Poor Lady GaGa got slammed with belly fat-shaming after her Super Bowl LI halftime show. But hints at weight loss were lost on the "Bad Romance" singer for a "Million Reasons." Instead of lashing out, the celebrity returned the hating with love and encouraged others in body love as well. The "cover the fat" wisecracks had the reverse effect, spurring a spate of belly-baring (muffin top and all) on social media.

Lady GaGa dares to bare imperfect stomach

The singer (born Joanne Germanotta) was covered in glory after her halftime show at Super Bowl LI.

But there were the inevitable haters who had to find fault somewhere. They tried attacking Lady GaGa for "copying" singer Pink's flying stunt. But that backfired when Pink came out gushing that GaGa "killed" her performance. They tried making fun of the "Paparazzi" singer's "belly fat," but that was ridiculed in turn, as even non-fans rallied to GaGa's defense. Many said they'd love to be as "fat" as Lady GaGa.

Lady GaGa 'Born This Way' and proud of it

GaGa's song "Born This Way" is as shout-out to love being LGBT but also to anything a person is born with -- skin color, appearance, body size, disability. It's a call to be "relentlessly you" whatever your race, religion, sexual orientation, country of origin, language or gender.

If you happen to have a bigger body, celebrate it. Is the singer advocating obesity or unhealthy living? No. But positive body image is part of healthy living. She said on Instagram after Super Bowl LI that one shouldn't change one's body to please others. She's calling out skewed priorities that drive people to anorexia, crash dieting, eating disorder behavior, plastic surgery, and weight loss obsession.

Lady GaGa inspires social media stomach sharing

After the belly fat backlash, tons of celebrities and a lot of regular folk said they loved the "Poker Face" singer's courage. They praised her for having the guts to show her gut with a bit of jiggle.

Women began posting images of their untoned (even "obese") tummies on Twitter. They shared cellulite on Snapchat and imperfections on Facebook and other social media sites. The outpouring of body love was affirming. You can see more of Lady GaGa at the Grammy's performing with Metallica.
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