DWTS: Battle of the Bulge!

There's a serious weight war going on backstage at Dancing with the Stars! Dancers Maksim Chmerkovskiy and Louis Van Amstel recently criticized fellow pros Lacey Schwimmer and Cheryl Burke for gaining weight – and now, the women are fighting back!

Maks, 28, kicked off the war of words, revealing in a recent interview, "When I first saw these women this season, I said, 'guys, you know the camera adds 10 pounds. You have to do something about this.'"

Louis, 36, added that they had to "deal with the consequences" of gaining weight. But the women insist to OK! that they look just fine! "You don't have to be a size zero to be beautiful," says Cheryl, 24. Weight, she says, "is a really sensitive subject, and it's important that women out there feel good about themselves."

Lacey, 20, who admits to making fast food runs with dance partner Lance Bass, tells OK!, "As a woman and a dancer, I am happy with the way I look. While it is unfortunate that two of my colleagues were compelled to express opinions about my body and the bodies of other talented women on DWTS, I suppose they are entitled to them."

In the meantime, Maks has admitted regret for speaking out about his co-stars, writing on his blog, "My comments were taken out of context. I apologize to both girls for I have nothing but respect for what they do on the show."

For the full scoop on DWTS's backstage weight war, pick up the new OK! – on newsstands everywhere!