20 Celebs Who Looked Beauty Standards In The Eye And Said EFF YOU
Embrace your body!
WeHeartIt Everyone has days where they don’t feel completely satisfied with their body.
Maybe you feel bad about the stretch marks on your skin. Or maybe you get self-conscious when you see your cellulite in the mirror.
Everyone gets self-conscious about the way they look, and everyone can relate to having moments where they wished their body was thinner or more curvy or less lanky; or their skin was clearer or less dull or more smooth.
When you don’t meet certain standards for the way you look, you can naturally feel down about yourself.
But where do these standards come from?
Open up any magazine, clothing catalog, or even your Instagram feed, and you’ll see that most models are touched up and represent only some body types and not others.
Now, these women are obviously beautiful. But there are so many other body types (that are also healthy and beautiful) that aren’t published often on magazine covers or shown on TV. And rarely do magazines show the "flaws" that REAL people have, such as acne, cellulite, stretch marks, skin discoloration, etc.
When the representation of bodies and faces in the media is so limited and when photos are touched up to erase imperfections, it’s easy to forget that not everyone is Photoshop-perfect in real life.
It’s easy to forget that most grown women have cellulite or that almost everyone gets an occasional red pimple on their face.
The fact of the matter is that your body grows and develops over time. It goes through hardships with you. It gives birth; it is affected by hormones and stress.
It's not going to be picture-perfect 100% of the time.
And it's important to remember that being beautiful is not exclusive to a certain clothing size or a certain measurement on your scale. It’s not mutually exclusive with having cellulite or stretch marks.
And you definitely don’t have to look a certain way to feel good about yourself.
Unattainable beauty standards can be toxic to self-esteem. So, to help inspire you and show you that beauty doesn’t come in one box, here are some celebrities who flaunt their “imperfections” and who speak out about body positivity.
Because EVERYONE deserves to love themselves and embrace their own beauty — imperfections and all.
That's why we love these 20 celebrities and their messages about positive body image.
If you’re looking for a little inspiration, we’ve got the best quotes to share and savor. For quotes from the most inspiring celebs, activists, and poets, look no further! You might even find the quote that motivates the best parts of your life (and love!) forever.
1Ashley Graham
PacificCoastNews
Ashley Graham is a plus-size model who is not afraid to speak out about body image.
She embraces her body, and she took to Instagram to make a point that you should NOT be ashamed of cellulite.
A photo posted by A S H L E Y G R A H A M (@theashleygraham) on Jan 25, 2017 at 6:41pm PST
2Chrissy Teigen
Instagram
As a model, Chrissy Teigen showed off her post-baby body on Instagram. She captioned this photo, "Hello new thighs! You appeared out of nowhere but I am not mad at it!" She also posted pictures of her stretch marks.
Chrissy Teigen is not shy about her body. She tries normalize the real way that her body has changed since having a baby, and that's something we can ALL applaud.
Bruises from bumping kitchen drawer handles for a week. Stretchies say hi!
A photo posted by chrissy teigen (@chrissyteigen) on Apr 12, 2015 at 9:09pm PDT
3Iskra Lawrence
Instagram
Iskra Lawrence posted this picture of herself on Instagram after someone made a rude comment about her weight. Her caption read, "I'm sorry I couldn't help myself...This is for anyone who has ever been called FAT."
Iskra Lawrence doesn't bat an eye at her haters. She is unapologetic about her body, and for good reason — she's completely FAB.
4Jen Widerstrom
Instagram
Jen Widerstrom, trainer from The Biggest Loser, posted this photo to show that no one's body is chiseled at EVERY angle — and that's okay!
She wrote, "Don't stress about the way your body looks in certain positions." There's NO shame in not having rock-hard abs 24/7.
5Lena Dunham
Instagram
Lena Dunham is a staunch advocate for body positivity. She frequently speaks out about the importance of normalizing all types of bodies.
She sometimes takes to Instagram to talk about her own struggles with beauty standards, and she reminds us that we really do need more variety in the representation of bodies in the media.
6Zendaya
Instagram
Zendaya was not afraid to call out this magazine for retouching her photos. She noted that her hips and thighs were edited to be much smaller than they actually are.
In her caption, she wrote, "These are the things that make women self-conscious, that create the unrealistic ideals of beauty that we have. Anyone who knows who I am knows I stand for honest and pure self-love."
Kudos to Zendaya for her message about beauty standards and self-acceptance!
7Amy Schumer
Instagram
Amy Schumer posted this photo in response to her trolls on Instagram.
In the caption, she wrote, "When I look in the mirror I know who I am. I'm a great friend, sister, daughter and girlfriend. I'm a badass comic headlining arenas all over the world and making TV and movies and writing books where I lay it all out there and I'm fearless like you can be."
Amy Schumer knows her worth, and she's not going to let some internet trolls ruin her day. Her confidence should be an inspiration to us all.
8Kesha
Instagram
On Instagram, Kesha posted a selfie showing her thighs. Her caption read, "No thigh gap here. Just a shit ton of balls."
And balls is definitely right. Kesha is a badass and she knows it! She shows you don't need a thigh gap to be amazing.
9Dascha Polanco
Ilya S. Savenok/Getty
The Orange is the New Black star wore a swimsuit to NY Fashion Week. She wanted to make a statement about body positivity, and she definitely SLAYED in her outfit.
Way to go, Dascha!
10Barbie Ferreira
Instagram
Barbie Ferreira proves that beauty doesn't come in one size. She frequently speaks about the importance of good body image, and she even hosted a body-positivity video series.
On Instagram, she posted a picture of her stretch marks. She is not ashamed of her stretch marks and she cares for them with Vitamin E oil, showing that self-love and self-care go hand-in-hand.
A photo posted by barbie ferreira (@barbienox) on Dec 11, 2016 at 10:42pm PST
11Lorde
Twitter
Lorde has always been an outspoken celebrity. She was not afraid to tweet about her retouched picture or her acne.
On Twitter, she reminded her followers that it's okay to have flaws. No one should be held to unrealistic standards of beauty.
12Kylie Jenner
Instagram
Kylie Jenner posted a selfie on Instagram with the caption, "Behind the scenes. Yes I gained weight, there I said it so you don’t have to."
Kylie Jenner is frequently scrutinized by the public, and even she gets tired of the expectation to be picture-perfect. Here, she nonchalantly admits to gaining weight.
Yes, even Kylie Jenner gains weight. We all do, and it shouldn't be as big of a deal as people make it.
13Danielle Brooks
Instagram
Danielle Brooks from Orange is the New Black posted this photo on Instagram.
The caption reads, "Today I decided to do something I've never done before: Go to the gym with my SHIRT OFF!!...I've always wanted to do this but have felt shameful and have told myself 'until my body is perfect I'm forbidden.' Today my inner being told me to turn up the notch on my self-love. I should not be ashamed of my body. I'm not a walking imperfection! I'm a Goddess. Secondly, I'm a confident woman!"
Yass, Danielle Brooks has the right idea. You should always feel good about your body because, well, it's yours!
You don't need to be a certain size to be proud of yourself.
14Winnie Harlowe
Instagram
Winnie Harlowe is a model with a rare skin condition called vitiligo and she is SO beautiful. She is an advocate for self-love and acceptance, and she is proof that not all "flaws" are actually flaws — they're just a normal part of you.
15Demi Lovato
Instagram
Demi Lovato frequently speaks out about body acceptance and her experience with eating disorders. In an Instagram post, she wrote "Phuckkk yo thigh gap."
She is speaking out against the expectation for women to have thigh gaps in order to be considered fit. She proves that you don't need to accept beauty standards if you don't want to.