I enjoyed seeing Jenna Fischer do the publicity rounds for her new movie, The Giant Mechanical Man, directed by her husband, Lee Kirk. (Jenna and Lee met thanks to this movie.) Jenna is funny, she’s genuinely grateful (she got two different mugs on The Today Show because she collects them, and I’ll be damned if she didn’t look thrilled each time) and she just seems like a very down-to-earth celebrity. The fact that she’s an average size person kind of adds to that. I know I shouldn’t judge people based on their size, but when women look more like me I somehow feel like I can relate to them more. It’s just how it is, and I’ll admit it’s probably prejudiced against super skinny women. (i.e. Hollywood.)
Well Jenna had her first child last September, and she said that she finds it outrageous how much pressure there is on women to lose the baby weight immediately afterwards. This isn’t a new sentiment for her – in January she said that she stood in “solidarity with all of the women who are not a size 2 six weeks after leaving the hospital,” and added “I think I’m just going to be a little bit bigger for a little bit longer, and that’s fine with me.” It was nice to hear, and she expanded on that topic in a recent interview with Celebuzz.
Don’t even get Jenna Fischer started on being a celebrity mom! The Office star has some very firm opinions on how Hollywood celebrates motherhood.
“I think it’s unnatural,” she told Celebuzz in an exclusive interview, referring to the intense pressure put upon celebrity moms to lose their baby weight.
“There’s so much pressure on you as a new mom that the last thing you need to have hanging over your head is some expectation of what your body is supposed to look like. I actually think that the scrutiny of new mothers bodies has gotten out of control.”
She continued: “Every new mother just gets a free pass. I’m actually angered by the ‘posing in a bikini six weeks after having my baby’ [trend] … Who cares if our boobs are hanging low and we have a little more junk in the trunk? We created a human being, everybody. Let’s celebrate!”
[From Celebuzz]
It’s not just celebrity moms who pressure you to be fit after giving birth – it’s other moms. I remember going to La Leche League meetings and hearing moms with 3 month old babies bragging about how they got their bodies back, and how they worked out from home and did sit ups in their free time. I just sat there politely listening and thinking “bitch, please.” I know, I should get over it. I just didn’t focus on exercise the first few months because I was so preoccupied with my baby. I can’t imagine being a celebrity and having to deal with that pressure too. I didn’t even like getting my picture taken.
Who do you think Fischer is talking about, though? My vote is on Jessica Alba or Kate Hudson, but they each waited a few months.
Jenna is shown on 4-15 and 4-23-12. Credit: FameFlynet, Inc
I love her too! I also did not regain my pre baby body and my two quickly. I’m still working on it now! I don’t fault those who did bounce back quick, but it’s nice to see there are women who struggle like I did!
She’s talking about the Beyoncés, and Heidi Klums. Beyoncé though, took hours and hours to finally deliver a sac full of feathers. Heidi is just a freak of nature.
I love Jenna Fisher, and the only reason I stuck around The Office is BECAUSE of Jim and Pam’s love affair.
So true about “The Office”–I NEVER watched scripted television, usually because the bad writing or unrealistic situations or ‘everybody’s beautiful’ requirement just irked me. But I got hooked on re-runs of “The Office” specifically because of Jim & Pam. They look like us, talk like normal people, etc.
Jenna is so charming. She is the perfect ‘girl next door’ type. Who could dislike her?
I don’t do sitcoms and regular TV either. Netflix is my friend. I never watched the Office.
Then my 14 yo daughter and I started the whole series on netflix. Hilarious! Jim and Pam are the best, the practical jokes they pull on Dwight are epic. I watch for the three of them.
So funny. Snowball fights with beet farms and faxes from the future? Love it.
Love her.
I think Heidi should be excluded only because the only time she showed her “bikini body” it was for her job. A lot of other women pose in magazines to brag about it, whereas Heidi was working.
But again, I may just be on Heidi’s side because I love her haha.
I think she’s awesome, and I’m with you on The Office, they are the only reasons I still watch..
Amen to that. Could be ANY celebrity she’s talking about — MiMi, Beyonce, Kourney K — you name it, they’ve all done it.
Cute family! And good for her. New motherhood is enough of a shock to the system that the pressure to lose the baby weight is just ridiculous. Priorities, people!
