Gwyneth Paltrow is starting to approach Megan Fox levels of inappropriate disclosure in this latest media tour for Iron Man. She’s not making ridiculous blanket statements in an attempt to get press, but she is giving too much information about her insecurities. Yesterday we heard her say that she would “lose her marriage” if she focused too much on her career, and in another new recent interview she goes on at length about some supposed miniscule amount of weight she gained recently. Now I remember reading that Gwyneth had gained weight while filming in Nashville a few months ago, but if that was the case we never saw any photos of her looking even slightly larger and she lost it quickly – maybe by drinking vegetable juice concoctions with exotic rare ingredients for a few weeks.
In this Parade interview Gwyneth talks about how she’s just like us because her son pointed to her “fat” stomach. Please – Gwyneth’s “fat” is my dream goal weight and a size 2. She also makes the statement that “you have the power to look however you want. Are you going to wake up and make yourself do it and lose the weight you need to lose?” This perhaps says more about how she feels about both her body and the rest of the populace than anything she’s said to date. We could all be as skinny as her if we just “woke up” and got our asses in gear. Yes, we could all be as skinny if only we had all that free time and resources at our disposal along with an unhealthy obsession with our bodies. As Kaiser wrote to me “She has serious issues with her body and with dieting.”
IN GREAT SHAPE FOR RUNNING IN HEELS
“I don’t think life is worth living if I can’t eat food and drink wine and have cheese and all that stuff. But it’s just about knowing, ‘OK, I’ve got this coming up where a lot of people will see how I look, so if I want to be in shape, I’ve got to be disciplined and I’ve got to work extra hard.'”FOR HER NEXT MOVIE, SHE ‘CHUBBED UP’
“When I was working on Love Don’t Let Me Down I went to Nashville to play a country western singer. I ate so much and such different food that my son actually told me that my stomach was fat.”THEN SHE HAD TO SLIM BACK DOWN
“Well, I sort of feel like you have to enjoy your life, but nothing comes for free. It’s like I can’t eat whatever I want and not exercise and look like this. I have to be realistic. I can’t go to Nashville and eat fried chicken for six weeks and then look like this without going on a major detox and a diet and hitting exercise hard again. You can achieve anything. Sometimes I work hard and sometimes I slack hard. Then, my son points to my fat tummy and then I step it up. I think it’s just about knowing that you have the power to look however you want. Are you going to wake up and make yourself do it and lose the weight you need to lose?”HER TWO KIDS KEEP HER RUNNING
“My girl, we play dress up, she likes me to curl her hair and we play with dolls, and my boy is with his punching bag and his soccer ball. I love them both so much, but I think there is something special between a mother and a son and a father and a daughter; it’s very sweet. When I see my daughter with my husband, it’s like her eyes get all big. They both love music and they’re into it. Music comes out of my son, it’s like he goes into another world.”HAPPY TIME
“I think that I really got a lot happier when I realized that, as corny as it sounds, the simplest things in life have made me so happy, like slowing down, cooking for my family, having kids that are healthy. The relationships that you have make you happy. My children keep me so awake and I find it very heartening in a way, too. I mean, it’s great to have success, it’s great to have money. I don’t want to give it away, but I know that if it was taken away, if I had my family, I would be OK. I guess I’m not scared the way I was in my 20s, when I thought it was all about success and I had to be a successful person. In London, I have a very quiet domestic life, so to come here and do something like this is fun. It’s nice to dress up and pretend to be like Gwyneth Paltrow.”
[From Parade]
I think Gwyneth means well, and that she really thinks she’s “helping” us with her trite new age advice and extreme diet regimens. It’s just that she’s so condescending when she talks about her life, like she has no idea what it’s like to work a regular job and will never care. We’re just all so fat and if we would follow her advice we’d be as skinny and happy as she is. She has to keep repeating herself and telling us about how she did it so that some of us can earn enlightenment at the hungry altar of Goop.
Here’s Gwyneth outside Good Morning America last Thursday, 4/29/10. She does look maybe pregnant, but it’s probably just her billowy top. It looks like there’s something going on with her face, like she had some injections that are making her puffy. Credit: WENN.com
WHAT belly?
