Jennifer Aniston Lost 30 Pounds in Her 20's

Jennifer Aniston just celebrated her 41st birthday, in a bikini in Mexico looking very lean and toned. But it's not a well-known story that when she was in her early 20's and trying to land good acting roles in Hollywood, her agent suggested she lose some weight. She went ahead and lost a reported 30 pounds. See the story about this here.

Milla Jovovich Loses 70 Pounds

Milla Jovovich, age 33, gained 70 pounds during her first pregnancy. She gave birth in November 2007 and it's taken her a year of hard work to get back in shape and back to her previous slim weight. She did it with diet and lots of exercise. She says "I worked my big, little butt off." See her story and larger before and after pictures at Fox News.

Adriana Lima Gains a Few Pounds

Here's a couple of photos of Adriana Lima getting outfitted for the Victoria Secret's 2006 Fashion Show. It looks like she's put on a few pounds recently. See her earlier this year on the GQ cover. It's refreshing to see a supermodel who isn't stick-thin.

Ugly Betty talks about Appearances

Beautiful America Ferrera, who stars in the very popular new sitcom "Ugly Betty" (produced by Salma Hayek) was interviewed a few years ago and had this to say about appearances;

So, definitely, just growing up in America, whether you're skinny or not there's just way too much attention placed on the way we look. It overshadows more important things in life like loving yourself, loving who your are and finding yourself on the inside. Not just what kind of clothes you like to wear and who's your favorite designer. My generation, you ask a kid, they'll definitely know who made the shoes they're wearing and what shirt they like. But they can't answer, who's your favorite artist? Or what's you're favorite book? They can say (they) love this magazine or this...singer. Or "I wish I looked like this person." But they know so little about themselves.

Beyonce Wears a Spanx Girdle?

It's interesting to see that even young celebrities with perfect bodies are wearing the modern equivalent of girdles - SPANX - when they want to cinch the waist and slim the hips.

But no one uses the word 'girdles' anymore. These evolved girdles are called 'slimming shapewear'.

Here's a photo (taken by Splash News) of Beyonce Knowles in what appears to be SPANX tummy control nylons. It's made of a special spandex weave giving "seamless, leg-shaping support." And it's designed "with a soft, nonbinding waistband."

This photo of Beyonce will probably be a bigger boost for the SPANX company than any advertising they've done in their short but successful history to date.

Kate Bosworth Losing Excessive Weight

Kate Bosworth is getting scary skinny. Here's a recent photo (June 2006) of her promoting the world premiere of 'Superman Returns' in Los Angeles. She really is way too skinny here to be optimally attractive.

Last year in February 2005 Bosworth was quoted as saying she would like to add more weight to her frame. At that point she said she weighed 115 pounds. What's her height? She is 5'7" tall.

And what is her weight speculated to be at now? According to US Weekly Bosworth weighs about 105 pounds now. She eats lots of veggies, fruits and protein and exercises by walking with her dog. US Weekly also says she drinks a lot of herbal teas and takes wheat grass shots.

Bosworth, 23, is on her way to becoming a superstar. The Superman movie is her biggest yet, but there will undoubtedly be more huge roles in the near future. Her other movie appearances include Bee Season (2005), Beyond the Sea (2004), Win a Date with Tad Hamilton! (2004), Advantage Hart (2003)' Wonderland (2003),The Rules of Attraction (2002), Blue Crush (2002),Remember the Titans (2000),Young Americans (2000) TV Episode, The Newcomers (2000), and The Horse Whisperer (1998).

Just in the last year or so, there has been a high-profile and dangerous trend with Hollywood celebrities looking increasingly like skinny skeletons. Hopefully one of these A-list young celebrity females will take a stand on this issue soon. Otherwise it could have very serious repercussions for the rise in eating disorders amongst young women.

Vince Vaughn Motivated to Lose Weight?

Vince Vaughn says he reached a body mass index of thirty in preparing for his role in "The Break-Up. The role called for him to pack on an extra 50 pounds. Vaugh is a big guy. Although I haven't been able to find his weight anywhere, his height is recorded as 6'5''. If his BMI reached 30 (which is the borderline between overweight and obese), he must have weighed somewhere in the range of 255 pounds.

Vaugn says that it wasn't easy for him to put on the excess weight. But he focused on eating deep fried foods, super size portions and avoiding exercise. Above is a photo of him from the Break-Up movie set. He doesn't look like he's verging on obesity to me here.

We don't know how much weight Vaughn has lost since shooting the movie. But now there are rumors that he wants to lose all his excess weight before he weds Jennifer Aniston. At his height he should weigh somewhere between 165 and 212 to be in the normal weight range according to BMI calculations. Sometimes I wonder about these BMI calculations. I'd think that a 6'5" man weighing 165 pounds would look rather skeletal?

Stay posted here for any news on Vaughn's weight loss efforts.

