Keeping it real. Lindsay Arnold shared an authentic look at her postpartum body after she and husband Sam Cusick welcomed their second child.
“Proud of this body and all it did to get baby girl here,” the Dancing With the Stars pro, 29, captioned a mirror selfie share via her Instagram Story on Sunday, May 7. Sporting navy joggers and a maroon tank top in the pic, Arnold showed off her bandaged belly less than one week after delivering daughter June via C-section.
The So You Think You Can Dance alum — who tied the knot with Cusick, 30, in 2015 — later gave an update on life at home with her little one in another Instagram Story, joking that June has been “pooping a lot in the night.” Arnold also praised her and firstborn, 2-year-old daughter Sage, for “freaking killing it” as a big sister.
“She literally is just playing with herself and keeping herself entertained and coming over and giving June kisses every once in a while,” she shared on Monday, May 8. “I’m really proud of her.”
Arnold announced her second pregnancy in October 2022 after previously experiencing fertility challenges. The dancer gave birth on Wednesday, May 3, and revealed her little girl’s name a few days later with additional details about the experience. “Baby girl came out butt first and I was actually able to watch most of this delivery through a plastic curtain, I wasn’t able to see with Sage,” she wrote on Saturday, May 6.
The choreographer went on to reveal that June’s umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck six times, calling the situation a “very scary and shocking moment for everyone in the room.” She told her followers that “June came out fighting,” adding, “We are so proud of her and just so in love.”
Arnold and Cusick first became parents in November 2020 with the birth of Sage. “The most beautiful surprise on this very special day 💕💕,” she captioned a pic of herself and her husband in the delivery room. “Baby Girl and mama are healthy and well 💕 more details to come but wanted to share this first pic of our little family.”
One week later, the Utah native shared a look at her postpartum body while showing off her “fave postpartum clothes from #kindredbraverly,” adding that she “seriously underestimated how important a good nursing bra is.”
Over the years, Arnold — who took home the mirrorball trophy with partner Jordan Fisher on season 25 of DWTS — hasn’t been afraid to call out mom-shamers. “This is my thumbs up to everyone out there who actually thinks it’s OK to comment or criticize anyone else’s parenting,” she captioned a January 2021 Instagram Story post. “Why? Why do we do this to others? Especially people we don’t know.”
She exclusively opened up to Us Weekly later that month about her decision to post her message. “I said something because I want those people who believe that they can sit at their house and comment on other people and try to tear other people down just to know that it’s not OK,” she said at the time. “We need to lift each other up. We need to be supportive. We need to be loving. And if you don’t have anything nice to say, then just keep your mouth shut. [That] is kinda my mentality right now.”
Two months before announcing her second pregnancy, Arnold revealed via Instagram that she would not return to the DWTS ballroom for season 31, calling the choice “one of the hardest decisions to make.”
Arnold went on to gush about her 10-plus years on the competition series while explaining that travel between Los Angeles, where the show is produced, and her family’s home in Utah was one of the main reasons she chose not to return. “This show has changed my life forever and will always mean the world to me,” she wrote in August 2022.
