Jennifer Love Hewitt: Leave Cheryl Burke Alone

By Lisa Ingrassia

10/29/2008 at 04:20 PM EDT

Jennifer Love Hewitt empathized with Cheryl Burke, calling scrutiny of the Dancing With the Stars competitor's body "really insensitive."

"Cheryl Burke is so beautiful and an amazing dancer and that's what people should concentrate on," Hewitt, 29, who last year fought back against criticism of her bikini body, said Wednesday on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

Burke, 24, was recently criticized by DWTS pros Louis Van Amstel and Maksim Chmerkovskiy for gaining a few pounds over the summer – to which the Ghost Whisperer star responds: "I think [people] feel like people don't have any feelings."

Hewitt, who has sported a noticeably slimmer physique, says she has been training for a marathon since last year.

"My body just changed," she says. "When you're running that much and working out like that, that's what happens. I was happy with myself in those photos, and I'm still happy."

RELATED GALLERY:
• Read more about Jennifer and Tyra's battle over their curves on the cover of PEOPLE!