Coronation Street's Catherine Tyldesley, 30, announced her pregnancy over the summer, recently revealing that she is expecting a baby boy.
And now the soapstar has taken to her blog to talk about her changing pregnancy body.
FRIENDS OF CATHERINE TYLDESLEY CONGRATULATE HER ON BABY SCAN NEWS
Writing from the heart, Catherine explained: "Each mother is different. You could be the healthiest eater in the word and train for the whole 9 months but if your hormones dictate that you are to store fat in a less than desirable area, then there’s not much one can do.
"It became very clear to me from the start that all that matters for these special nine months of my life is that baby is healthy and I am healthy. That is as much as I can do.
"I fully intend to enjoy each day that my son is safe in my tummy and enjoy each day of my maternity leave without feeling like I’m a failure for not looking a million dollars."
She added powerfully: "What my body is doing is bloody amazing! Mums are AMAZING!! Hold your heads high yummy mummies! Be happy, be healthy and deflect negativity from your life - you’re awesome."
Talk about inspiring!
THE SATURDAY'S UNA FODEN ANNOUNCES SECOND PREGNANCY
Catherine also revealed that, while she is proud of her changing body, she has been trying to keep fit and heathy ahead of her little boy's arrival.
"I’m a firm believer in keeping fit during pregnancy and I certainly don’t believe junk food is at all necessary. It won’t do you any favours- and it won’t do baby any favours!
"I’ve been struggling with backache this week, so I have been swimming rather than weight training."
Sounds a good idea to us - swimming is great exercise for pregnant women because it uses both large muscle groups (arms and legs).
And, although it's a low-impact activity, swimming provides good cardiovascular benefits and allows expectant women to feel weightless despite the extra pounds added by pregnancy.
It also improves circulation, increases muscle tone and strength, and builds endurance - all very useful for getting ready for labour day.