Like so many moms know, losing the baby weight doesn't just happen overnight.
In fact, the weight-loss journey can include highs and lows for months and months. While Katherine Heigl may be a Hollywood star, the proud parent is opening up about her postpartum journey.
Spoiler alert: It wasn't easy for her either.
"In the seven months since Joshua Jr was born I have managed to slowly but surely drop my pregnancy weight with only 10 pounds left to lose. I gained almost 50 pounds during my pregnancy and I'm not gonna lie, I had moments of sheer panic that I'd never be able to lose it all," Katherine wrote on her Heavenly Days blog. "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 continued, "Despite starting my gestation out on a pregnancy friendly meal plan and hiking my butt off 5 days a week my weight kept creeping up. 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. About ten days after Joshua Jr's birth I got back on the scale to see where I was at and how far I had to go."
One month after giving birth to her third child with Josh Kelley, Katherine said that she dropped about 30 pounds. The rest of the weight, however, "has not disappeared quite so magically."
"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," the actress wrote. "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."
Katherine says EatingWell has become one of her favorite go-to healthy meal planning sites. She has also been trying out Hello Fresh, which is a food delivery service that provides healthy meals that one can cook in about 30-45 minutes.
While every woman's journey is different, Katherine has some valuable advice that anyone may find useful as they embrace their body.
"My best weight loss advice is to start every morning by saying out loud a positive mantra of your choice about your body. 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. Thanking my body for its perfect health, strength, limberness, vibrancy, youthfulness and beauty," she explained. "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."