Little Moses already sounds like he’s going to grow up to be a little jerk! I see what they mean about parents being reflected in their children and she probably does have body issues. Where else would he learn to point out her “fat belly.”
Hate to hear what he’d say when ‘family friend” Mario Batali comes over.
I don’t think she’s really happy. You know that old adage if you have to keep telling someone how great you are, or how great your life is over and over and over then its not really true? I think Gwyneth has that going on in a major way. Yeah, I think most women look in the mirror and see things to improve on, but most of us also realize that its not worth obsessing over and just get on with our lives. I think she’s constantly stuck on that image thats in the mirror and its never perfect enough in her own mind.
While I have no clue how she became this “Lifestyle Godddess” (self-appointed, perhaps?), she does have a point: everyone is in control of (1) what they put in their mouths and (2) how much they move their bodies. That’s the bottom line.
I think she’s right about how we can have the body we want if we work for it. I mean, within reason, of course. I am currently on Day 17 of a 21 day detox and I have not only lost a lot of weight but I feel amazing! It’s crazy how much the dairy, sugar, flour and chemicals weigh us down and we don’t even know the difference until we stop consuming it. Is Gwyneth condescending? Sure, a little bit but that’s the way I like her. She’s not some boring twat actress like the ones that we are being bombarded with these days.
@ Team Bethenny I agree- who appointed her?
Could Gwyneth 1)stuff a sock in her mouth and 2) take a hike?
Who cares what she think she ‘knows’. People like her are know-it-all busybodies, spouting off unsolicited advice.
The girl has been blessed with good tall and skinny genes, and a pedigree that gave her fame, fortune and connected friends. All she had to do was be born with that mediocre face of hers and that is what is so grating about her.
She has no clue what reality is for most people and she needs to stop telling people how to “control their bodies” bc we don’t have her resources.
I’ll take diet tips from my doctor who knows me and my physiology than I would from her.
@Rachel: what exactly is the 21 day detox diet? I’ve heard of it a time or two, but don’t know what it entails. Any details you’re willing to share with the class? 🙂
I didn’t read this as her giving advice to us; I read at it as how she talked to herself during that time when she felt she needed to lost weight.
Plenty of commenters have said the same about overweight celebs “just get up and go to the gym, fatty”, “Stop eating so much” etc etc. Like it’s super easy or something.
Rachel- What type of detox are you doing? I recently realized that I have to give up anything with white flour. It makes such a difference in terms of my energy levels.
As snotty as Goopy sounds, I think its better than her pretending that she can eat everything in sight and still stay so slim. At least she’s being honest. With obesity rates climbing, it’s nice to get tips on diet regimes from someone who has unlimited resources.
It was probably around the time just a little while back when the tabloids were saying she was pregnant that Gwyneth was most likely experiencing her weight gain.
With regard to her son’s comment, children don’t come up with these things on their own; they glean this from their parents’ behaviors so there is no doubt that at home, Gwyneth’s insecurities are out in the open.
However, as strange as she is, I do agree that we can change our bodies whenever we want to. In concept it’s simple, but just takes dedication and hard work.
She might come off as condescending, but she’s not wrong. Where there’s a will, there’s a way! I’d love to sleep in & have a delicious Whopper with cheese everyday, but it’s a 6:30 AM gym time & a pretty strict adherence to the Paleo Diet that keeps my ass looking hot.
Well her son probably said that because he is used to seeing her so thin. In the past when I had stopped working out for a while, was eating way too many carbs and gained some weight, my daughter poked my belly and said “Mommy you are getting a little squishy”. Kids can be blunt in that way. Got me right back on my treadmill. lol
As popular as it is these days to blame your genes/job/family for putting on weight, it is purely down to calories in and calories burnt. I don’t enjoy going to the gym and denying myself that slice of chocolate cake any more than the next person, but I do it to stay healthy and look good. I find the time and self-discipline (on a limited budget) and I don’t think either Gwynnie or myself should have to apologise for that.
