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Tyra Banks' Biggest Modeling Struggle: "I Was Black and Curvy"

Mandi Illuzzi — Thu, 29 May 2008 13:23:08 -0400

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She says her agency once made a list: "Designers who will not book Tyra because of hips and breasts"

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In this weekend's New York Times Magazine, Tyra Banks reflects on the struggles she faced as a model.

"My biggest obstacle was that I was black and curvy," admits the Inglewood, California, native, now 34, who began posing in the 11th grade.

Take a look back at other famous 90s models.

Around the mid-90s — after hitting the runway in Paris and taking a stab at swimsuit modeling — she began putting on some weight.

She says her agency once made a list titled, "Designers who will not book Tyra because of hips and breasts."

They even had a meeting with Banks' mother, urging her to put her daughter on a diet.

"My mother told me the whole thing as we were walking down the street in Milan," Banks said. "She said, ‘They say you’re too curvy. Let’s go order pizza.’ We walked into a pizzeria, and we discussed a career change."

After launching the hit CW show America's Next Top Model and hosting her own talk show, Banks — who has a net worth of around $75 million — says she still receives digs over her size.

She remembers when an unflattering photo of her in a one-piece bathing suit from a 2006 trip to Australia hit the web. (Banks later wore the suit on her talk show to confront critics.) See photos of bathing suit scandals.

"It really made me angry," she says. "What bothered me is that they were saying there’s something wrong with a woman’s body if she’s not super-skinny.

"I did not shed tears," Banks adds, "but I called my talk show and said, ‘I want to say, loud and clear, 'You can kiss my fat ass.''"

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Carnie Wilson: I Have Not Gained 79 Pounds!

Mandi Illuzzi — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 15:00:49 -0400

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She slams a tabloid report that says she plans on having another gastric bypass

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Carnie Wilson is slamming the National Enquirer for claiming that she has gained 79 pounds and plans to have another gastric bypass.

"If I'm 205 today, that means I am up 70 pounds," she revealed in a candid interview about her weight battle on Good Morning America Thursday. 79 pounds, she said, "is an outright lie.

"It is very hard being in the public eye, being scrutinized for every pound," she added.

"They're saying I'm going to have liposuction, another gastric bypass to have a baby," she went on. "It's laughable."

Nine years ago, Wilson, now 39, underwent gastric bypass after ballooning to 300 pounds.

About 16 months after the procedure, she was down to 148 pounds.

Wilson — who has struggled with her weight since age 4 — said she packed the pounds back on while pregnant with her daughter Lola, who was born in 2005.

"A gastric bypass patient needs follow rules," Wilson said. "I fell off the bandwagon when I was pregnant... my eating habits changed.

"For me, it was about snacking," she added. "Somebody can consume a certain amount of calories, and if they don't burn the calories, that equals weight gain."

The Enquirer stands by its story that Wilson is planning on having another surgery, but Wilson said she is losing pounds through rigid exercise.

She said her ideal weight is "somewhere between 150 and 170."

Exercising is not easy, she admitted: "When I am on the treadmill, I am thinking about lunch."

But Wilson (who wants another baby) said, "I am committed to this, to my health, whether I am 300 or 200 or 150 [pounds].

Her weight, she said, "will always be a battle — surgery or no surgery.

"I am committed to my daughter. I want to be a light of hope for her," she added. "[I'm not saying] you need to be a size 6 ... you need to be healthy. That is the message I want to give to her."

Click here to see Us Weekly's Weight Winners of the Year.

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Carnie Wilson is spotted jogging on March 24, 2008 near her home in Los Angeles, California.

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Shar Jackson Defends Kevin Federline's Weight Gain

Mandi Illuzzi — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 12:07:07 -0500

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"It's daddy weight!" she says

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K-Fed ... or overfed?

New uncle Kevin Federline appeared to have packed on the pounds after hitting a Los Angeles golf course Friday.

But his ex Shar Jackson says his fuller figure is the result of being a full-time Mr. Mom.

"It's daddy weight!" she tells Usmagazine.com. "When you are a full time parent, sometimes you can't focus on you.

"If gaining a few pounds is your only problem, life's not too bad!"

