Gemma Atkinson is today's #positivity inspiration

| Mar 8, 2016

Emmerdale star Gemma Atkinson has hit back at bodyshaming critics and has claimed that she's never been happier or healthier at 11 stone.

I'd just like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has sent lovely messages about my interview yesterday. I'm glad a lot of people can relate. Being healthy & fit isn't all about a number on a scale. I am 11stone and I'm proud of my body. These pictures are proof you can be a lady in the street and a freak in the gym ? ?? ?? #internationalwomansday

A photo posted by Gemma Atkinson (@glouiseatkinson) on Mar 8, 2016 at 2:39am PST

Atkinson has revealed that she felt a lot of pressure as a teenager to shed her 'puppy fat'. She was just 15 when she first joined the show and put a lot of pressure on herself to lose weight.

Nowadays, Atkinson has traded her weighing scales for the gym and is proud of her strong physique.

"The last time I weighed myself was at the gym and I was eleven stone. I remember telling someone and they couldn't believe I was that weight."

"But I am 5ft 9in tall, have big thighs and I’m broad - from ‘good stock’ as my grandad would say. They just couldn’t believe I was happy being 11st.

Farmers walks are one of my favourite things to do between sets or at the end of a session. Unfortunately not a lot of commercial gyms have the equipment to perform them but they can be done with heavy dumbbells as a substitute. Stand between your bars or Dumbbells, pick them up driving through your heels, steady yourself and Keeping your back straight, walk with them taking short quick steps. It's that simple. These are a lot harder then they look! Esp after performing a few of them. This was me @upfitnesslive after a huge upper body session with @ollyfosterfitness so the bars alone were heavy enough! I didn't need to load them up with weights ? My forearms were screaming at me to stop... But I didn't. ???

A photo posted by Gemma Atkinson (@glouiseatkinson) on Feb 27, 2016 at 12:48am PST

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"I go on body-fat-to-muscle ratio and how my clothes fit. I don’t have any scales in my house."

Gemma now gets up at the crack of dawn for yoga or an exercise bike session every day and admits that she is 'useless to everybody' unless she trains and eats well.

Monday = Upper body! This is an old picture of me but seated cable rows with neutral grip is still an exercise I do when training my upper body. Esp with Spring around the corner and backless dresses to be worn ? Grip the V Bar so that the palms of your hands face each other. With your knees slightly bent and back neutral pull the V Bar back towards your torso and squeeze your shoulder blades together. Hold the contraction at the top for a second as well. So many people overload the weight with these and have zero control over tempo or form. They just knock them out and the weight is practically pulling them back to the start position. Slow, steady movements with correct form, controlled tempo and a suitable weight will be much more beneficial for you not to mention safer. I do 4 sets of 12 at around 30kg - 35kg. Enjoy! ?? #ladieswholift ??

A photo posted by Gemma Atkinson (@glouiseatkinson) on Feb 29, 2016 at 8:35am PST

Gemma said that despite the transformation she still gets insecure, especially about her legs, but that she has learned to love her body.

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"When people say, ‘I have got bigger arms, bigger legs or a bigger stomach,’ that’s your body. What you don’t like about your body somebody else will find amazing. Some people think the perfect physique is a body-builder type, some people think it is the hour glass, or a Victoria’s Secret model. There is no perfect body, it is what you make of your own. You can’t change it, so why spend your entire life resenting it?"

#mondaymotivation Off to a detox and training retreat with @cintalondon Cannot wait to see how I feel at the end ??????

A photo posted by Gemma Atkinson (@glouiseatkinson) on Mar 6, 2016 at 10:40pm PST

Via The Sun

This month, Beaut.ie is all about #positivity. This is what we're talking about!