That said, I’d willingly give up my flat tummy not to care what I look like in swimwear, so I guess I do have major body fascism issues! Oh well…
While its true,you are in charge of what goes in your mouth ect.But maybe,just maybe there are people in the world that care more about putting food on their kids plates,how the enviroment is,going to work every day,doing laundry,chores,husband,and all the thousand and one things SHE does not have to worry about.
I think they should start a reality show where we would change lives with a celebrity for 2 weeks,that way she and all the rest of them can know how it feels to be a REAL person
@ voiceover & lin234
I am actually doing the Clean detox, which I read about on GOOP. I bought the book: Clean by Dr. Alejandro Junger. What he said really made me realize that what I was putting in my body was contributing to a lot of my problems with sleep, energy and yes weight too. I am usually sceptical of these things but I have to say that based on the way I’m feeling I’m a convert. I would recommend reading the book first before starting on the detox to make sure it’s right for you. Also if you don’t want to spend the money, you could check with your local library and see if you can read it for free.
Chicks who spend time constantly talking about their weight and dieting are really boring, at least to me anyways. GP would look nicer with more weight and will age better too, and is she still friends with the gristly Madonna?
Actually,children sometimes DO come up with these things on their own…my own child case in point-where i’m like ‘how is he saying this?’ about so many things-and this even when he was homeschooled and we have no t.v.!
so,who knows…i think she just shared the story about her son as a fun anecdote for the interview-she seems to speak off the cuff,and is very self-conscious at the same time,so it comes off judgy and arrogant.
anyway,i cannot read the comments today-
making a mountain out of an anthole-always with the goopy posts,celebitcy!!!! i’m not sure she deserves it entirely-the hostility-but she is an easy target,and some innocent cajoling is definitely what she seems to ask for with her comments.
Some of one’s appearance is a factor of effort expenditure. Some.
No amount of diet or exercise will ever give me a different bone structure or change my breast size.
Goop is totally correct. You do! within reason
Kaiser is totally right. this chic has body issues or is so tedious – reporters can’t think of anything else to discuss with her…
She got her career from nepotism and has grown up wealthy and entitled. She has no idea about reality for the rest of us
I think, since she recently talked about wanting another kid, that she’s in the early stages of pregnancy.
She does get tedious, talking about her diet, but I prefer this Gwyneth to the macrobiotic diet one.
Regarding “you have the power to look however you want”, that’s true to a degree – genes DO have an influence, and not everyone can exercise to the degree recommended for weight loss now – 60-90 minutes a day. She’s clearly got the genes to be tall and thin. Let’s hope she hasn’t lost her compassion for people with weight problems – I remember how she talked about wearing a fat suit for Shallow Hal, and she wore it at a hotel, and experienced being “invisible” to others, and no one made eye contact with her.
honestly… i don’t think what she said is all that bad. the only thing maybe she should have edited is “you have the power to look how you want”… we do.. but only within our own body types. But it’s true, nothing comes for free. i like that. some times we can pig out but other times we have to hold back and work our butts off. it’s just how it is.
“I ate so much and such different food that my son actually told me that my stomach was fat.”
Wow, her son sounds like he’s 10 years away from an eating disorder. And she must talk and obsess about weight a lot, because kids that young shouldn’t speak like that.
has goopeth done something to her face? i’ve noticed recently there is something different but i can’t put my finger on it. fuller cheeks/lips? hmmm. also for a woman who is always spouting the joy of the “simple” pleasures in life why is everything on her blog so damned expensive?
I have smooth skin and full lips. Does GP want to hear about what I think about wrinkles and thin lips? Didn’t think so.
I mean yes it’s within our power to eat better and get exercise… trust me I know this as well as anyone, being an APK (applied physiology and kinesiology, aka fitness & wellness) major, ALL of my classes are about the physiological effects of exercise, nutrition, etc. This is kind of my area. That said, she’s basing it on her own experience; one where the person in question (her) is blessed with good genes that mean she really IS in control of how her body looks. Not all of us are so lucky.
I had a great professor once who always said that if you want to have a better body, break sports records etc, choose your parents wisely.
