Carrie Underwood Opens Up About Self-Image Issues & Her Post-Baby Body

It's been a decade since Carrie Underwood rose to the top of American Idol and won over the hearts — and ears — of music fans across the nation. But, even though her career was on the verge of taking off, one thing the singer remembers is that she wasn't happy with her body at the time. "I knew that I weighed more than I had ever weighed before," Underwood told People in this week's cover story, adding that she made some tweaks to her routine to start dropping weight. "People immediately go, 'You look so great!'" she went on. "Then you start wondering, ‘How bad did I look before?’ Then it’s like, ‘Well, I guess I should keep on going.’ Then you start eating less." Though she admits to using weight-loss products containing ephedra when she slimming down, she also told the magazine that she never really had a disordered eating problem. "I wasn’t eating enough calories, but it wasn’t because I was trying to starve myself. I just didn’t know how many calories I should be eating.” Today, the new mom says she wishes she could re-educate her past self on healthier ways to lose weight — but, she's also trying to just enjoy the new shape she's in. In fact, Underwood is fully embracing her post-pregnancy body, saying that she actually prefers some of the shifts in physique. “I weigh more than I did when I was at my smallest, but I have a lot more muscle tone,” she explained. She also shared that she feels "leaner" after her C-section in February of this year. "It’s really strange the way my body has reacted to exercise after having him. I feel like my bum’s a little nicer than it used to be.” One thing that she knows won't be getting back into pre-baby shape, though? The little lucky clover tattoo on her abdomen that got sliced during her son's birth. “It’s not really a four-leaf clover anymore, it’s a multi-leaf. It doesn’t match up with the top!" We're sure it was worth the tradeoff for a healthy kiddo.