Brandy Norwood's Eating Disorder

It looks like Brandy Norwood, 27, will need to get used to vast media attention again soon. She is scheduled to replace Star Jones on The View beginning this Wednesday. If she does well, she'll be offered the contract to co-host the View.

Brandy has had a serious eating disorder in the past. She was most likely anorexic for a couple of years when she was in her teens. At one point while on the set of Moesha, she had to be rushed to the hospital for a three day stay which was described as due to 'dehydration and exhaustion'. There were rumors that she had taken too many diet pills, but this is apparently untrue, Brandy may have been anorexic but she did not take diet pills. Apparently at one point her weight got as low as 105 pounds.

Later Brandy took part in hosting a segment on BodyWise; an initiative to encourage young girls to have better self-esteem about their bodies and to educate young women on the dangers of eating disorders. Here she told young girls that "eating the right foods and staying active are ways to stay fit. It isn't what others say about you, it's what you say and do to yourself".... "Being active, like playing a sport, dancing, or exercising are all ways you can keep fit. I take tae-bo classes to maintain a healthy body and spirit."

See the BodyWise page about eating disorders here.

Brandy became famous at a very young age. The pressure and stress must have been partly responsible for her near breakdown and for her decision to leave the limelight for about three years during her early twenties. But during this time, there was little rest either, as she got married, had a baby and got divorced all before the age of 25.

Hopefully this next phase of her dance in the public limelight will go very well for her. I hope she doesn't succumb to pressures to have more cosmetic surgery (just veneers so far I think) or lose even more weight.

Best wishes to Brandy on The View!

Update January 2007: Brandy Norwood was involved in a horrific car crash three weeks ago. She was driving on the Los Angeles freeway when her Land Rover rear-ended another car. The woman in the other car died from the accident after another car hit her because her car veered into another lane. Now Brandy is being sued for manslaughter and $50 million dollars by the woman's family.

What Does Gwyneth Paltrow Eat?

Gwyneth Paltrow likes to eat lots of vegetables, brown rice and fish. All organic if possible. She has given an easy fish recipe to Oprah which I'd like to try cooking soon.

It involves only three ingredients; white fish (like flounder), miso paste and mirin sauce.

Cooking it only takes 20 minutes. If you're looking for a healthy and easy way to cook fish, check out Gwyneth Paltrow's fish recipe 'Flounder with Miso Sauce' on Oprah's site.

Angelina Jolie's Post-Baby Weight Loss

Apparently Angelina Jolie, 31, only gained twenty five pounds during her first pregnancy. She doesn't have much weight to lose to get back in shape.

What is her height and how much did she weigh prior to pregnancy? According to info I found online she is 5'7" tall or (170 cm). And her weight has been publicized as being about 129 pounds pre-pregnancy. The picture of her shown here was taken quite a few years ago to promote the movie 'Tomb Raider'.

According to The Sun, Angelina Jolie is not dieting to get back in shape. At least not this early after the baby's birth. Rather she is stepping up her yoga practice and is said to be drinking African ginger root and garlic tea as a natural weight loss aide. She's also breastfeeding and this usually helps the baby weight come off faster.

If she only gained twenty five pounds, once the baby was born she would have immediately lost at least ten pounds (a seven pound baby, a placenta, and related birth weight loss usually adds up to at least twelve pounds). So she really only needs to lose ten to fifteen pounds to get back to pre-pregnancy shape.

Angelina Jolie has always had a very slim build and it's likely she will be one of the lucky body types who has no problem regaining her pre-pregnancy shape. At least not till the second pregnancy.

Update: August 2006. Here's a photo of Jolie on Maddox's 5th birthday. She looks like she's lost all the post baby weight already.

Is Ronaldo Fat?

Ronaldo, the international soccer star from Brazil, and one of the best all-time soccer players ever, is being called flabby and overweight in the media these days. His performance in the current World Cup has not been impressive so far.

Ronaldo will turn 30 in September. His height is 6'0" and according to the FIFA World Cup site he weighs 82 kilograms or 181 pounds. This would give him a BMI of 24.5. Just on the borderline between normal weight and overweight. The Body Mass Index says you are in the normal range of weight if your BMI is between 18.5 and 24.9. Considering Ronaldo probably has a lot more heavier muscle (versus fat) than the typical guy, he could not officially be called overweight by any stretch of the imagination but the press is unkind and they are calling him flabby and are flabbergasted at his sluggish performance.

Ronaldo suffered an injury which put him out for most of April and May. He's also been suffering in his personal life as his second marriage recently fell apart. He has been complaining about dizzy spells and has gone to the hospital several times for tests, though nothing abnormal has been found. The Brazilian coach has not lost hope in Ronaldo and will have him star on the starting team again in the next World Cup game.

Update: How much does Ronaldo really weigh? According to his website, he weighs 86 kilograms, which is 190 pounds. This could be outdated info compared to the FIFA records.