She said she 'miraculously' lost the first 30 pounds but has struggled with the remainder.
Katherine Heigl is loving her post-baby body – all of it! The 38-year-old actress opened up in a very candid blog post about the seven months since the birth of her son, Joshua Jr., and how her body has changed.
She noted that she gained 50 pounds during her pregnancy, saying that early on she was anxious about the extra weight.
WATCH: EXCLUSIVE: Katherine Heigl Dishes on Breastfeeding on the 'Unforgettable' Press Tour and Embarrassing Her Kids
“I had moments of sheer panic that I’d never be able to lose it all. I had hoped to only gain 25-30 pounds like my mother during her pregnancies but found that just wasn’t possible for me,” she said. “At a certain point, probably around 4 months I gave up the struggle and tried instead to respect my body’s needs and trust my instincts.”
And though she “miraculously” lost 30 of the 50 pounds just 10 days after her son’s birth, Heigl noted that the remaining weight wasn’t as easy to shed.
“We’ve all heard about the gals who tone up and get right back into their skinny jeans weeks after their babies birth but this was not me, nor was I trying for it to be,” she wrote. “I have only lost 10 pounds since that first initial drop but that’s ok because I decided from the start that I was going to lovingly but patiently reclaim my pre baby body, and forgive the glorious imperfections that would forever grace my new post baby body.”
One such “imperfection” was her caesarean scar, which the actress claims is larger than most.
“In my case [it] stretches almost hip to hip,” she said. “Every once in awhile I look at the scar and wish I could do something to minimize it, then I think to myself that it’s actually kind of a beautiful reminder. This attitude of forgiveness and gentleness is the spirit with which I have embarked on my weight loss journey and it’s made all the difference in the world.”
In addition to eating healthy and exercising at least three days a week, Heigl is also focused on remaining positive as she continues to work on her post-baby body. That includes repeating daily mantras.
“Mine is ‘I am easily, with good health, inspiration, grace and gratitude losing weight faster than I can even imagine with harm to none.’ Then I say my gratefuls,” she explained. “Thanking my body for its perfect health, strength, limberness, vibrancy, youthfulness and beauty. Whether I always believe these things about myself and my body or not, I say them. By saying them out loud with love and gratitude I have found that I not only start to believe them, but my body exhibits what I say and believe.”
MORE: Katherine Heigl Snuggles With Her Adorable Kids in Early Mother's Day Family Pics
These days, Heigl looks at her body differently than she used to.
“There was something about my pregnancy and post pregnancy body that instilled a sense of body pride in me and a freedom from body shaming that has been such a persistent part of my life for so long,” she wrote. “It was the most natural and healthy thing in the world to put on weight during my pregnancy and allowing my body to shed it slowly, gracefully and healthfully feels…good.”
Heigl opened up to ET about breastfeeding in April, watch the clip below to see the exclusive interview!
