Ashley Greene finds being physically fit to be "really empowering"

The 'Twilight' star - who is married to Paul Khoury - told PEOPLE: "I really wanted to focus on making sure that I gave myself enough rest for everything to go back into place, and made sure that I wasn't trying to jump back into where I was and hurting myself.

"I feel like there's this idea that you are cleared after eight weeks and you can just jump back in, and that is so far from the case. I think it's really damaging to a lot of people."

Ashley works out five times a week and thinks it's good for her mental health.

She shared: "My workout also depends on my baby. My life is her life now.

"Physically, we all want to look good, but I want to feel good - and mentally, I have to. It's just a really empowering thing as a woman."

Ashley previously admitted that she felt like an "alien" after giving birth.

Discussing her post-pregnancy fitness routine, Ashley told E! News: "I just had the goal of wanting to feel connected and like myself again.

"I felt like I was an alien in my own body for awhile. And I really wanted to feel like I had control again."

Ashley also insisted that she wasn't in a rush to regain her pre-pregnancy figure.

She said: "Would I like everything to be hard again and there to be no jiggle when I jump? Sure.

"But I'll probably get there in a year, versus saying, 'In three months I'm going to be back to where I was.' I think that's another key factor, is not putting an unrealistic expectation on things."