Jupiter Images

Think the all-girls clubs of Curves fitness centers really make getting fit any easier, better or more fun? Our reviewer says, "The workout itself is also not as innovative as it claims to be. You could just as well join a gym that offers a variety of machines and create your own routine by jumping from any machine to any machine every thirty seconds." Plus, the experts he's interviewed aren't sure the "Curves" diet books are really so healthy. Of course, the writer is a guy... Read the full Curves Diet review here.

Scarlett Johansson is probably as well known for her curvaceous figure as for her body of work. In fact, just last month she was quoted in "In Touch" as saying she'd never dieted and or set foot inside a gym. It's not like she always sat around eating cookies -- she has simply made a point to eat well and walk a lot, at least, until now.

Suddenly, ScarJo (who was recently named as the first celeb ambassador to Moet champagne -- bet she's not drinking much of that!) is noticeably slimmer, and was overheard talking to fellow actress Thandie Newton about the rigid diet she's currently following, apparently in order to get ready for "Iron Man 2." I don't know about you, but I have a hard time imagining any director asking Scarlett to lose weight.

Truthfully, the right bra and makeup can make a pretty big difference, but I don't think there's any denying that there's now less of Scarlett to love. She doesn't look unhealthy, but she definitely looks different, as is pretty evident above (the picture on left is from this past December while the one on the right was taken last week).

What do you think about Scarlett's new body?

Source

Liz Neporent is a diet and fitness expert and author of 12 fitness bestsellers. She regularly appears on national TV programs and is the president of Wellness 360, a New-York based wellness provider.

I was at the gym the other day and watched as a trainer placed his client in front of a large ball and then had her balance one foot on top of the ball while holding a bar up over her head and dipping down into a lunge. As she struggled mightily to prevent a chain reaction of the ball rolling away, falling flat on her face and becoming the object of ridicule by all who watched, the trainer was oblivious. He was blah-blahing away about how this exercise was so "functional" and how important it is for movement to be functional and how functional is so much better than non-functional and functional, functional, functional ...

Just then it hit me why so many people are turned off by exercise.

Once you hit the Hollywood scene, the pressure is high to be as thin as the next girl -- and, let's face it, the next girl often looks like a famine victim. But Gemma Arterton refuses to cave to the Hollywood ideal. The respected actress, who gained fame in the states by playing a Bond girl in "Quantum of Solace" and later earned her fair share of criticism after she gained weight once filming had wrapped, has recently said that she likes her new curves and plans on keeping them.

"I refuse to conform to this muscly, sinewy look that so many actresses seem to think is attractive," says the 23-year-old actress, adding, "I hate it and I don't think it's very feminine."

Good for her. Now can you pass the message onto other actresses Gemma? Please and thanks.

Source

Ashlee Simpson-Wentz is disgusted about her sister's weight. Well, it's the media frenzy about Jessica Simpson's extra curves that has Ashlee so mad. "Since when did a woman's weight become newsworthy," asks Ashlee. Got news for you, Ash: Since a long time ago. Not that it's right. Or fair. Or nice. It just is.

"I am completely disgusted by the headlines concerning my sister's weight," Ashlee writes on her website. "A week after the inauguration and with such a feeling of hope in the air for our country, I find it completely embarrassing and belittling to all women to read about a woman's weight or figure as a headline on Fox News."

The fat talk began just a few days ago after Jessica appeared at Sunday's Kiss Country Chili Cookout in Pembroke Pines, Florida, sporting high-waisted jeans that were not as flattering as her Daisy Dukes once were (check out a photo right here). And not only did the star belt out some country songs at this event, she also belted those tight-fitting jeans and her black tank top with some double-buckle thing. Maggie told us all about it the other day. And now, we're hearing from little sis: "All women come in different shapes, sizes, and forms and just because you're a celebrity, there shouldn't be a different standard," says Ashlee. I agree. It's actually a welcome vision for me -- seeing a celebrity look more like an average woman than a starving one. So what if Jessica Simpson has a few extra curves? I surely don't care. Do you?

Source

Jessica Simpson worked awfully hard to look hot in those Daisy Dukes. But keeping a body like that has proved to be unsustainable for Jess. And, she doesn't seem to care.

Last weekend, the newly minted country crooner performed at a concert wearing high-waisted jeans and a double belt. Though I think she's still beautiful, the outfit wasn't doing her any favors.

With some more flattering clothes, Jessica's curves probably look as sexy as she feels. Her weight gain hasn't hurt her confidence at all. Jessica said, "Curves are better. I don't get the whole rail thing. It's not good for your heart, it's not good for your mind; it's emotionally destructive, it really is."

Source

No one can make a would-be singer cry quite like Simon Cowell -- he's more of a self-esteem buster than a booster. But one wannabe songstress on the hit British show X-Factor claims that subjecting herself to Cowell's harsh scrutiny --and on-screen flirtations-- has actually been really good for her self-confidence.

"I was so flattered that he thought I was beautiful," says recent contestant Ruth Lorenzo. "I've always thought I was fat and been very self-conscious about my appearance ... I never thought I was attractive." OK, I can see that. Having one of the world's meanest men say something nice about you has got to feel pretty good.

However, she's not too attached to her curves -- she happily adds that the rigorous schedule of the show has helped her trim down a clothing size: "I call it the X Factor diet, all I did was rehearse, rehearse, rehearse. My clothes are baggy on me now, it's great!"

Source

Contrary to what fashion magazines and celebrities might lead us to believe, we don't need to cut down on our curves. We just need to dress them up, like this.

• Dress for your true size, not what you want to be or once were.
  
• Dress from the inside out, starting with a well-fitting bra and shapewear to smooth your lumps and bumps.
  
