Kate Ritchie: My Best Body Ever!

Kate Ritchie. Credit: Peter Brew-Bevan for WHO magazine

Ahead of her much-anticipated return to Home and Away following a five-year hiatus, Kate Ritchie has revealed how persistence and improved confidence have helped her achieve her best-ever body.

Just weeks shy of her 35th birthday, Ritchie sizzles in her sexiest shoot yet, showing off her Pilates-honed form in a parade of body-baring outfits. But the Sydney-raised actress, who grew up on national TV amid her 20 year run on Home and Away, admits confidence hasn't always come naturally to her.

"I was the awkward, pudgy teenager, but I've slowly grown into who I am now," Ritchie, now a size 8, tells WHO. "I look back at those old tapes and I think 'Oh my goodness'. I did have a really hard time during puberty. But it's made me who I am. It's nice to feel like the most positive thing I can do is to be the best version of me."

To read Kate's full interview -- plus see more exclusive photos -- be sure to pick up this week's WHO - on sale now!

Additionally, Ritchie -- who married former NRL player turned chef Stuart Webb in 2010 -- opens up about marriage and her plans for motherhood.

"I get ladies coming up to me in the supermarket and saying: 'Did I read you were having a baby?'" Ritchie says. While she says having a family isn't a priority just yet, Ritchie and Webb are both looking forward to having a brood of their own. "It will be a great day when I'm pregnant, but it will happen when it's meant to happen."

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