Blake Lively floored her fans with her toned and slender figure in latest film The Shallows which she filmed just eight months after she and husband Ryan Reynolds welcomed baby daughter James. Now, the 28-year-old has admitted that she initially felt an "insecurity" about returning to work with her post-pregnancy body.
© Photo: Getty ImagesBlake Lively has admitted she was 'insecure' about her post-pregnancy figure
"The struggle is that I am doing a movie in a bikini eight months after having a baby and there is a level of insecurity and vanity that comes with that," she told Australian publication The Herald Sun. "You don't want to be the person in the magazines that they are saying, 'Ugh, look at her,' rather than 'Wow, look at her'."
She added: "That's a shame because there shouldn’t be that negative 'ugh' after someone has a baby."
© Photo: RexThe actress currently stars in The Shallows
The former Gossip Girl star followed a gluten and soy-free diet and gruelling workout routine to get in shape for the action-packed thriller, but confessed that she would have preferred to "represent women as they actually look".
"Your body is so beautiful. You couldn't walk a Victoria's Secret runway but it's beautiful in a completely different and incredible way," she said. "And I do wish I had the bravery to go out there and represent women as they actually look."
© Photo: Getty ImagesBlake is expecting her second child with Ryan Reynolds
It's not the first time that Blake has spoken candidly about returning to work just a few months after having given birth. Speaking about the long hours of filming and constant swimming involved, she shared her awe at her body's ability to cope with the challenge.
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"I was working out 13 hours a day because shooting was working out," she told Entertainment Tonight. "It was neat to be able to do that, and it was neat to have that challenge after having a baby, because you think your body is so different – you think no matter what, it's never totally [going to] be the same."
Blake will no doubt be taking a break from gruelling schedules over the next few months, following the news that she and Ryan are expecting their second child together. The couple are said to be over the moon as they prepare to welcome the new arrival, with a source confiding to People: "Blake is absolutely thrilled and so is Ryan."
