A 24-year-old Brazilian MMA fighter Kinberly Tanaka Novaes couldn't believe that she won a match earlier this year at 12 weeks pregnant. She is about to have another match on August 21 against Jocelyn Jones but the fighter complained of feeling sluggish and had difficulty losing weight despite training hard. Upon consultation with a physician, she discovers she is already 6 months into her pregnancy.
"I'm a little stubborn, I don't like to go to the doctor," Novaes told the mixed martial arts site, MMAFighting.com.
"I've been feeling sick for a while, colic, headaches and cramps. I was feeling tired recently, couldn't even run, and it was really tough for me to cut weight. I did a stricter diet four weeks before the fight, and I actually gained 2.2 pounds in six days," she added.
Fox News reports that her boyfriend, Jacson Carvalho, a MMA fighter, even brought her to the hospital after she complained of not feeling well. After several tests, it was confirmed that she is already 24 weeks pregnant. That means that she fought and won a Brazilian title at 12 weeks pregnant.
She is supposed to fit into her category of 115 pounds to be able to fight on August 21 but she found it hard to lose weight. She also noticed that her tummy became hard and bigger than usual. She took in laxatives knowing that it was just an intestinal issue to no avail. An hour later after series of tests, she is told that she is expecting a baby.
Novaes felt relieved to know that the baby is normal and healthy despite receiving severeal bouts and punches on her stomach the previous fight. She said the baby is 'healthy and strong', reports Mail Online.
She even went into strict diet and training four weeks before the fight. Noxii promotor Bruno Barros said he is to blame for what happened because he did not require her to undergo pregnancy test before her fight. "I didn't even think about the possibility of a woman fighting while pregnant, going through camp and dehydrating and everything," he said.
It is not odd to see athletes miss their period during intense training and diet that is why they did not bother to relate it to pregnancy. Novaes said she won't go back to training and fighting until next year.