Gwyneth Paltrow now claims she ‘has a lot of respect’ for peasant working moms

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Gwyneth Paltrow covers the newest issue of Viva Magazine, I think to promote her Max Factor deal (the same campaign where they had her dress up like various icons). It’s pretty amazing to me that celebrities now do major or major-ish magazine interviews just to support their endorsements and ad campaigns. It wasn’t always like this, you know. Anyway, Gwyneth deigned to speak about that “I have it harder than a mom working 9 to 5” controversy and how even she, Dame Goop herself, loses her cool with her kids sometimes. Some highlights:

Trying to do too much: “Some days I just think I am failing everywhere. Like today I was making lunch and saying to myself ‘this lunch is so bad’ throwing pasta in the lunch bag, yelling ‘get in the car’. I was losing my cool. I think it’s very hard to try to find the right balance and I think we all aspire to that balance, but it’s easier said than done. It’s just a matter of trying your best each day and not being too hard on yourself about things.”

On the average working mother: “I think when you are a working mother it is always very difficult, in fact it’s difficult if you are a mother anyway even if you are not working. It’s the demand, the responsibility and the love – it’s a lot and trying to balance a career with it makes it hard. I have a lot of respect for women who try to do both things, because I really struggle.”

Her Max Factor contract: “They wanted an actress to represent the brand. And to me Max Factor is the most iconic movie make-up of all time so when they asked me to be in the campaign I was thrilled… I love the different character aspect of it all. I was honoured to be asked.”

Beauty: “I really think that beauty comes from the woman and when the woman knows herself and is comfortable with herself she just exudes a real allure and real beauty.”

Diet & exercise: “I really believe in exercise as a beauty secret. I think that is the key to keeping your skin tone. You are detoxifying and it keeps you looking young and healthy. I also try to drink a lot of water and I try to eat healthy although yesterday I had a huge plate of French fries and a glass of wine – I normally try to balance this. I wouldn’t get up at 4am in the morning for anything… but generally my routine is that I drop my children at school and then I exercise for about an hour and a half five days a week and that way I can do some weights, muscular structure work and get in some good cardio then I am good for the day.”

[From Viva via The Mail]

“It’s a lot and trying to balance a career with it makes it hard. I have a lot of respect for women who try to do both things, because I really struggle…” I’m parsing that too much, I know. It feels like she doesn’t identify herself as a working mother but she’s patting working moms on the head and saying, “Oh, my life is a struggle too, I know! I almost don’t have time to work out two hours a day! I feel your pain!”

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Photos courtesy of Goop’s Instagram, WENN.

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77 Responses to “Gwyneth Paltrow now claims she ‘has a lot of respect’ for peasant working moms”

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  1. Charlotte says:

    I hate when people say 4am, then follow with ‘in the morning’. Duh!

    *pet peeve*.

  2. lisa says:

    it seems like she never stops talking and has not so much to say

    • Liv says:

      Oh, but she has so much to say! About food, about working out, your body, her body, her ex-husbands new girlfriend, her children, other working moms…. 😀 😉

      Seriously, who is she kidding? Her opinion on working moms was very obvious in her last interview.

  3. Kiddo says:

    I really can’t chide her here. I think this was more carefully stated in that it’s hard being a mother from a baseline perspective and then it gets harder as you add more responsibilities. I thought she sounded pretty good all the way around. Shoot me.

    • red_jane says:

      I agree that she was sounding very humble, which is refreshing for her, and I was enjoying this Gwyneth 2.0….
      Until I got to the exercise for hours at a time part, which is so unrealistic for most mums, working or not.
      I’m lucky if I have time to even remember to change out of my pyjamas before I leave the house most days!

      • Kiddo says:

        But as a part of Hollywood and its standards, she likely sees this as an obligatory part of her job.

      • Courtney says:

        @Kiddo
        That’s how I took it too. As an actress/spokesperson I’m sure maintaining a certain physique is contractually required.

