A woman is close to the maximum human endurance when she is pregnant, study has found.
Researchers at Duke University investigated a 3,000 mile ultra marathon, the Tour de France and other elite sporting challenges to understand what the human body can deal with, and it turns out that a woman during pregnancy isn’t too far off this limit.
According to the research, a staggering 4,000 calories can be burned off a day. This is two and a half times the body’s resting metabolic rate for the average person. Anything higher than that was not sustainable in the long term, reports the BBC.
When a woman is pregnant, her energy reaches 2.2 times their metabolic rate, falling just short of this discovered endurance limit. This is because during pregnancy, women will experience more pressure on their organs as the baby gets bigger. She could be carrying a hefty 15kg more than her regular weight.
Even more proof – if we actually needed it – that pregnant women are amazing! But don’t expect a great response if you use this as an excuse to not give up your seat on the bus.
Thinking of testing this endurance? Okay, we don’t recommend that, but here’s a workout perfect for all you pregnant women out there!
