During both her pregnancies — the first with her son Flynn, to then partner Orlando Bloom in 2010, and earlier this year when she was carrying her second son Hart, to husband Evan Spiegel — Kerr was inevitably hounded by photographers who scrutinised every inch of her growing body.
“Miranda Kerr piled on 40 pounds when she was pregnant!” screeched one publication shortly after she gave birth to Flynn. Another media outlet referred to the model’s “big baby bump” and described her euphemistically as “heavily pregnant” while she was carrying Hart. Dozens of other publications jumped at the chance to run images of Kerr in her third trimester, accompanied by sensational headlines about her “blooming” physique.
Now, six months on from Hart’s birth, Kerr, 35, has shot down her critics with a message about the importance of maintaining body positivity in pregnancy and motherhood. “I took nine months — well, 10 months — to grow a beautiful child and it might take 10 months to feel good in a swimsuit again. Or longer. Or never!” Kerr tells marie claire. “It’s okay, I’ve got a mum-bod and it’s fine!”
While her version of a “mum-bod” is probably different to most, the sentiment is one that is relevant for all women who put pressure of themselves to lose weight following the birth of their babies. “It’s really important as women that we’re gentle with ourselves and don’t feel like we have to snap back into shape after a baby,” Kerr says.
Her more grounded and balanced approach to her body also extends to her lifestyle — the KORA Organics founder has happily traded the jet-set existence for a family friendly routine, one which she is relishing.
Hart has his own crib in Kerr’s office and he’s used to settling down for a nap while mum gets down to business. “I’m so lucky that I can take my little one to work,” she says. “I’ve been in plenty of meetings where I’ve had to stop and go ‘Sorry, just have to go feed my baby! Sorry!’ But it’s such a luxury to be able to be settled, to be in one place and to have routines. I love being a mum – it’s just the most rewarding thing.”
Read more in the January issue of marie claire, out Thursday.