      • Jayna says:

        It purposefully humble because of all the backlash to previous statements. It’s contrived to tell us, hey, I’m one of you, trying to rehab her image. So I just find it PR fluff.

      • deehunny says:

        @Jayna, I thought the exact same thing. The working Mom, and I definitely struggle, I’m not perfect was 100% planted. She finally started listening to her PR ppl.

    • mimif says:

      I’m going to chide her. She sounds annoying as always. Shoot me.

    • Esmom says:

      I agree, she sounds very reasonable. And as far as shading her for exercising, I can’t. I see it as 1) part of her job and 2) possible if it’s a priority for you. She’s talking about what works for her and doesn’t seem to imply that her way is the only way.

      • mimif says:

        Sorry for being OT, but Esmom I finished BB last night. I’m exhausted. And so sad. 🙁

      • Kiddo says:

        @mimif, so worth it though, right?

      • mimif says:

        Totally. I’m easily amused but it’s very rare for a show (or a film) to capture my rapt attention the way that BB did. I’ll be wearing all black and thinking about it for a longgg time.

      • Esmom says:

        Oh, mimif, wow, what a journey, huh? I know that exhausted, empty feeling upon reaching the end. It really grabbed me the same way, like nothing else ever has.

        And that final song…so perfect and haunting.

      • GoodNamesAllTaken says:

        What is bb? I feel left out. I want to be exhausted and sad, too. I want to hear haunting beautiful songs. What is wrong with me?

      • mimif says:

        Lol GoodNames. Breaking Bad is what we are talking about. Did you ever watch it? I can bring the box set to your weekend getaway, but we will need a Costco size liquor run and prepare to lose a month of your life.

        P.S. I can’t believe you people let me think WW was hot. Jesus.

        P.P.S. @Esmom, yeah the penultimate song was nothing short of perfect. All the music was great, shit everything was great. How will I go on…

      • Esmom says:

        mimif, I think a few of us politely rebuffed your attempts to commiserate about your delusion of WW’s “hotness.” Just trying to protect you from spoilers, friend.

        If you ever find a show that comes remotely close, please share. I have not. My friend who binged on BB at the same time that I did swears that Game of Thrones comes close but I haven’t managed to jump on that bandwagon. Or any bandwagon, really, except for Parks and Rec. Which is nowhere near the Opus that BB was but still is a pleasant diversion.

      • mimif says:

        Well, I’m a huge GOT fan (both of the books & the TV show which are totally different enchiladas at this point) but man…GOT doesn’t even come close to BB in terms of my emotional involvement, partly because the former is basically fantasy & the latter is very much real life. It’s awesome tho, compelling & intriguing and I highly recommend it. Shit, even George R.R. Martin said he was going to have to rethink his villains, because no one in his books came close to WW. And thank you btw, for not spoiling it for me. Much appreciated. 🙂

    • tealily says:

      I agree. I think she was trying to speak more carefully after the blowback from her previous comments. I think she did okay. If it was anyone else saying this (without her previous history), we wouldn’t be nearly as harsh.

      • stacat1 says:

        I agree – it’s worlds better than her previous comments on working moms. \

        Though as a working mom, one of the “peasant” ones though, she still does comes across as patronizing to us in the masses. Those with lots of help/money/life to accomdate working out an hour and half day (good for her) cannot compare themselves to the “masses”, I really don’t think she gets that AT ALL. We all have challenges.,.but an advantage is an advantage..acknowledge your privilege.

        She needs to take a page from Angelina…say I cannot complain/ I have it good and shut up about it.

    • Lucinda says:

      I think the telling statement was about how bad the lunch was as she put pasta in there. As moms, I think we all question our decisions at times and wonder if we are doing what’s best for our children. How we beat ourselves up varies from mom to mom but we all do it at one point or another and I think she is no different. She was trying to speak more carefully and realize she isn’t the only mother in the world to go through this (which is a big step in the right direction). For the first time I think she did reveal a bit of honesty about herself as well which is that she does question her choices and just wants to do the best for her kids, just like all of us.

