A 28-year-old woman whose mother-in-law berated her for continuing to work out during pregnancy has been backed online.
In a post on Reddit‘s Am I the a****** (AITA) forum, u/Ill_Physics9841 explained that she has been maintaining an active lifestyle while expecting, sticking to light weights, walking and stretching.
However, her mother-in-law (MIL) has repeatedly criticized her for not staying at home and resting and even going as far as to claim she was “asking for a miscarriage,” despite getting the all-clear from her doctor to exercise.
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Newsweek reached out to the original poster (OP) u/Ill_Physics9841 for comment via Reddit. They have since deleted the post.
The situation escalated when her MIL warned her that she would regret her gym workouts “when something happens.” Frustrated, the woman snapped and told her MIL to p*** off.
Now, the MIL is claiming she was disrespected and is demanding an apology, while the OP’s husband supports his wife but believes she could have handled it with a calmer approach.
At the time of writing, the post has received 4,600 upvotes and over 450 comments, with Reddit users supporting the expectant mom, labeling the MIL “stuck in the past” for lacking knowledge of the subject.
“NTA. She kept pushing even after she was told this was medically approved. She deserved to be snapped at,” one user wrote.
Others noted that the OP’s response may not have been ideal, the MIL’s repeated criticism made it understandable.
“Guidance now is to maintain your activity levels, within reason, as it’s healthier for you and baby. Yes, you could have handled it more tactfully, but it sounds like you tried that, and it failed,” a second wrote.
Newsweek spoke to Luke Hughes, a level-four personal trainer qualified in pre- and postnatal exercise, who reinforced that exercise during pregnancy is not only safe but encouraged.
“This woman should rightly feel victimized as exercising whilst pregnant is perfectly safe, even for someone who is not accustomed to regular physical activity, even when it’s during your third trimester as long as precautionary measures are taken,” he said.
Hughes explained that staying active during pregnancy benefits both mother and baby. For the baby, exercise improves cardiovascular health and reduces the risk of medical conditions such as hypertension and macrosomia.
“It also helps the baby’s cognitive development with things such as language, memory, ability to focus and neurogenesis by improving their neural pathways, increasing oxygen flow to the brain, as well as hippocampal growth,” he said.
For pregnant women, benefits of exercise while pregnant can lower the probability of developing gestational diabetes, preeclampsia and hemorrhoids, Hughes said.
“Additionally, it can even help with the labor process itself, as active mothers have been found to have shorter labor times, recover faster and have less chance of suffering from postpartum depression,” he said.
Another user who also agreed that the MIL was out of line wrote, “NTA. You are not required to pretend to respect someone who disrespects you.”
The user was voted not the a******.