Tyra Banks speaks out about her weight gain

[Natee471]

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 24, 2007 04:40 PM EST
"On her hit show America's Next Top Model, Tyra Banks has always stressed the importance of body confidence – but it still hurt when tabloids ran an unflattering photo of her in a bathing suit under headlines that screamed, "America's Next Top Waddle" and "Tyra Porkchop."

Now, for the first time in an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Banks, 33, is publicly discussing her much-buzzed-about weight gain. "I get so much mail from young girls who say, 'I look up to you, you're not as skinny as everyone else, I think you're beautiful,' " she says. "So when they say that my body is 'ugly' and 'disgusting,' what does that make those girls feel like?"

As for how Banks feels about her own 5'10" body – which she says is at 161 lbs. these days, about 30 lbs. heavier than when she landed on the cover of Sports Illustrated's swimsuit issue in 1997 – she says: "I still feel hot, but every day is different. It's when I put on the jeans that used to fit a year ago and don't fit now and give me the muffin top, that's when I say, 'Damn!' "

In other words, yes: She has put on weight, though not nearly as much as those recent tabloid stories suggested. (Banks believes the pix were snapped at an unflattering angle.) "She has a very womanly, gorgeous body that goes up and down," says her good friend Heidi Klum.

In fact, Banks says that since she retired from modeling in 2005, the number on the scale has fluctuated from 148 lbs. to 162 lbs., depending on how well she is taking care of herself. "I feel more comfortable when I'm lighter – I sleep better, I snore less, I have more endurance when I work out, my arms look better," she admits.

Still, she isn't freaking out about wearing size 32-waist jeans or about "the fat roll" she claims to have on her back. (Her biggest source of figure angst is her size-DD breasts, which she says make it hard to find clothes that fit: "I would love for them to be a size and a half smaller.")

But, she adds, "I've made millions of dollars with the body I have, so where's the pain in that? If I was in pain, I would have dieted. The pain is not there – the pain is someone printing a picture of me and saying those (horrible) things."

In fact, it appears that by adding a little padding, Banks the businesswoman has earned a bit of credibility: Her talk show is now entering its second season, and the most recent season of Top Model delivered its strongest ratings ever. "(TV execs) think it's better when I'm at 155 lbs. – at 145, they feel I'm not as relatable," she explains.

Besides, Banks is having a lot more fun these days eating the pancakes off a friend's plate at IHOP than trying to fit into designer sample sizes. Of course, if someone would come up with a miracle cure for cellulite, she's not above admitting she'd be first in line. "I think every woman," she says, "would want to do something about their cellulite!"

For the complete story, pick up the new issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands Friday.

Source:
http://www.people.com/people/article...009611,00.html

[Martirio]

Sounds good and honest.

[DitaPage*]

She's clever for what shes saying but I still cant stand her. Seeing her on the cover of a magazine makes me We know that image has been airbrushed anyway!

[o0Amber0o]

I love her, she's nuts.
I'm glad she did this, it's not like Tyra to just sit back and not say anything and I think she proved that by doing this article. I'm glad she's slapping the faces of people who consider that "fat" and maybe opening up some eyes as to why there's so much self esteem issues for girls today.

[sluce]

I am so happy to see this. My daughter is 13, is 5'10" and they still think she might hit 6ft. She weighs 138 and thinks she is fat because she compares herself to her friends who are jsut now hitting 5ft and 100 lbs.

[twitchy]

That weight for her height gives her a BMI that is still within a normal healthy range. That's not fat.

[Mira]

Thanks for pointing that out, and I agree with her that the camera's angle in those longshots was very unflattering.

[Dean James]

By all means Tyra, eat all the ho-hos, twinkies, and ding-dongs you want. Who cares.

[Laurent]

Tyra is NOT fat. She occasionally wears clothes that aren't flattering for her figure, but she's not fat.

[lalala]

It's not healthy to fluctuate in weight so much, it means you don't have a point of equilibrium, or that you pork out too much and then diet severely afterwards, it's not a model for young girls either

[Mira]

Totally, Laurent. But there are people here who think she is, no matter what. They're about to show up in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

[sweetness]

Don't know much about Tyra, but I like what she had to say here.

[flecjill]

Well thats great and all but she's lying. In 2005 I saw her show and got a magazine she was in and she said she weighed 150 lbs currently and 120 in her modeling days. 30 pounds. Ok she says she's 161 pounds. So thats a 41 lb gain, not 30. I also think she weighs more than 161 in that photo. I had a friend who at 5'8 weighed 160 and was pretty slender looking and wore a size 10. So she wears a 32 inch waist, anyone know what dress size that would be? She looks to me to be about 190 lbs, which at 5'10 sounds right if she wears a 32 inch waist.

[twitchy]

Originally Posted by flecjill

I also think she weighs more than 161 in that photo. I had a friend who at 5'8 weighed 160 and was pretty slender looking and wore a size 10. So she wears a 32 inch waist, anyone know what dress size that would be? She looks to me to be about 190 lbs, which at 5'10 sounds right if she wears a 32 inch waist.

I think that would depend on how the weight is distributed.

[AKAMissy]

Originally Posted by StayYoung&Pretty

She's clever for what shes saying but I still cant stand her. Seeing her on the cover of a magazine makes me We know that image has been airbrushed anyway!

Exactly. They have airbrushed the hell out of that photo.
Slim Tyra/Chunky Tyra, I don't like her.