    • Veronica says:

      Yeah, I think this is a improvement over previous attempts. Somebody in her PR team obviously talked to her about the image issue. But then, I don’t have the raging hate-on for her that some people do. I’m very neutral toward her.

  4. BengalCat2000 says:

    Too late. Own your pretentious twatishness!

    • poppy says:

      ah, but she has to schill max factor to peasants and max factor wants her to be more “relatable” to recoup some of that money they threw away when they hired here and her bad skin/hair.

      but i agree with you, she should own her “brand” seeing as she’s spent her entire career honing an elitist twerp reputation.

      • Hautie says:

        I got to ask… when did Max Factor start selling make-up in the US again? They had stopped selling it here… a few years ago. It was only findable in the European market.

        And I know this because I had been using their pan-stik foundation for YEARS. And suddenly it was no were to be found. It still isn’t findable. And I still have not found a foundation that I like. Which is annoying as hell.

      • Chris2 says:

        I remember when Madge did that promo for Max Factor, waffling about timlessness, iconic brand etc etc. I thought then, as now: who are you kidding? Who are you aiming at?
        I find they get the wrong people ( too hip? Too famous?) to front their ads…..there’s a disconnect somewhere, and it leaves me uninformed about the brand.

      • poppy says:

        Hautie, the only pace I know of is online.

  5. Jaderu says:

    “I have a lot of respect for women who try to do both things”

    Try.
    They try to do both things Goopy?
    No they don’t try, they do. Some don’t get the option of choice. For most, it’s a necessity to work to support those pesky little moochers, Gwyneth dear.

    I guess I’m parsing it too much as well.

    • Kiddo says:

      I think that is within the context of her saying that she feels like a failure at times, but that she is trying to do her best.

      • Jaderu says:

        Perhaps. I have a tendency to only see Goop statements in the context of Goop Superiority. I just think she’s completely out of touch with reality. Or any reality other than her own.

      • Kiddo says:

        I don’t love her, don’t hate her. For me, her biggest ‘sin’ is being an absolute bore most of the time. But I think she sees the lion’s share of criticism for misstatements, and an abundance of over-analysis of wording, that’s all. No doubt she comes from an elitist origin, but people sometimes see that when she’s not even expressing it, KWIM?

      • mimif says:

        But she did talk about potatoes! 😀

      • Kiddo says:

        Shoot her.

      • Jaderu says:

        @Kiddo. There are times when I actually feel like defending her. But then she just says the weirdest thing and my hate is back on.

        @mimif. The only reason I clicked on this article is because my potato radar went off. I stayed for the Goop hate.

      • Kiddo says:

        @mimif, why have you not visited the Simon Cowell post? Magical words were spoken and crafting!

      • mimif says:

        *grabs potato launcher*

    • stacat1 says:

      agreed…you don’t have to TRY..you have to DO IT..particularly if you have no back up.

  6. aims says:

    I was raised by a single mother. She was raising two kids on a receptionist salary. Granted she wasn’t a multi millionaire that has unlimited help, but she busted her butt.

  7. joy says:

    I’m sorry but her “struggle” can’t be compared to those women who are working their butts off trying to cover all the bills and hoping to have a little extra to have a few nice things for their kids.

    • Esmom says:

      Of course. But just because she has money and fame doesn’t mean she’s immune to feeling guilty about balancing work and family. I think that’s the struggle she’s talking about and I think it’s pretty universal.

      • JJ says:

        All the money doesn’t help you when you have to ‘just BE a mom’. Sure you can have nannies, maids etc. , but eventually it’s you who has to be there. I somehow think she is very involved with her kids, no money in the world can substitute for that.

  8. Chicagogurl says:

    And she’s coming out with a line of home crap and clothes to be revealed at target or penneys or Somewhere in 5, 4, 3, 2,….

