By Talyn Helman
Victoria’s Secret ‘Angels’, Erin Heatherton and Chanel Iman spoke about their love of junk foods on Good Day New York. While one’s first reaction is complete and utter disbelief that these otherworldly women would even consider putting a calories in their bodies, it brings up the question; do we hold models up to too high of a standard? Do we expect them all to be abnormally skinny with eating disorders?
Casting directors for VS shows, owned by Limited, say that on average, a model who hopes to work the VS runway should start preparing approximately 12 weeks before the show, there’s even been hints about a VS boot camp. A model must ‘make weight’ much the same as an athlete. Actually, the model needs to be fit enough to hold up the iconic wings the ‘Angels’ wear on the runway, which can weigh up to 50lbs! Most Victoria’s Secret models spend a lot of time in the gym, doing mainly core and weight training. Thin models are advised to avoid too much cardio, as they could become too thin and unhealthy. Limited sees that incredibly thin women aren’t sexy to ‘real’ women, the demographic they are selling to, and tries to keep fit women as their models, versus the incredibly thin models one would expect.
Model Selita Ebanks actually has to eat some pretty high calorie foods before working out to keep from ‘withering away’; a usual pre-workout breakfast for her might include eggs, pancakes, bacon and cheese. Selita even went as far as to take weight gaining supplements in her youth to avoid being too thin. Now, Selita works out to emphasize her good qualities, like squats, because ‘she likes her booty.’
“In this industry we are small; we’re petite. That may be true, but we’re not standing there like stick figures. That’s not going to sell lingerie. That doesn’t make women feel beautiful. So on the runway, I think, when I work out I always try to… I don’t want to lose weight because I’m so small as it is. It’s all about being lean and toned. I do squats because I like booty. And the women in my family, from The Cayman Islands, they’re very voluptuous.” ~Selita Ebanks
The interesting thing about VS models, is that most of them actually don’t look uncomfortably thin. Most of these women sport incredibly defined and muscular physiques, instead of ribcages and hungry expressions. Perhaps not all models are starving?