Peta Murgatroyd should be the postpartum poster girl. The Dancing With the Stars pro dancer, who gave birth to her first child, Shai Aleksander, on January 4, is already back to the gym. But Peta knows that it will take time and hard work to lose the baby weight, and she wants to encourage other new moms to be patient.

Peta Murgatroyd posted a photo of herself at the gym 17 days after giving birth to Shai. In the photo, Peta is wearing a sports bra and showing off her still-puffy post-pregnancy belly. Murgatroyd wrote that she is feeling fine about the rate at which her body is “shrinking back,” reminding herself that “slow and steady wins the race.”

“After 2 days back at the gym I’m feeling like the old Peta again,” Murgatroyd wrote.

“I definitely don’t have my 6 pack, and I still have excess skin and rolls on my belly, however, I feel good. … I cannot jump yet and still can’t run a mile, but the exercises I’ve planned out are a good start.”

Peta revealed that her biggest post-baby fitness challenge has been getting her core strength back. Murgatroyd added that on her first day she couldn’t even do one sit up, but now at 17 days postpartum she can do 70. Peta also revealed that because she is an athlete, she prides herself on “having a lean, strong physique,” and admitted that her postpartum body has been a challenge to work through.

Peta Murgatroyd has been open with fans about her post-pregnancy body. Eight days after she delivered baby Shai, Peta posted a photo of her swollen belly, revealing that she left the hospital “looking 5 months pregnant.”

“Many people think a woman should shrink right back to her pre-birth weight immediately,” Murgatroyd wrote. “That is just not the truth for most. The female body is incredible and resilient, but healing and strengthening take time. Now it’s time for patience and hard work.”

It’s not surprising that Peta Murgatroyd has already returned to the gym just a few weeks after delivering her baby. The two-time Dancing With the Stars champ was diligent about going to the gym throughout her pregnancy, and she routinely shared photos of her workouts.

In fact, when she was halfway through her pregnancy, Peta Murgatroyd took to Instagram to reveal that she loved working out even more than ever, and she announced that she would continue working out until she was “too big to move.”

“I’m 20 weeks and although I could sit on the couch watching TV all day, I have to get up and keep moving!” Peta captioned a video of herself at the gym.

“To me, it’s imperative for women to have an active pregnancy. It’s better for your well being and it’s great for your baby (within the limits your doctor has given you of course) Everyone will have an opinion about this, and that’s ok, but until I’m too big that I can’t move, I will be doing some sort of exercise each day. Believe me, it’s not easy, I’m not used to this body I have at the moment, and I’m heavier than I have ever been.”

Of course, part of Peta’s post-baby plan will likely include continuing with a healthy diet. Peta has been vocal about the fact that she combines exercise with healthy eating, and has always done so. (Although she admittedly added a pregnancy staple to her diet.)

“I’m glad I ate really healthily before I got pregnant because I don’t crave McDonald’s and doughnuts and stuff like that,” Murgatroyd told People magazine during her pregnancy. “My diet right now is crazy. I crave fresh fruit and pickles and I’ll have everything at the same time. I’ll have organic salsa and chips and then pineapple, and I’ll finish it with two pickles.”

[Featured Image by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images]