Alyssa Milano has such wise words about the “post-baby body” phenomenon

Even though we all love seeing celebrities bring healthy babies into the world, our society isn’t always so kind when it comes to judging a mother’s post-baby body. We hold women to the highest expectations, pressuring them to quickly lose weight after the pregnancy is over. Alyssa Milano doesn’t buy into that baby body nonsense, though, because giving birth to two beautiful children has changed her perspective on her body, and on life in general.

The 44-year-old actress opened up to PEOPLE about how much pregnancy and motherhood has changed her outlook on the female body. “Once you have kids, you realize what the human body is made to do,” she said. “You realize why sometimes women’s bodies retain fat, and usually that’s biologically to create breast milk. You realize all the changes your body goes through hormonally.”

Although she’s been fortunate enough not to be severely criticized or judged for her figure, she acknowledges that it’s a problem in Hollywood, and that many women find themselves under attack for the way their bodies look after giving birth.

Her son Milo is five years old and her daughter Elizabella is two years old, and Alyssa says she’ll be taking them with her to the gym because there’s a daycare service where they can hang out while she takes some time for herself. She wants them to see her exercising and staying active, especially considering the fact that we live in “a world that’s so sedentary.”

It’s so refreshing to hear encouraging words like this when the majority of our world is preoccupied with women’s post-baby figures. There’s so much more to a mom than the way her body looks, after all.

Rather than judging themselves for not looking a certain way after giving birth, Alyssa hopes all moms can recognize how powerful and magical their bodies are.