Word CB, Word!
She kind of looks like Adele w/ the extra weight
I was thinking that too! She looks gorgeous, much hotter than either Alba or Hudson IMO.
The problem with that ‘free pass’ idea is that there should be no ‘passes’. You don’t owe it to anybody to lose (or gain!) weight regardless of if you’ve just had a baby or not.
It’s not okay to scrutinise the bodies of new mothers or pressure them, but then, it’s not okay to scrutinise anybody else, or pressure them, either.
Damn right! A toast to a world without passes.
Not a big follower of Jenna Fisher but I love what she says. She’s right on. those celebs that “bounce back” after having a kid is paid to do so. That cover they all get after giving birth is already signed, sealed and delivered before they give birth. They have an incentive to loose it quickly. Yes CB, kudos to you on the “bitch please” to those moms who claim they do all that stuff to loose the weight.
In Kendra Wilkinsons book Being Kendra she admits that the post baby photos were airbrushed and not real.
The Office jumped the shark years ago but I LOVE me some Jenna Fischer.
I gained 15 with my first 18 with my second. I lost all the pregnancy weight pretty much the moment I gave birth both times. But my youngest is 7 months and I still cant fit in my pre-preggo jeans. Go figure. Im with Jenna. Who gives a crud!
That’s because post-baby everything gets redistributed differently. At least that’s what happened to me. Even when I lost the weight everything fit differently. My husband thinks even my rib cage expanded. What can you do but just go with it and embrace the blessings!
It may have; I understand many women have expanded ribcages after pregnancy. Soemthing to do with the ribs being spread by the baby and not going back.
my youngest will soon be 6 (years) and I’m still carting around a bit extra 🙂
Good for her! But, if I may, I’d like to add that I hate the idea that we need/must/should/could get our old body “back” at any point post-pregnancy. Since having two kids I’ve weighed (at times) less than I did before having them, but my body is never going to be the same as before. My tummy and boobs are always going to be a little stretched out – which they never were before. It sucks, but I have two healthy kids, so I can’t complain about it (much). I just hate the idea that we all need to get back our pre-baby bodies, because that’s not always, or even often, possible (without plastic surgery, anyway). Okay, bitter rant over!
I’m with you, sister. My tummy is NEVER going to be tight and flat(ish) again unless I go under the knife. That skin is wrecked. But that’s the price of motherhood and it can be hard to accept.
Reminds me of some words of wisdom from Mammy in Gone With The Wind. “You done had a baby, Miss Scarlet. You aint never gonna be no 17 1/2 inches again.”
Victoria Beckham?! 4 Kids and she was back to rail thin within a blink after giving birth.
I’m with you and Jenna. Looking back, I can’t see taking time away from my brand new baby to exercise. I mean, we went for walks, but that doesn’t really help shed pounds as quickly as these celebrities (and, she was born in one of the hottest summers around, so even that wasn’t always possible).
I feel sorry for the women in Hollywood who feel so much pressure to be thin that they’re working out for HOURS a day to get their “bikini bodies” back in 6 weeks.
This woman is the love of my life!
She seems so grounded and kind spirited..
Yeah, I “bounced back” right after my first pregnancy, but my hormone balance, body type/shape, metabolism, EVERYTHING, became different. So much so that everything changed not long after that. Working harder to stay fit. Changing shoe sizes. New clothes to accommodate broader hip bones that didn’t fuse back well. Carpal tunnel. The list goes on.
Pregnancies for some people are like an evolution. It took a while, but I’ve come to terms with the reality of this new me. Please ladies, refuse the pressure to hurt yourself physically and emotionally fighting what is sometimes a natural change! When it comes down to it, would you trade anything you lost for all that you gained?
Well said. So true!
Amen, sister! I know some women who did bounce back naturally, but I know that with my son, I lost only 7 pounds of the 50 I gained with him when I had left the hospital.
I totally agree with her. She’s very level-headed.
That said, I hated how, when she came back to The Office after giving birth, they never filmed her from the boobs down. I get the sense she wouldn’t have cared, but God knows they couldn’t have a post-partum woman on TV who REALLY looked post-partum. I thought that was bullshit. So I think she might be talking about pressure in her own job.