  9. Arock says:

    I feel like the commentary was just a lead up to talk about her workout routine. In fact, most things she talks about are just segways back to her eating/detoxing/excersing regime and greatness. Everything else is just, so …ugh…exhausting for her *heaving sigh* checking in and out of hotels, 600 thread count sheets in ecrew not true white, drinking unfiltered water from a plastic bottles. ****omg, I need to sit down****
    I feel you, goop. It’s hard out there for a pimp.

  10. Aura says:

    I have a job where I have to give interviews for publicity. It is hard, especially when you’re I’m conversation, to always express yourself exactly how you want to. Sometimes I’ve used vocabulary incorrectly because I’ve spoken too quickly, or just sounded less articulate than I would prefer. It happens

  11. Lia says:

    It’s amazing the amount of stress that can be relieved when you have the money to outsource life’s most unpleasant tasks. I doubt very much that Gwyneth even knows any mothers who have average lives with average responsibilities. I am a stay-at-home-mom to a young (not in school yet) child with moderate chronic health issues. My husband travels for work. I have no cleaning service, no nanny, no laundry service, no dog walker, no gardener, no trainer, and no chef. There are days on end sometimes where I have no break at all.

    I don’t begrudge people who can afford help. Life is not a competition in points earned for drudgery. That said, it’s important that we’re all aware of our unearned privilege and personal advantages. I’m grateful that as an American (which I did nothing to earn), I have reliable access to clean water, working roadways, and electricity. There are no bombs falling outside my window when I put my little one to sleep. Of course Gwyneth cannot appreciate firsthand the disparity between her life and the lives of others, but it never sounds like she’s even remotely trying to do some critical thinking in that vein. She makes her children lunch? Great, but she is able to faff around while they’re in school instead of scrambling to catch up on cleaning and laundry and whatever else. Is she aware how atypical that is? Doesn’t sound like it, “we’re all trying and motherhood is tough” is a platitude, not a genuine statement of awareness.

    • mimif says:

      Excellent and articulate post, I agree with every point you made.

    • Teresa_Maria says:

      Could not say it better. Agree 100%

    • Ag says:

      beautifully put.

    • Anniefannie says:

      @Lia,
      You nailed it! And it’s a good reminder not to take our privileges for granted. I’m certain their are those that would perceive our challenges as huge eye-roll, 1st world bellyaching. It’s all about where u fall in capital pecking order.

      • Lia says:

        On the one hand, the worst thing that’s ever happened to me is still the worst thing that I’ve experienced, everyone feels pain, disappointment, and stress within the context of their own lives. On the other hand, I don’t believe that a person can claim to be an emotionally healthy, mature adult if they’re unable to truly practice gratitude, which requires placing their own life within the larger human existence. It’s ok to let off steam, to be upset when you’re stressed, and to feel overwhelmed, it’s not ok to only complain, completely lacking in perspective. Honestly, it’s one of the most important tools that we can give our children, and it’s one that can only be learned through the behaviors we model for them. Chronic discontent is rampant in our culture, and we have so much. Gwyneth’s inability to realize her own place within that hierarchy implies a pretty extreme lack of awareness.

    • stacat1 says:

      @Lia
      Spot on!

    • Echo says:

      Well said, Lia. Agree completely.

    • Crazy Reader says:

      So you are not a working mom, Lia? And you think you are better than her just because you are poor and you can’t hire nannies and chefs? I think there are so many people like you. There are so many women saying she is ‘out of touch’ just because she is rich.
      She is a mom, you are a mom. It IS hard. It doesn’t matter if you are rich or not.

  12. ginger says:

    She more speaks and more she’s unbearable

  13. Eleonor says:

    I hate when people throw away food.

  14. Hashtag says:

    Max Factor is still around?!?

