MUMS are sharing candid selfies on Instagram in an effort to showcase the reality of post-baby bodies.
The movement received a celebrity endorsement when country singer and mum-of-two Carrie Underwood shared her struggles with ‘bouncing back.’
Using the hashtag #BodyAfterBaby she shared a snap of her at the gym with her 8.4 million Instagram followers.
Captioning the post she wrote: “I’m going to be honest, “bouncing back” after having Jacob has been much more difficult than after I had Isaiah and I’ve been pretty hard on myself lately.
“I go into the gym and I can’t run as fast or as far. I can’t lift as much weight or do as many reps as I could a year ago. I just want to feel like myself again…for my body to feel the way that I know it can.
“As I was working out today, I realized that for the past 11(ish) months, my body has not belonged to me. It was a perfect home for Jacob.
“And even now it belongs to him every time he drinks his milk. As I prepare for red carpets and for life on tour, right now I make a promise to myself to start appreciating what my body CAN do and stop focusing on what it can’t. I promise to stop analyzing every angle and every curve and every pound and every meal.”
Carrie went on to explain that she will continue working out at her own pace adding that she ‘loves’ and ‘all that it has done.’
The photo amassed over 750,000 likes and hundreds of comments from fellow mums applauding her honesty.
One wrote: “Promises we all as women, should be making to ourselves daily. You are strong, healthy and amazing.”
Another added: “Beautiful words and spoken with truth and the kindness that is often so much easier to show others, but not ourselves. Thank you @carrieunderwood for choosing to put your self out there and infuse social media with some truth, self-kindness and light.”
The singer isn’t the only mum to embrace her post baby body, with almost 500,000 posts on Instagram tagged with the hashtag #BodyAfterBaby.
The Instagram account Take Back Postpartum celebrates women’s bodies after giving birth by sharing their pictures and stories.
Sharing a snap of her and her daughter Oregon mum Kayla Meyer wrote: “We’ve felt so much more confident and at ease this time around and I am just taking one day at a time. Rollin with the punches and keeping a smile on my face.”
Meanwhile Kumiko Nixon shared a snap of her multitasking while using a breast pump shortly after giving birth.
She wrote: “This is a rare picture of me, doing my thang, trying to get ready. How many of you mamas are pros at juggling multiple tasks?
“Cause I’m not hence why my bathroom is messy, closet is unorganized, but this is real life. Real life is messy and not social media perfection and THATS OKAT (sic).”
And sharing a snap of her stomach stretch marks, new mum Alex expressed her pride over her new body three weeks after birth.
She wrote: “”I may be a little softer but ultimately I am stronger and these marks just remind me of where I once tightly held and grew Emilia Ren.
“This body, ME, I may not be the same but if she can find so much comfort and safety in this body, I will as well.”
Elsewhere we told you about the mums who showed off their post-baby bodies in Mothercare campaign which divided This Morning viewers.
And this mum-of-five has hit back at trolls who branded her body ‘wrinkled and floppy’.
