Last November, Zoe Saldana welcomed her twin boys, Bowie and Cy, with husband Marco Perego - now the actress and new mom is opening up about her journey to regain her shape after giving birth.
In a lengthy message posted to Facebook on Friday, the 36-year-old "Guardians of the Galaxy" actress called her twins "the most amazing experience of my life, but the mother-of-two also added that it's been "a challenging experience" trying to bounce back after her pregnancy.
"Your body changes dramatically, inside and out," she wrote. "You grow in places you never knew you could, and you are tired beyond belief. In some cases more than others, your body experiences a kind of trauma through childbirth that is difficult to explain unless you've had that experience."
"My case was like that, everything from my thyroid to my platelets crashed. Thank God, we are all doing great now, but my body was really bent out of shape after the boys were born."
She added that she felt that bouncing back would be "impossible." The actress who is known for her thin frame described her determination as a woman and mother to get her energy back and "find balance" for her body, before her sons begin walking and before she goes back to work.
In a post on her Facebook page, the actress posted a photo of herself working up a sweat on a treadmill. Saldana revealed that she began her workout routines in January with her trainer Steve Moyer and described the journey as "slow, painful and frustrating."
"I know many of you have gone through this or are going through it as we speak," Saldana wrote in hopes of inspiring others. "Let's do it together. Let's talk about it, hear each other out, and seek advice when we need it. I have my friend of many years and trainer, Steve Moyer that will be guiding me and sometimes training me for the next 2 months before I go back to work. I will be sharing with you what I do, what I eat and how I feel about it in hopes that it will be of any help to you."
"I started in January with Moyer. I was 160lbs (at the peak of my pregnancy I reached 185lbs). I had no flexibility, weak joints, and exercising was painful," she continued. "We started with just walking, I think I only walked that first month. I did however change the way I eat. I began to make better choices with my food. Moyer was instrumental at this point. he gave me great tips of what to eat, how much water to drink, he even gave me some recipes of his own sometimes. It was important for me to learn this so I can do it on my own if I have to. I want to prove to myself that if I have the right determination I can do anything."
Saldana's husband shared his wife's inspiring message and chimed in with some encouragement, writing, "Keep Pushing, Always supporting You. You inspiring Me. Gracias de Todo."