  15. vauvert says:

    Seriously, when will she just stop talking? Every time she opens her mouth she sounds obnoxious and completely removed from the realities of normal people’s lives. She made the kids’ lunches? Oh well, that must have been on the chef’s day off! Because please do not tell me that she has no chef…. How else could she handle the interviews and monogrammed underwear and hour and a half daily exercise routine otherwise? My heart just breaks thinking about it. And the whole ” some women try to both work and raise kids” bit… No, you nitwit, the do not try… They DO! Without nannies, chefs, maids, drivers, gardeners etc…. And if they run a small business from home, they do it without insurance, benefits, etc…. So please stop pretending like you know what the heck you are talking about!
    And on a side note – does anyone actually go out and buy a particular brand of, I don’t know, lipstick or shampoo, because a celebrity is their spokesperson? Just curious, because I would not, never in a million years. Not only do I doubt that said celebrity is always using that brand, but even if I did believe it, I buy things that work for my hair/skin, so what Goop or Aniston or Lively are using has no bearing on my choices.

  16. lucy2 says:

    She sounds a little better about it here, but I still don’t think she has any clue what it’s like to hold down a full time, daily job and do all the family stuff, without help. No assistant, no house cleaner, no nanny. Plus she’s not working that much, she maybe does a movie a year, her newsletter thing, and the occasional ad campaign?

    90 minutes 5xs a week seems like a lot for someone who isn’t trying to lose weight, just maintain. But then again she has the time…

  17. Naggy Pants says:

    She yells ‘ Get in the car’ to her kids…….wow……shock

  18. poppy says:

    i think all this nonsense is to try and help GOOP and her current endorsements which i think it aren’t doing well, at all.
    she will be nowhere near as wealthy without CM. not even close.
    she can’t carry a film and isn’t even considered for much.

    she can’t catch a break in the bed she made for herself (with hospital corners and sheets of unicorn cashmere).

    • Lori says:

      I think you hit the nail on the head there. Its about $$ which she will have less of with out Coldplay money.

      • Crazy Reader says:

        Do you really think she needs Coldplay money? I think Chris Martin needs her money and that’s why they are still living together. She has many houses. I don’t know anything about his houses.

  19. magz says:

    can you imagine having to work out for two hours every day as part of your job? One could get tired of that

  20. Jayna says:

    Blatant damage control interview.

    Going to do your daily workout at 10:00 a.m. (which you’ve stated before) is so stressful. How do you get it all done? LOL

  21. GeeMoney says:

    Being a mother is hard, period – regardless of how much money you have. Yes, life can be easier for the rich and wealthy… but it’s hard for every mom from every walk of life. Whether you agree with her or not… she has a point.

    It would be nice if some of the posters on here sat back and thought about some of the downsides to being rich. Yeah, you have all of the money in the world… but sometimes that lifestyle comes at a price. Having money may mean that all of your basic needs are met, but just because you have money, it doesn’t mean that you are happy.

    Not to mention… the more money you have, the more certain people (mostly crazies or greedy folks) try to enter your life… and attempt to take your money off of you.

    • Anniefannie says:

      I don’t think posters are saying money = happiness. I think we all acknowledge, however, it certainly reduces the stress and challenges that most of us face.
      I don’ t begrudge her her wealth and opportunities …I just wish she’d quiet down and quit the condescension of ” I can relate darling”
      As for being so wealthy that others might try to take advantage of me? Perfect example of the 1% problem….I think most would welcome it…

      • GeeMoney says:

        Money doesn’t reduce the stress and challenges people face. It usually increases them and can make them worse, just in a different way. That’s what people fail to realize.

  22. kri says:

    If that woman wears Max Factor, I will buy all of Tracy Anderson’s DVD’s and give myself a colonic this weekend.

  23. TxGal says:

    Really anything that she has to say will always be annoying. Why doesn’t she just shut up.

  24. shayne says:

    Goop looks like a dry, frozen, colourless crouton. For someone with millions of dollars she looks like a peasant herself. No offence to peasants!

  25. Santolina says:

    Sorry, not buying that she doesn’t have hired help making the kids’ lunches and driving them to school so she can do her two-hour workouts, attend advertising shoots, meet with PR reps, try on gowns with her stylist, go to beauty appointments and sneak trysts with her new jumpoff.