SHE was no stranger to flaunting her enviable six pack in a bikini on the beach.
But, when Clare fell pregnant, her body shape understandably completely changed.
However, in a video on her TikTok page, she admitted she wasn’t “mentally prepared” for that change.
She began the video with a clip of herself in a teeny black bikini on the beach.
Clare grinned from ear to ear as she walked across the sand, her muscular abs glistening in the sunlight as she did so.
The TikTok then changed to show Clare as she looks now, pregnant with her first baby.
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“Nobody talks about how hard it is to go from this… to this,” she wrote over the top of the video.
“Not sure I was mentally prepared for the body changes that came with pregnancy,” Clare added in the caption.
She also added hashtags including “#pregnancy #weightgain”.
The comments section of Clare’s video was quickly filled with people offering support, compliments and advice.
“Honestly you look more youthful and glowy pregnant,” one wrote.
“You look beautiful pregnant!” another said.
“You’re glowing. You literally look 10 years younger!” a third praised.
“It’s tough but you will be a new version of you and you will love your body!” someone else said.
“Mumma of 3 here! 36kgs with the first, 18kg with the second and 15kg with the 3rd.
“The fist was the hardest but I was so proud of myself for caring healthy babies and then being fit enough to do fun stuff with them.
“Sending you love.”
“The first definitely seems to be a shock to the system,” Clare replied.
How do women’s figures change after giving birth?
TO SAY the body changes during pregnancy and childbirth is an understatement.
Throughout the nine months it takes for the body to bring a baby into the world, it goes through some huge physical changes.
Considering how different the body looks during pregnancy, it’s not surprising that there are some lasting changes.
And it some ways, it never does, Doctor Rachel Ward, a GP at Woodlands Medical Centre, Derby, said.
1. Wider ribcage and hips
“During pregnancy in order to accommodate a growing baby and prepare for giving birth, our body produces a hormone called relaxin,” she explained.
Relaxin works by increasing the flexibility and movement in our joints and ligaments.
“Many women find that after pregnancy the shape of their pelvis and ribcage remains different,” Dr Rachel said.
It is common to need a different bra size due to a change in chest circumference, the expert said.
“This is a reminder of the changes your body made to accommodate your baby and is nothing to be worried about,” she added.
2. Change in skin colour
During pregnancy, most women experience skin changes as it stretches to accommodate your bump and enlarging breasts.
“It is not uncommon to develop stretch marks.
“Though they will often fade over time and become a shiny pale colour, depending on your skin tone they will not go away completely,” Dr Rachel said.
“Some people do not like the way stretch marks look but they are an incredibly common change that we see in many people,” she added.
3. A change in breast shape
Breasts increase in size during pregnancy as the breast tissue prepares to produce milk.
And shortly after birth they will start to produce milk and become swollen, Dr Ward explained.
“If you choose to breast feed or not, it is likely that the shape, size and way your breasts look and feel will be different after pregnancy compared to before,” she added.
“This is not a problem but it is important that we do learn what the new normal is for our breasts so we can stay breast aware and pick up and changes that could be cancer.”
“I’ve stopped weighing myself but probably sitting at 40kg (6 stone) gained and I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t hard on my mental health.
“Obviously the happy healthy baby life grown is the main priority, but it’s still so hard feeling like such a stranger in your own body.
“Will work on it once he’s out, but definitely a journey ahead.”
But others admitted they could entirely empathise with Clare’s struggle.
“No literally and I thought I would go right back after having kids but nope,” one sighed.
“It’s so hard to see yourself like that when you were used to you completely different for your whole life,” another added.
“Grind time I guess!”
“It’s gonna be a process for sure,” Clare replied.
“And this is why I am terrified of having kids,” a third commented.
