Pregnant Woman Shouldn’t Be Running, Says Person With Long History of Sharing Misinformed Opinions About Things That Are None of His Business
/
Depositphotos.com
A pregnant woman at a local track shouldn’t be running, according to an onlooker who is neither a woman nor a runner, Dumb Runner has learned.
The onlooker, identified as Kirk Cameron, 38, an independent contractor, also has no training in medicine, exercise physiology, or women’s health. Sources described his knowledge of pregnancy in general as “shaky, at best.”
None of those limitations prevented Cameron from sharing his thoughts on the runner’s behavior, loudly and authoritatively.
“She shouldn’t be out here doing that,” he said, according to a source, referring to an obviously pregnant woman circling the track at a jogging pace. It was unclear whether the woman, later identified as Tracey Gold, 29, heard Cameron’s comments.
“That’s really bad for the baby,” he added. “All that jostling.”
Experts agree that exercising while pregnant is generally safe and even beneficial for both mother and baby, and that women who were regular runners before pregnancy can safely continue to run.
There are some caveats and exceptions to that advice, experts also note, which is why women should discuss the issue first with their physician. Reached for comment later, Gold, a longtime runner and veteran of nine half-marathons, confirmed that she did, in fact, discuss her exercise habits with her doctor upon learning she was pregnant.
“The doctor gave me the green light (to keep running), along with some tips and advice,” she said by phone. “She and I check in every few weeks, or when I have questions or concerns, whichever comes first.”
“So far, it’s gone really well and my baby is in great shape,” she added.
Cameron reportedly has a long history of sharing misinformed opinions, including with strangers, on topics ranging from sexuality to gun violence. In each case, sources said, he delivers his remarks with absolute confidence, despite their lack of substance, nuance, or any sort of evidence to back them up. Most of these beliefs, the sources said, are easily disproved.
“I’ve pointed this out to him, on multiple occasions,” said one acquaintance, who requested anonymity. “Like when he told me that cracking my knuckles would cause arthritis.”
“He wasn’t having it, even when I showed him a page from the Mayo Clinic’s website on the topic,” the acquaintance said. “He told me that ‘Mayo Clinic’ sounded fake.”
