think its something you have to discuss with your Ob/Gyn. I know my friends said to be care when lunging due to the fact all those tendons are getting looser due to preparing to give birth.

Hope this helps.

[Mergs]

Um. Why do you have babies in the back of your head? Aren't they supposed to be forward and a lot lower?

[garyhayenga]

I've know two women who fenced until they were about six months pregnant, and one continued taking lessons until she was 8 1/2 months pregnant.

Neither of them seemed to have any difficulty.

gary hayenga

[QT_Pie]

Thanks Zelda/Gary - this is very useful. I know a sabreur who fenced for a few months (competitively) whilst she was pregnant, but she was a sabreur (so not a point weapon). Do you happen to know whether these women wore extra protection whilst they were pregnant (i.e. some sort of belly-guard)?

Thanks people for your concern - I would not want to do anything unsafe to risk a baby when I was pregnant. I was mainly thinking of lessons/footwork/cross-training whilst pregnant... but if I could compete for a few months (early in the pregnancy), it could prevent my ranking from plummeting... and allow me to take things up again afterwards (if I wanted to).

Point taken about the tendons/ligaments. I would consult a doctor before doign anything...

QT_Pie

[JackSparrow]

That's good to hear. Better safe than sorry. If I was you, I'd concentrate on practising bladework and maintaining your point control. You'd be suprised how many people take a short breaks and come back fencing better.

[QT_Pie]

You'd be suprised how many people take a short breaks and come back fencing better.

Hhhhmmm there are "short breaks" and there is "pregnancy" - I think that the latter may have considerably more effect on you physically than the former...

[suregrip]

I fenced with someone who took time off to have a baby, came back, and became a KILLER foilist. If pregnancy does that to you.........

[D+F+P=Hadouken!]

Dont Take Advice From People Here!. Go See A Doctor!

[JackSparrow]

Hhhhmmm there are "short breaks" and there is "pregnancy" - I think that the latter may have considerably more effect on you physically than the former...

I'm not suggesting that pregnancy won't have a huge physical effect on you. Taking over a year out didn't stop Dan Kellner from making the last 16 in the Olympics. Alright, he wasn't pregnant, but he certainly didn't do any fencing in that time. 9 months isn't a lifetime and it won't be an unassailable setback to your fencing career.

[prototoast]

Dont Take Advice From People Here!. Go See A Doctor!

Well, most people's advice is "don't risk it" so while it might not be professional advice, it certainly won't do any harm.

[Mergs]

Remember, advice is worth what you pay for it.

In my experience, if a woman has a regular exercise routine, most doctors recommend that they stick with it as long as they feel comfortable with it. They also recommend that if a woman doesn't have one, not to start one, or at least a vigorous one, just because they are pregnant. Also, you are the best judge of what your body can or cannot take, so you be the judge of when to stop.

[davtsung]

Definitely consult your physician for their opinion. Each woman is different, and likewise, whilst most pregnancies are uneventful and routine, there maybe apsects of your medical history that your doctor would be privy to and would best be able to help you formulate the best decision.

[Tony Soprano]

Go see a doctor, and find out if there's suitable protection, such as a hard plastic protector covering the belly....

[scarlet_woman156k]

I think you can definitely fence while pregnant...but I think it all depends on the state of your health going into it, too. Definitely talk with your doctor prior to conceiving so you can talk about your options. I'm sure there is also some sort of protective clothing/padding/etc. that you could purchase if necessary.

Exercise for a woman while pregnant is awesome and being pregnant shouldn't stop you from fencing!

[fencer08]

From an internationa perspective, many of the top women epeeists in the world have come back to fencing after pregnancy and competed at a very high level in a very short space of time. Both Flessel (2nd at World Champs 3 months after giving birth) and Burki (Top 16 at World Champs 10 weeks after giving birth) achieved very good results in a very short space of time. Other examples include Nagy (a gold medal after each child !!), Mazina, Aznahvourian, Ermakove (Olympic gold medals in team), Zalaffi and Morressee.
There are also examples in foil (the Romanian women), although less, probably because it tends to be a slightly younger weapon.

As I understand it most of these women did not fence during the 2nd and 3rd trimesters of their pregnancies, but kept up lessons, footwork and general physical conditioning. I'm sure that their high level of general fitness also contributed to their recovery fromthe birth in a relatively short period of time.

There are a ouple of women I know of who continued to fence World Cups up to their 5th or 6th month of pregnancy (one Austrian and one Cuban). Both wore a plastic stomach guard. Personally, I wouldn't choose this option, but they seemed comfortable with it.

Zelda is (partly) right - Sarah Osvath fenced in Australia until about the 5th or 6th month of her preganancy, including in competitions, although she did not win the national title while pregnant.

[Dave]

Another question is would you want to fence some one who is pregnant?

I did once in a mixed teams comp and I really didn't feel comfortable with it. It's one thig getting over your social prejudices to just hit people when fencing but hitting a pregnant woman now thats a whole new ball game.

IIRC I ended up just doing flicks to the shoulder because I really didn't feel comfortable hitting her any where let alone on the low-line.