Adds his rep, "He’s a stay-at-home dad, and people tend to gain weight when they are home with the kids. He's very happy with the way he looks.”

Federline was awarded sole custody of Sean Preston, 2, and Jayden James, 17 months, in January.

He told Details last year that he has fully embraced fatherhood.

“To be a father is ... everything," the rapper — No. 7 on Details’ Top 50 Power Players — said. "It shows me how little I am.”

Click here to see Us' Weight Winners of the Year.

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February 29, 2008

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Lauren Conrad, LeAnn Rimes Top Us' Weight Winners of the Year List

Alissa R — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 15:00:33 -0500

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Conrad (six mini-meals a day), Rimes ("constantly working out") and other stars tell Us their diet secrets for 2008

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Have a New Year's resolution to get fit, get healthy and lose weight?

In the new issue of Us Weekly, stars share their diet and fitness secrets that can help make your shape great in 2008.

In a 23-page bonus section in the magazine, stars such as The Hills' Lauren Conrad, American Idol's Kimberly Locke and Dancing With the Stars' Samantha Harris, reveal how they recently have dropped stubborn pounds.

Entourage star Debi Mazar lost 80 lbs. after her pregnancy with Pilates and portion control; LeAnn Rimes has a protein-rich diet and works out with her dancer husband, while Conrad sticks to a daily 1,500-calorie diet of six mini-meals and twice-weekly weight lifting and treadmill sessions.

How did Idol finalist Locke drop four dress sizes? What other stars made Us' list for top weight winners and what are Hollywood's hot new diets? Check out the latest issue of Us Weekly on newsstands now.

Click here to see Us' Weight Winners of the Year.

Tell Us: Which celebrity's weight loss is most inspiring?

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Lily Allen Diagnosed With Heart Murmur

Alissa R — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 09:53:04 -0500

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The Brit singer says her sudden weight loss is the result of exercise from the health scare

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Singer Lily Allen says she was diagnosed with a heart murmur about three months ago.

The Brit, 22 — who dropped from a UK size 12 to a size eight in six weeks — told Grazia magazine her sudden weight loss is the result of exercise following the health scare, not because she wanted to be "some skinny minnie.

"I used to love nothing more than sitting in front of the telly with two packets of Ginger Nuts and two bags of milk-bottle sweets — and I'd devour the lot," she told Grazia.

"But this heart thing has made me cut back on all that kind of crap," she added. "I now find that, because I am looking after myself, I don't feel like eating the bad stuff so much."

Though she's put boozing on the backburner, she admitted, "I should also give up smoking, but haven't quite managed that yet."

A heart murmur is often harmless but can also indicate a hole in the heart or a heart valve problem.

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Lily Allen arriving at the Swarovski Fashion Rocks on October 18, 2007 in London, England.

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Britney's Vital Stats Revealed!

Colleen — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 00:01:22 -0400

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The pop star’s booking sheet says she is 5’5" and weighs 125 lbs

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Britney Jean Spears will from now on be known to the LA County Sheriff’s Department as case #1020419.

What else can we learn from her brief stint Monday night inside the LAPD's Van Nuys station?

The 5’5” singer currently weighs 125 lbs, her hair is brown and so are her eyes. She was officially arrested at 9:25 on Monday, October 15, and booked just one minute later.

The 25-year-old did not have to post bail and was released on her own recognizance, and told to appear back in court on October 25.

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Britney Spears at Rite Aid in West Hollywood on October 14, 2007

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Us Poll: Are Celebs Too Thin?

Noelle Hancock — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 11:09:04 -0400

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On Access Hollywood recently, Kate Bosworth blamed her shrinking frame on heartbreak.

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Many stars have confessed to following brutal diet plans or just plain starving themselves. Gwen Stefani has said of prepping for a Vogue cover shoot, "I feel like if I don't eat, I might lose one more pound. But I'm starving...I have to stop myself from eating."

Not eating is becoming standard behavior for actresses and singers, especially when an awards show, cover shoot or coveted role comes into play. Kate Winslet has said that before her nude scene in All The Kings Men, "I starved myself for a week because I was completely paranoid about the whole thing!"