Does anyone remember when her character had the first baby? Jenna wasn’t really pregnant and she never really looked pregnant on the show! Then the second baby came along, Jenna’s first real baby and she ACTUALLY looked pregnant and I thought well, hurrah for that!
I actually think The Office did really well at acknowledging her weight gain as a natural part of pregnancy. Pam on the show was a bit insecure about her weight but Jim clearly didn’t mind and only mentioned her getting her “body back” in hopes that she would regain her confidence. A nice little reminder that their relationship wasn’t based on superficiality, and that men can still find women sexy when they weigh more than a model.
Okay, Jenna just scored big points with me for being realistic about body issues and motherhood. It’s nice to hear of a celebrity speaking up for real women!
OMG that baby.
I think her body looks just fine! Shes around my size and i havent even had a baby.
She is a lovely, down-to-earth person. I met her once during the time we both volunteered with Kitten Rescue in Los Angeles. When I say volunteered, I mean we were right down there in the trenches, not at some fancy fundraising event. We met in a vet’s office. Anyway, she’s the real deal. Sometimes nice girls finish first.
Love her, she does seem very down to earth and level headed, and I like that she’s sticking up for herself and all new moms.
I completely love all of the comments so far! I also must add that her baby is delicious and adorable!!!
Love her, but I admit, I’m a little jealous. How in the world does she block out all the negativity? I have a hard time just living in SoCal!
a good friend gave me a saying that stuck with me throughout my pregnancies….it took you nine months to put the weight on, give yourself nine months to get it off. It worked for me and I hope everyone else finds this useful, 6 weeks is not realistic.
Yes the comments are great and she is level headed, but if she wants to work she knows she is going to have to lose that weight.
She seems to still be employed on the Office…
After I had my son 3 years ago, it was my HUSBAND who said he was no longer attracted to me at all because I was heavier (by 15 pounds) than before I had our son. He started harassing me about my weight within weeks of my c-section (following 24 hours of labor and a chorio infection – I was in the hospital for 4 days on IV antibiotics).
He was so cruel :(…
Short version is, he became progressively more verbally abusive, plus he cheated on me (which barely mattered compared to the gaslighting, constant criticism, keeping me awake / refusing to let me sleep even though I was horribly tired from caring for our baby and working full time, etc).
Anyway. I ran away from him with our baby when he was 18 months old, and now it’s just us, and life is good!
Sounds like you lost the most important weight–that jerk of a husband. Good for you and good luck to you while you craft a better life for the two of you. That courage will take you wherever you want to go.
Jenna has a great message and isn’t all snotty about it.
I agree with her!
Although I am really bothered by the effects of gravity on my all-natural chest. Really bothered. I think I might get a boob lift when I am sure I am done with having kids.
I hear ya on the gravity thing! Now the only way I see my once perky yet naturally large twins is to hold my arms over my head.
I can never pretend to myself that it doesn’t bother me. Never. I absolutely WILL get a lift someday, I’m sure of it.
I just had my baby 8 weeks ago, and my lower abs look like shit, all wrinkly. but i lost 45lbs doing nothing! i’m thinner than when i got pregnant! can having a baby make you thinner? i was fat after my first and with this one i’m thin!! i think this is now my favorite child
She looks gorgeous!
I love her, she’s been so much fun to watch on the Office all these years…
I love her!
And I JUST now lost all my baby weight from my almost 8 year old. I was hoping I could call it baby weight until he was in college…Thankfully it didn’t come to that! 😉
She doesn’t need to be talking about anyone in particular; most celebrity moms have their magazine cover deals inked before the baby’s even born.
Not to mention the ridiculous scrutiny on Jessica Simpson, or any pregnant celeb who looks like she’s gained weight anywhere but her uterus.
Good for her, she looks beautiful as ever.
Um I think Jessica Alba’s wasn’t a natural weight loss. I think her stomach totally looks like she got a tuck…at least this 2nd time around. And it doesn’t sound like wants more, so a tuck would have been a good iea to her. Her body is sick, but man, she must’ve been MISERABLE to be around losing that much weight and getting that toned so quick.
She’s gorgeous. And hilarious on The Office. Full stop.
I still think she is amazingly sexy