Former UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey has made it clear that she won’t be returning to the Octagon in the future. Despite that, it appears as though the former champ has been keeping her weapons sharp in the gym, as evidenced by recent training footage posted on Instagram.
After getting some work in with fellow UFC vet and former title challenger Cat Zingano back in March, Rousey shared some new training footage with fans via Instagram this week.
In addition, bantamweight Luana Santos, who recently picked up a submission win over Tainara Lisboa back in May, also shared a photo of herself with the former bantamweight champ following a training session.
While Rousey has made it clear she’s unable to get medically cleared to fight even if she wanted to come back, the new training footage has fight fans buzzing.
Ronda Rousey Shows off Physique After Giving Birth
What makes the new training footage released by Ronda Rousey all the more impressive is the fact that the former champ gave birth at the start of the year.
After previously giving birth to a daughter shared with former UFC heavyweight Travis Browne, the couple welcomed a second daughter in January.
According to Rousey, the recovery has been much smoother this time around.
On Friday, the former champ showed off her postpartum physique on Instagram, thanking coaches and teammates while explaining to fans that she’s falling in love with training again:
“Thank you @dangarnernutrition for helping me reclaim my bodily identity from my 2nd pregnancy …”
“I’ve heard recovery for the 2nd baby is easier than the first so maybe it’s partially due to that, but being able to train MMA again made such a huge difference this time – like my joints feel tighter and I just feel healthier and more sturdy compared to just doing regular gym lifting/cardio workouts like I did to recover from my first pregnancy. It’s been a blast finding joy in training again, I missed it, my body missed it.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/DMfjuEMRmRy/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=invalid&ig_rid=d5c01203-c8ee-472d-93fe-4940f8ed2309
Comeback Unlikely for Rousey Despite Training
Although Ronda Rousey’s training footage over the past few months has caught the attention of fans, the odds of a return seem incredibly slim.
Leading up to the UFC 300 card, there were rumors circulating that suggested the former champ may return for the historic event. Instead, after pouring cold water on the rumors, Rousey revealed several months after the fact that even if she wanted to compete, she isn’t neurologically fit to return to active competition.
During an appearance on Chris Van Vilet’s Insight podcast she explained that cumulative damage going back to her days as a Judoka have taken its toll:
“It’s nice to feel missed, I guess, but it’s not happening. I’m not neurologically fit to compete anymore at the highest level. I just can’t. You just get to a level where the neurological injuries you take accumulate over time. They don’t get better.”
…
“It just got to be lighter and lighter hits were hurting me more and more and more. I got to a point where I couldn’t take a jab without getting dazed, without getting concussion symptoms. It just got to a point where it wasn’t safe for me to fight anymore. I just couldn’t continue to fight at that higher level.”
Despite that, the fact that the former champ is happy, healthy, and training again, is a great sight.
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