Beyonce has said of dropping 20 pounds for Dreamgirls on the Master Cleanse diet, "It was so difficult. I was starving for six months."

Elizabeth Hurley has said her diet plan before a bikini shoot "meant going to bed quite hungry and crying."

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Gwen Stefani performing on June 23, 2007 in California. Elizabeth Hurley Launches Jordache at Macy's Herald Square on February 1, 2007.

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Angelina Jolie: Then and Now

Alissa R — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 18:07:14 -0400

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The stunning actress boasted a more voluptuous appearance at the premiere of 2004's Alexander.

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Angelina Jolie's weight hit an all-time low recently on the set of her new film Wanted. The stunning actress boasted a more voluptuous appearance at the premiere of 2004's Alexander. Has she gone too far?

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Angelina Jolie at the Premiere of "Alexander" in Los Angeles, California on November 16, 2004; Angelina Jolie films her new movie "Wanted" in Chicago, Illinois on August10, 2007.

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Star Jones Reynolds Finally Admits to Gastric Bypass Surgery

Noelle Hancock — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 10:50:21 -0400

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After years of speculation, Star Jones Reynolds admits to evading questions about her weight-loss surgery and opens up about how she dropped 160 pounds in three years.

In a first-person essay in the September issue of Glamour, the former View cohost confesses that she underwent gastric bypass surgery on August 19, 2003, after her weight reached an all-time high of 307 pounds.

Reynolds, 45, reveals that she decided to seek medical help for her weight problem after a close friend sat her down and asked, “So, what are we going to do about your weight?”

See excerpts below from Reynolds’ essay as she talks about her battle with obesity and how her life has changed since the surgery.

On keeping her surgery a secret:
“I admit that when asked about my obvious weight loss over the past four years, I was intentionally evasive. Lying was never an option for me, so I called it a ‘medical intervention,’ which was true, but it was really a pathetic attempt to tell only the truth I could handle at the time.”

“First, I didn’t know if the surgery would work. I had never stuck to a diet or committed to exercise for more than a month, and I had spent my entire adult life telling everyone that I was fine with the way I looked…I was also terrified someone would have a tragic result after emulating me without making an informed decision with her doctor.”

On comfort food:
“Whenever I felt lonely, a Double Whopper cheeseburger became my friend. If I felt sad, six strips of bacon made me feel better…but I convinced myself I was phat, not fat.”

On facing the truth:
“I was so angry. How had I allowed myself to get to 307 pounds? I could clearly remember the days when I’d considered myself fly and curvaceous. Funny – or sad – how we ‘thick’ girls can justify being excessively overweight.”

On growing up heavy:
“While I thank my parents for the confidence they managed to instill in me, in hindsight I wish I had shouted: ‘Put that fork down and get active!’”

On being overweight:
“I pretended not to see how big I was getting – but not only did I see it, I was disgusted by it. I also pretended not to see the side looks and smirks from friends and strangers, or to comprehend the backhanded compliments I often received, such as ‘You have such a pretty face.’”

On what she’s learned from the experience:
“I’m not saying that in order to be happy, women need to be a certain size, but I am saying that we should all strive to be healthy.”

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Star Jones Reynolds of Court TV's "Star Jones" during the Turner Summer TCA press tour in Beverly Hills, CA. July 15, 2007.

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Nick Carter Reclaims Teenage Physique

Noelle Hancock — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 09:24:09 -0400

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This Backstreet Boy is back all right! After tipping the scale at 224 pounds seven months ago, Nick Carter, 27, decided it was time to get in shape.

“I’d become depressed,” he tells Us. “Something deep down inside of me said, I’m tired of being this person, and I’m a good-looking guy!”

Check out Usmagazine.com's exclusive video right now to see how he lost over 44 pounds!

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Tyra Banks' Biggest Modeling Struggle: "I Was Black and Curvy"

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Carnie Wilson: I Have Not Gained 79 Pounds!

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Shar Jackson Defends Kevin Federline's Weight Gain

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Lauren Conrad, LeAnn Rimes Top Us' Weight Winners of the Year List

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Lily Allen Diagnosed With Heart Murmur

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Britney's Vital Stats Revealed!

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