We’ve spoken before about fitness model Chontel Duncan’s first pregnancy. As with other ultra-fit moms, her pregnancy turned out to be somewhat controversial.
Why? Well, because she was rocking a six pack throughout it. You know, like Sarah Stage.
Chontel is no stranger to backlash, so when she shares this pic of her post-baby body just a week after the birth of her second child, she went ahead and posted a rebuttal to any and all criticism that body-shamers were likely to throw her way.
Chontel shared this photo of herself.
She shared this only one week after giving birth, and she’s already giving people serious ab envy.
(And shower envy, if we’re being honest)
Chontel’s had to put up with every type of body-shaming, and even had ridiculous clickbait articles point the finger at her and mothers like her, accusing these fit moms of being responsible for “pregorexia,” which is not a real thing.
But it hurts just the same.
Talking about how she plans to get back into her workout routine as she recovers from her C-section was only going to be the target for more haters. She knew this.
So she was more than prepared for all of the comments that people were going to have about her post-baby bod, and decided to head htem off at the pass.
Writing in her Instagram captions, Chontel wrote:
“Now before anyone jumps down my throat saying anything negative think before you type; everyone is unique and different in their own special way. There is no ‘one’ journey or one way, this is my ‘normal’.”
Sad that she has to start it that way.
But, like we said, she’s more than accustomed to haters.
“No one is forced to follow my account/s, I openly share my life for all who appreciate it, that includes the highs and the lows. I am only one person, so therefore I cannot possible relate to everyone’s experience.”
Those are some really great points.
The ol’ “don’t like don’t follow” line definitely applies to Instagram, folks.
“If your instant response isn’t positive I challenge you to see beyond your negativity and find the kindness within.”
Immediate negativity says more about the commenter than what the commenter is seeing.
Chontel talks about how lucky she is.
“I was blessed to conceive, blessed to experience no sickness, I did experience discomfort & tiredness, but overall I had a very enjoyable pregnancy. Could not be more grateful I grew a full term 8 pound baby, delivering through c-section on the 20th Sept.”
That’s great for her and for the baby.
“A week later I took my first ‘post pregnancy’ progression photo. (As shown above) In a week’s time I start my very own 8 week transformation program @hiit_australia for the first few weeks it will be all about the nutrition plan.”
Again, she hada C-section. She has a lot of recovery ahead of her.
“When I am given the all clear I will incorporate light walking and eventually be able to go back to training. I plan to keep you all up to date as I find my new routine as a mummy of 2 beautiful blessings. “
That sounds like a good plan.
Speaking of her blessings, Chontel postes a photo during her first pregnancy that really illustrated how differently one pregnant body can look from another.
In cases you needed to see the contrast, here she is towards the end of 2015:
At the time, Chontel captioned this photo for full context:
“I was surprised with a cute visit today from a friend Nat who is also expecting.”
Both of these children were born in 2016, of course.
“Just being able to see someone in the flesh, rub her tummy, hear how incredible her journey has been so far, how healthy baby is & all the fun talk about kicks, food, names etc was beautiful.”
Cute!
“This is Nat’s 3rd pregnancy so she had a lot of great advice to share. It’s very clear in this photo just how tall I am, I mean my chin sits above Nat’s head lol.”
This was Chontel’s first pregnancy. She’s now had two babies.
“We worked out that we are 4 weeks apart, so our little ones will be the same age, same grade at school and potential best buds hehehehe….. Nat’s due start of March & I’m due end of March.”
Awwww!
“Each women carries different and this most certainly doesn’t mean one is doing something wrong or not healthy etc. We both have healthy growing babies & we both have had incredible pregnancies so far, feeling amazing & full of energy.”
That’s a great lesson. One that we hope that people can remember before they write hateful things.
If you’re in the market for some photos of another woman who carries her pregnancies as tightly — or more so — than Chontel, look no further than Sarah Stage: