Iza Calzado reveals she's been struggling to embrace her body post-pregnancy
Iza Calzado opened up about experiencing difficulties accepting the change in her body after she welcomed her first child with husband Ben Wintle.
On her Instagram account, the glowing mom delighted her followers when she posted her very first workout video after giving birth. In it, she could be seen doing various exercises such as weightlifting, push-ups, and other stretching techniques with her coach, while also sharing glimpses of her cute moments with her bundle of joy, Deia Amihan.
"It has taken me some time to post a workout video even if I started training in March. To be honest, I have been struggling to fully embrace my postpartum body," Calzado revealed in her caption.
She continued, "It’s a bit of a rollercoaster ride, really. I have my good days when I celebrate it for carrying and birthing to and now taking care of a child. Then there are those moments that leave me feeling frustrated even after years of working on loving and accepting myself."
Highlighting how this is "a new chapter in my body and self-love journey," the actress went on to say that she is choosing to reframe the anxiety she feels for her physique and turn it into excitement.
"Grateful for this new challenge and can’t wait to see where my hard work will take me. Whatever the outcome, what matters is I enjoy the process," she wrote.
"So here I am posting this to remind myself that no matter the size of my body, it is worthy of taking up space on my feed. It is also a way for me to honor where I am at, physically and mentally," she ended.
Many of her friends and followers took the time to shower her with encouraging words.
"Your courage and determination now enhanced by mama love and passion for being your truest and best is always present. Even in the crappiest of moments is still a beneficial learning moment of your being," television personality Joey Mead King wrote.
Lea Salonga commented, "You birthed a beautiful human, and your body reflects that!"
In the past, Calzado has opened up about being bullied in her adolescent years for being obese, calling the public to stop calling names.
"So young girls, like this one here no longer have to endure years of fighting to be seen and known beyond the names. I hope we can stop normalizing in our culture where young girls have to live under the shadows of the names people call them."
"From being big to dreaming big, here now is Iza," she said. "No longer making size a source of pain but rather a source of power. Shine bright, ladies. You are enough."
Calzado welcomed her baby girl in January this year and introduced her to the public in an Instagram post in March. "Words can’t describe the love we’re feeling as we introduce our precious baby girl, Deia Amihan Calzado Wintle," she wrote in the caption.