Keke Palmer is doing motherhood her way and is encouraging other new mommies to join the wave.
In a new interview with PEOPLE for their “Pretty in Pink” Portfolio in this week’s Beautiful Issue, the Nope star opened up about her journey and what advice she had for new moms like herself dealing with societal pressures of having to return to their former bodies, prior to getting pregnant.
As the 29-year-old— who welcomed her first child, a sweet boy named Leodis “Leo” Andrellton, with her boyfriend Darius Jackson last February — told the outlet, she acknowledges the curiosity that comes with seeing women like Beyoncé, Teyana Taylor, Kim Kardashian, and many others who seemingly “bounce back” to their former selves after giving birth.
However, Palmer shared that if she could give any new mother in her position advice on how to approach post-pregnancy, it would be to “do what you can when you can, whatever it is that makes you feel good.”
Still, the Hustlers star encouraged those who may not want to wait to get their six-pack abs, stating that “If it’s important to you, then hell yeah, put in the work, miss girl.” The actress championed the idea, sharing, “Get you whatever diet you want to do or whatever workout regimen that works for you.”
The veteran Hollywood star also noted that “if that’s not what you’re worried about, then don’t worry about it.” Palmer warned new mommies to “keep it real” and not “get caught in the hype of it all.”
Palmer noted that usually when you a see a celebrity doing a snap back or whatever like that, it’s part of the damn gig.”
Beyoncé echoed a similar statement in her September 2018 interview with Clover Hope for Vogue, where she revealed that following her first pregnancy with Blue Ivy, she “believed in the things society said about how my body should look.” The “Cuff It” singer said she put herself under immense pressure to lose all the weight she gained during her pregnancy and had even booked a small tour to ensure she would meet her goal. However, she shared that “looking back, that was crazy.”
Palmer added that part of a celebrity’s job “is to look good and to look the part.” The actress added that in no way “We doing it because we got it like that.’” She continued, “No, the job is on the line. If we want the checks to get signed, we got to be what we got to be.”