Blake Lively: 'Post-pregnancy slim down pressure is so unfair'

Blake Lively has joined Anne Hathaway and urged women not to feel pressured to lose weight after pregnancy, insisting the expectation to bounce back is "so unfair".

New mum Anne, who welcomed her first child, son Jonathan, in March (16), took to Instagram on Monday (08Aug16) to share an empowering message with her fans, after revealing she can no longer fit into her pre-pregnancy denim shorts.

"There is no shame in gaining weight during pregnancy (or ever)," the Les Miserables star wrote. "There is no shame if it takes longer than you think it will to lose the weight (if you want to lose it at all)."

Now Blake, who is expecting her second child with husband Ryan Reynolds, has added her thoughts on the subject after an Australian TV presenter complimented the actress for her bikini body in new film The Shallows, which she shot just months after giving birth to her daughter James in December, 2014.

"It's so unfair though, because it's so celebrated," the 28-year-old told the Sunrise host in response to the compliment. "It's like, 'This is what someone can look like after a baby'. I think a woman's body after having a baby is pretty amazing."

Blake went on to claim new mothers shouldn't be expected to slim down so soon after pregnancy, because giving birth to new life is a "miracle".

"You don't need to be Victoria's Secret (lingerie) ready right away because you just did the most incredible miracle that life has to offer," she continued. "I mean, you gave birth to a human being! So I would really like to see that celebrated."

Lively's comments suggest she will be taking her time to shed her pregnancy pounds once she welcomes baby number two later this year (16).

The news of her pregnancy first surfaced in April (16), and she debuted her growing baby bump at the world premiere of her Woody Allen film Cafe Society at the Cannes Film Festival in France in May (16).