A video has gone viral on Chinese social media of a flash mob made up of dancing pregnant women, shaking their bodies and bellies at traditional behavioral restrictions during pregnancy.
The video was filmed last month at Taipei Main Station and stars 21 pregnant women dancing together with bellies exposed. According to organizers, the event was aimed at showing prospective mothers that they can choose how they live when they become pregnant.


“If you are lucky enough to have a smooth pregnancy and get the OK from the doctors, don’t be afraid to go out there and live a normal life! Walk, exercise, and yes, even dance!” one of the participants wrote on Facebook afterward. “You actually will feel quite good about yourself and the time goes by much faster. I even think that my body is better prepared to deal with some of the uncomfortable parts of pregnancy.”
Traditional Chinese customs place many restrictions on women when they become pregnant — no sex, avoid stressful situations, don’t eat certain cold foods, etc. — in order to preserve their delicate balance of yin and yang for the baby’s health. However, these ideas are increasingly being pushed aside by more modern ones, like the need for regular exercise.
On Weibo over the weekend, most netizens cheered the expectant mothers for not letting the fact that they have another human being growing inside of them keep them from having fun.