Expectant mom shuts down pregnancy body shamers by comparing bumps with Tess Holliday

Pregnancy is a beautiful and miraculous joy – but not for the Internet.

A few weeks ago endurance athlete Brittany Aäe (right) compared her 39-week baby bump with that of another expectant mom - plus-sized model Tess Holliday (left). While Holliday’s pregnancy was two weeks behind Aäe when the photos were taken, the difference is obvious – and body shamers wasted no time pointing it out.

Aäe was criticized for her rigorous training routines and for scaling mountains, even in her third trimester. Commenters questioned if she was putting her baby’s health at risk, while Holliday received comments along the lines of “I can’t tell you’re pregnant.”

In response, Aäe captioned her photo: “Both of us are shamed for our size - she for her roundness and me for my smallness. Both of us are having or had healthy pregnancies as validated by our healthcare providers. Both of us are making empowered choices about our personal health. Why does our society shame women whose bodies do not adhere to some narrow notion of false normalcy?”

She also urges people to keep their thoughts and words about body sizes to themselves. “Pregnancy is tough enough without also being body shamed,” she writes.

You go girl! And sorry haters, both moms have delivered healthy babies since posting the images. Keep scaling those mountains, Aäe! And keep slaying on magazine covers, Holliday!