• Skim your body with high-waist, wide trousers and A-line or flared skirts. No clingy stuff.
• Don't cover your curves with big clothes. They make you look, well, big.
  
• End your skirts just before or under the kneecap to lengthen your legs.
• Make your jackets short and fitted to flatter your legs and your waist.
• Avoid elastic waistbands, because while they may be comfortable, they add bulk to your midsection.
• Keep necklines open with a deep V- or scoop-necks.
  
• Use belts to cinch in your waist.
• Counterbalance your wide feet with wide heels, because thin heels draw attention to wide feet.

How do you dress your curves?

Source

Jennifer Hudson, the breakout star of Dreamgirls and Sex and the City, is an inspiration to all of us real girls who have curves. But is she going to pull a Nicole Richie and suddenly get all scary skinny on us? Not likely, says Hudson in the recent issue of OK Magazine: "I eat as best as I can to maintain my thickness. I don't want to be too thin, so it's OK not to work out every once in awhile if you want to maintain this," says the actress.

On her healthy habits, she adds, "Moving around a lot is enough exercise, so I eat right ... Normally I eat a little trail mix in the morning, and a salad at lunch, and chicken and vegetables for dinner. What I cannot fight is chocolate chip cookies. It always wins."

It certainly sounds like she has a healthy body image. Your thoughts?

(via Fit Celeb)

Source

Over the past few years, the fashion industry has received a fair amount of criticism for using too many skeleton-thin models. And it seems they're paying attention and trying to 'beef-up' -- well, if the recent New York Fashion week is any indication anyway. Nian Fish, the chair of fashion designers health initiative is insisting that all models used in the various shows were size 2 or 4 -- not 0 or 00, as was the previous standard. "I think there's progress," says Fish, "The girls are still slim. We didn't want them not to be slim. We wanted a projection of health"

Still, the fashion industry is a long way from embracing curves. "Thin is going to be the ruling look -- until someone says, 'I want voluptuous,'" said Fish. "I don't know if that ever is going to come back." And in London, plans to make models pass a health examination were dropped because of not enough international support.

Your thoughts?

Source

She says she wants to get her booty into shape for Dancing with the Stars. But Kim Kardashian will have to get a lot of exercise -- because she ain't gonna diet, according to a recent Interview with OK Magazine. 'I don't ever really diet because I don't want to be miserable. I love food,' says the 27-year-old star and self-proclaimed junk food addict, despite vowing to eat healthier in 2008.

And eat she does. At a recent photo shoot, she apparently wolfed down a taco, a cheeseburger, a hot dog, KFC and two donuts. She defends her eating habits by saying, 'I'm not your typical stick-skinny model. There are super-skinny girls doing ad campaigns and I don't think it's realistic. I don't like that [skinny] body image.'

I think it's great that she's showing the world that real women have curves, but her junk food-laden lunch menu is less than impressive. Yuck.

(Via Celebrity Diet Doctor)

Source

A few months ago, Anna Kournikova participated in part of a triathlon, and there was a lot of press about her body. Well, okay, so there's always a lot of press about Anna's body, but this time, it was about the distinct lack of curves -- she looked leaner than we were used to seeing her, though I maintain that she still looked healthy and athletic.

Now, her body is once again (still?) making headlines, this time because she seems to have regained the curves that made her so famous. Come on, you know she didn't become this well-known through tennis alone!

She's spoken to the media several times regarding weight loss, and has always insisted that it fluctuates with her training. And, the thing is, a lot of the difference in her physique seems to have something to do with the bra she's wearing -- a sports bra can keep lots of women from looking their curviest.

Source

You know I'm not talking about Posh when I say there's a Spice Girl who likes her curves -- does Posh even have a curve? Nope. It's Baby Spice Emma Bunton who remarks that she doesn't think she'd look very good thin.

"I like being curvy," says the new mom of almost one year who just isn't someone to obsess about her figure 24/7. That doesn't mean she wasn't concerned about fitting into her skimpy Spice Girl outfits after having her baby boy, though. Breastfeeding and lots of walking helped get her into shape and she's careful about what she eats too -- no carbs on this girl's dinner menu.

When she's in the mood to indulge, Baby Spice says she does love chips, Coke, a great wine, and Chinese food. Cheers to a woman who knows what she likes, curves included.

Source

Hilary Duff has had her weight scrutinized over the last few years -- for a while there, she was scarily thin -- but she seems to have a healthy amount of muscle and some feminine curves now, and she gives some of the credit to Pilates.

The erstwhile Lizzie McGuire actress told People magazine, "I was a gymnast before, so I was a bit more bulky in the past. [Now] I have leaner, longer muscles, my strength is up."

Looks to me like she's found a great balance of healthy eating and exercise -- perhaps due in part to her relationship with a professional hockey player. At any rate, it's great to see her looking strong and healthy!

Source

It often seems like Hollywood's leading ladies get sucked into the "thinner is better" mentality, but not Charlize Theron. The A-list actress gained almost 30 pounds for her Oscar-winning role in Monster, but she also lost nearly the same amount for a different role in Sweet Sixteen, and she didn't like either extreme.

Charlize said, "I hated being fat but I also hated being so thin. I went down to a size six and just felt completely uncomfortable." She recalled feeling ribs and bone when wrapping her arms around herself, which made her feel "totally unsexy."

Despite the pressures of Hollywood, Charlize remains insistent that her curves belong on her body, and that "women have to work out what makes them feel comfortable, whether it's about their weight or their clothes." And, while it's not like Charlize's curves are out of control by any means -- she's always looked very slender to me -- it's still refreshing to hear her say that she prefers healthy curves to skin and bone.

Source