WWE Superstar Carmella went from the wrestling ring to the runway.
The 35-year recently strutted her stuff down the catwalk during Miami Swim Week to model swimwear by Remnant Bikinis. She rocked a string bikini and strappy heels, while six months pregnant. She is expecting her first child with her husband – WWE Raw color-commentator Corey Graves.
Carmella told Fox News Digital that modeling the two-piece while proudly displaying her growing baby bump was an “empowering experience.”
“I think being pregnant has really made me feel so much more comfortable in my skin,” she said. “I feel empowered. I feel like the best I’ve ever felt in my own body. And I just feel there’s this stigma sometimes … when you’re pregnant you need to cover up, you need to just stay at home and just sit on the couch, be safe and grow your baby and be pregnant. And it’s like, wait a minute. No, the world doesn’t have to stop. Your life doesn’t have to stop just because you’re pregnant…I think it’s a great time to embrace your body, embrace who you are and embrace being pregnant,” she said. “I was scared, I’m not going to lie. I was like, ‘Am I making the right decision here?’ But I feel like if I did this, I could hopefully show other women out there that the world doesn’t stop. You don’t have to stop being who you are or trying new things or taking chances just because you’re pregnant.”
Carmella also admitted to Fox News Digital that she had second thoughts before stripping down just days before the fashion show.
“I had a few fittings, and I was there with all of these other girls who have amazing bodies,” she said. “They’re probably 15 years younger than I am. … That’s when the doubt started creeping in. And then I was like, no, I’m not going to let my mind trick me into thinking that I can’t do this. … [The day of] I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, what am I doing?’ I had to snap out of it. I had to channel my inner Carmella, my WWE character, who is super … overconfident. I had to channel that energy and just be like, who cares? What do I have to lose?”
Carmella further added that she became emotional as she began walking down the runway, joking that “pregnancy hormones” were to blame.
“I was like, nah, we’re not going to walk down … with tears in our eyes,” she chuckled. “I had to be in that moment and just own it.”
Carmella noted she and Graves found she was pregnant this past March and that the baby will be born this November. Carmella revealed the news in an interview with ABC’s Good Morning America and on her social media.
Carmella and Graves married last April. Also in the interview with Fox News Digital, she said it has always been her dream to become a mom. Graves is already a father of three kids who he shares with with his ex-wife Amy Polinsky.
“I’ve always wanted to be a mom…and then the older I got, [the more I thought] maybe it’s not for me. Maybe I’m not going to be a mom. And then I married my husband. … And I have the three most amazing stepkids. They really made me want to have one of my own. … I feel ready. I’m 35. I feel like I’ve done some fun things in my life. Timing is everything, and I just feel like this all lined up for me. And I feel so grateful to be at this point in my life…until you have kids, you forget what it’s like to be a kid,” she reflected. “You forget … the little things that get you excited. Having three stepkids brought it all [back to me]. … I’m really excited to see all the stages with my son. But without these three kids in my life, I don’t know if I would have been ready to be a mom.”
She also revealed the first few months of her pregnancy were “awful,” noting she was “down and out for at least two months.” However, on a positive note, she did say the last several months have been “flying by.” When was asked if she has plans to return to the wresting ring, she her main focus will be motherhood and she will return to in-ring action once she feels ready.
“[Pregnancy] doesn’t mean our careers have to stop… I’m excited to go back to work. I can’t wait to go back and show that just because you have a baby doesn’t mean you can’t have a career as well, especially a career that’s so physical. I want to take my time getting back. The advice [I received] from other women who have had babies and gone back [was] don’t rush. And that’s really important. Having a baby…is such a physical journey, so I want to make sure that I feel good, I feel ready. But when I do go back, it’s over for those girls.”
Carmella added by also noting that fitness has been part of her pregnancy, along with cravings for “all the carbs” and that exercising has always been part of her daily routine.
“There have been some comments like, ‘Not everybody can look like that when they’re pregnant,’” she said. “But at the same time, I work really hard at being healthy and being fit. It’s not easy, especially being pregnant. I wish I could just sit there and eat chips and ice cream all day, but at the same time, I come from an athletic background. I love to work out, and it’s part of my daily routine. It’s difficult being pregnant … I don’t get to the gym as much as I did before being pregnant. I’m just trying to listen to my body. If I’m tired, I’m not going to force myself to go to the gym…I’m human… It’s about finding a balance and listening to our bodies.”
Carmella closed by telling Fox News Digital that she excited about the next chapter in her life.
“I’m [looking forward to] being able to raise a gentleman, raise a boy, a man who treats someone with respect and is kind,” she said. “I’m grateful to share this with my best friend, my husband. I’m hoping to put my little fingerprint on the world.”
Last October, Carmella revealed she was treated for an ectopic pregnancy, which occurs when a fertilized egg grows outside of the uterus. She also had at the time she had two miscarriages.