Why should I hide my new mum tum?
Footballer’s wife hits back at trolls who called her ‘huge’
IT’S a sight familiar to every new mother – that slightly wobbly tummy and accompanying stretch marks.
While some are keen to hide the legacy of their pregnancy bump, however, mother of four Becky Vardy has proudly shown off her post-baby figure.
The wife of England footballer Jamie Vardy decided to pose for the pictures after being called ‘huge’ by Twitter trolls who targeted her after she gave birth. In Calvin Klein underwear, Mrs Vardy lifted up her three-month-old son Finley and said: ‘Women who’ve just given birth should not be made to feel ugly.
‘I could have got really upset about the abuse but I have become pretty resilient over the years. After having a baby your hormones are raging, the last thing you want to feel is pressurised and upset.’
Mrs Vardy, 34, who has had postnatal depression, told The Sun: ‘I think I look pretty good for a woman who gave birth in January and Jamie thinks so too. I’m proud of what my body has achieved. I carried all my children for nine months and my body changed constantly to provide for them.’
Mrs Vardy – who is also mother to Megan, 11, Taylor, six, and Sofia, two – said she was targeted when she left hospital in Leicester after giving birth to Finley.
She said: ‘People were on Twitter saying that my thighs were fat, saying they couldn’t believe Jamie was with me because I was so huge. I’d just given birth, I looked normal. And I have had lots of abuse since then.’
Some celebrities appear to slim down quickly after giving birth, but she is embracing her new shape. ‘I have a wobbly tummy, bigger legs, wrinkled skin and stretch marks, just like any woman does when she has a baby,’ she said.
‘There is so much unrealistic pressure on women to get their figures back overnight because so many women in the public eye seem to be able to do that.
‘I get annoyed when I hear celebrities say the weight just dropped off. Maybe for a tiny few it does, but for most of us it doesn’t.
‘You see stars with washboard stomachs just weeks after giving birth, you hear stories of women who have a caesarean and a tummy tuck at the same time. None of that is natural for most of us.
‘What is natural is doing what I do – wearing plenty of good makeup, a much bigger bra and a pair of Spanx.’
But she added: ‘Although I am in no rush, one day I would like to get back into my skinny jeans... without Spanx underneath.’