Bikini designer, Karina Irby, has shared why she is guilt-free about her extra post-Christmas kilos

An Australian influencer and swimwear designer has revealed why she doesn’t feel guilty for putting on a bit of weight over the holiday period. 

In a post to Instagram, Karina Irby, 32, from the Gold Coast, shared a bikini photo from October then another from December after putting on a few extra Christmas kilos.

‘Yeah I’m a little more bloated, a little more round, a little more heavier but I’m happy,’ she wrote. 

The body-positivity queen said she was looking forward to ‘physically kicking my own butt back into the best shape’ in 2022. 

‘Be your own motivation, they say,’ she finished the post.  

Many of her followers from across the world were quick to applaud her confidence in the comments.  

‘We have such similar body shapes and I love seeing you being normal!! It makes me want to love my body even more!! Keep it up!! Love all the way from Utah, USA,’ one woman wrote. 

‘Thank you for being so REAL and transparent. It’s super refreshing and much appreciated!’ said a second.

The body-positivity queen said she was looking forward to ‘physically kicking my own butt back into the best shape’ in 2022.

‘In the same boat, life is too short not to enjoy what you like , thanks for helping me learn to not be so hard on myself, you’re beautiful,’ commented a third.   

Karina is a successful swimwear designer with her business Moana Bikini and has 1.2million followers on Instagram thanks to her uplifting, body positive posts.  

In the past, she has hit back at internet trolls who called her a whale after she shared a video of herself dancing around her living room in her underwear.  

‘It says a lot about their character if they’re hiding online behind a fake or troll account and giving hell to someone who is just trying to make people feel good,’ she said.

‘I feel like if you know and feel you are in the right, then you should have the confidence and power to call out the haters and show the world who they really are.’

Karina Irby, who owns Moana Bikini, champions ‘real bodies’ and body positivity and has helped women all over the world learn to love the way they look

On top of the video Karina put one of the heartless comments, which started by telling the designer she ‘sucks’ and that the writer was ’embarrassed’ for her.  

‘No one wants to see fat chicks dancing poorly to the Macarena. Go for a jog and get a thigh gap, you whale,’ the cruel message read.

But instead of feeling bad about her body like the bully wanted Karina slammed them.

‘This is the absolute lowest form of bullying on the internet and I see them everywhere,’ she said.

 Before adding that they do have a huge impact on peoples mental health. 

‘It’s such a shame we can actually let these ghosts inside our minds. Stay strong. Shake it off. And have fun with it,’ she said.

‘I don’t want anyone to feel alone or lonely when they are going through or experiencing whatever struggles they might be facing.’ 

Karina often shows off pictures showing the difference between posed and unposed looks

She instead wants to encourage people to reach out and talk about their problems so they don’t feel isolated. 

‘Something that may feel isolating or alienating from your immediate peers, is actually so incredibly normal and there are other people around the world that you can connect with and normalise what you are going through,’ she said

And her fans were on her side – one said the trolls must be embarrassed by their own behaviour if they weren’t willing to show their faces.

Others called Karina a queen for showing self-love and turning her back on the negative comments.

‘I envy your resilience against these comments. I would literally fall apart if I got even a fraction of the hate comments about my body that you get. That’s why I follow you – so I can remember there is good and strength in the world,’ one woman said.

While another said Karina comes across as ‘confident and strong’ which is something they want to work on. 

‘It’s such a shame we can actually let these ghosts inside our minds. Stay strong. Shake it off. And have fun with it,’ she said

Karina often shares posed versus un-posed pictures to show off how bodies look very different when they are in their natural state.

In one such photo she admitted she wasn’t ‘feeling’ the selfie on the day but when she looked back at it she decided she looked ‘cute’.   

‘I also think it’s SO puppy important to share relaxed pics like this on socials because it’s a nice reminder bodies also look like this,’ she said.

She has also documented her battle with eczema, which can leave her skin sore and dry.