Gemma Atkinson, 38, lamented how “swollen” and “bloated” she felt, but she still had the urge to set two-year-old Mia a good example about feeling confident in your own skin.
The former model, who in recent years has been sharing fitness videos on Instagram while sporting a lean and muscular physique, has been coming to terms with her changing figure during her second pregnancy.
“I bought some beach trousers to wear on this holiday because even though I’m aware of why it’s happening and how clever my body is, I’ve never been as swollen, bloated, uncomfortable in everyday tasks and had as much cellulite in my life,” she told her 1.8 million Instagram followers.
“My boobs alone are 3 cup sizes up! 2nd pregnancy, almost 4 years older and with a little boy this time it’s been a lot harder on my body.”
Gemma felt a pang of shyness about stripping off, but then looked at daughter Mia giggling happily as she ran down the beach, and realised she didn’t want to deliver a toxic message to her that could leave her feeling ashamed of her own body in later life.
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Suddenly feeling “relaxed”, the former Hollyoaks star explained she had a moment of clarity, revealing: “It dawned on me if I kept them on that she’d ask why I’m in trousers.
“I thought about the negative effect It could have on her down the line [if I said] ‘because mummy’s legs & bum are a lot bigger than usual’.
“I don’t ever want her to feel like she should cover herself, especially on the beach!”
She added her trousers had only come in handy for wiping down her non-alcoholic cocktail, and other than that, she’d disposed of them completely.
Despite complaining her thighs were chafing, and she was in pain, she was content just to be experiencing a family holiday.
“REMEMBER! Loving your body only when it’s ‘in shape’ is like loving your pets only when they behave.
“[My dogs] Norm & Ollie s*** on the kitchen floor occasionally but I love them nonetheless,” she joked.
Her partner, former Strictly star Gorka Marquez, who reached the show’s final last year as a dance duo with Helen Skelton, adamantly declared: “You look perfect to me!”
Gemma added on her post: “I can’t believe next time we’ll have little man with us as a family of 4. We’re so lucky & so blessed.”
In a subsequent video, where she thanked fans for sharing similar crisis of confidence stories, she admitted that she was suffering “heartburn, aches and not being able to put my shoes on”.
However, the star still had a pregnancy glow, looking calm, radiant and emotionally content as she proudly cradled the growing life inside her belly.
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