Giving birth to a new human life is one of life’s most precious miracles. But inevitably, while women gain a wonderful addition to their lives they gain something else; baby weight. No matter how careful women are during their pregnancies, eating healthy and exercising regularly, they are bound to pack on a few extra pounds. It’s a normal part of pregnancy. Unfortunately, losing those pounds after giving birth is the biggest weight loss challenge of most women’s lives. Celebrities are not immune to gaining baby weight but somehow they almost always manage to lose it, usually with the help of a personal trainer and strict diet. Here are a few of the celebrity moms we admire for looking fantastic post-pregnancy.

Denise Richards: This 34-year-old actress is the mother of two daughters; Sam, who was born in March 2004 and Lola Rose, who was born in July 2005. This gorgeous mom started exercising soon after giving birth to her first daughter and lost more than 20 pounds in just three weeks! Later the same year she proved she still had a hot bod by posing for Playboy. Be advised, just because Denise lost a lot of weight extremely quickly it is not considered safe for the average woman to lose that much weight that quickly.

Brooke Shields: This 40-year-old super model and actress is also the mother of two little girls. Brooke welcomed a baby girl in May 2006, two years after giving birth to first daughter Rowan. Even as she battled post-partum depression and faced off against Tom Cruise who criticized her use of anti-depressants, Brooke managed to be a great mother and regain her stellar figure.

Brooke Burke: This super sexy 35-year-old television host proves that it is possible to be a sex symbol and a mommy. Brooke rose to fame as the host of E!’s Wild On and has most recently become noticeable for co-hosting Rock Star: INXS and Rock Star: Supernova with pal Dave Navarro. She has graced the cover of numerous men’s magazines. She gave birth to Neriah in 2000 and Sierra Sky in 2002 and still managed to pose for Playboy in 2001. Since then she has designed and modeled her own bikini line. However, Brooke’s ex-husband is a top plastic surgeon, so who knows how she really stays this svelte.