LisaMarie, I agree that she doesn’t seem happy. All she ever talks about is trying to better herself (and telling everyone else how to do it too) – which is fine, but in moderation. If that’s all you think about, it’s obsessive, and kind of signals that something’s not right.
@dread pirate cuervo:
Another paleo lady!! Love it!
I just don’t want to hear how regular folks should/could live from a woman who was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. She’s always had the luxury of time & money to look her absolute “best”. If I could have a trainer & a nutrtionist & spend my free time jetsetting, I would just keep my mouth shut so everyone didn’t hate me.
First of all, while you may find her comments condescending, so is saying that Gwyneth doesn’t know what it’s like to have a real job. I’m sorry, but I worked in the entertainment industry for years and can confirm those people work 21 hour days, so anyone who thinks their life is perfect and non-laborious obviously doesn’t know what they are talking about. That said, kudos to Gwyneth for telling people they have the power to look the way they want, it’s the truth. I can say this as a former fat girl turned thin. It’s all about empowerment, I created my own situation, took responsibility for it, and made the changes I needed to make for myself. Anyone can do it if they focus and discipline themselves, this is a message that should be talked about and promoted.
From what I’ve read genetics only count for 5-10%, exercise for 10% and food for 80-85% of how your body looks so I’m not going to hate her for having good genetics – she still has to work hard. And I’m not going to hate her for having a good life – that smacks of jealousy. I’m neutral when it comes to her.
Little kids point out stuff like that all the time! How many of us have been out with one who has said loudly “That lady is sure fat!” or “That guy smells” – I don’t think most of us have taught them to say that 🙂
I’m a 46-year old woman who has been at war with her body for most of her life. Losing weight is different from someone with chronic weight issues – it’s not ALL in the genes, but the genes do play a role. So, at 46; I’m not at war anymore. I try to be mindful of my health and certainly that would be better if I lost a rather significant amount of weight (40-50 pounds). But I’m happy and relatively healthy; I’m no worse off health wise than my lifetime slim husband who has never exercised a day in his life.
I long ago decided that my role as a woman in this world was not decorative, so if my appearance offends, so be it. The obsession women have with their looks is unhealthy. Many of them become boring little shells – pretty on the outside but not much else going on. Goopy epitomizes this and, unfortunately, is passing this superficiality on to her children. Sad…
When GP talks about her body, she tries to pretend it’s all about health and focus and dedication; but it’s clearly about obsession, and achieving perfection, and lording that so-called perfection over everyone else. It’s sad that someone so fortunate and talented (in my opinion) has such a low opinion of herself that she places all her focus on her appearance. Exercise and health are important, but Gwyneth needs to get out into the world and see that there are many more important things out there to focus on.
Totally, totally off topic, but I adore her leather jacket…..
I am assuming that she is only talking about weight? (What about people who have genetic factors involved or even birth defects?) Even so, what an idiot. She has no idea.
Cara & Tooey: Excellent posts, thank you!
how is cooking with your family, exercising, and watching what you eat “new agey”??? a lot of her advice on GOOP concerning food and diets is good advice – eating whole, natural foods cooked at home, etc. even a detox here or there isn’t a terrible thing to advise. she may be snotty to a degree – but her advice on living a healthy, balanced life is spot on.
She is right. I am overweight, and I desperately want to lose weight, but I don’t have the willpower to stop eating things I shouldn’t eat. The power IS in my hands, but I just don’t use it. This is painful for me to admit. Paltrow is absolutely correct.
I like the balance of the comments for this post about Gwyneth. I think she is speaking in context to herself and her responsibilities as an actress in this day and age. Imagine if she was overweight, either naturally or because she just allowed herself to gain the weight, she would be crucified, ridiculed and most likely out of work.
She reminds me of a few women I know who are beautiful and ideal in so many ways, but they do have body image issues. Their insecurities cancel out the joy they should be feeling and they end up calling attention to minute flaws in order to have their peers comfort and console them with praise (“you’re not fat, I wish I could look just like you!”). I tend to provide the compliments, but inside I feel bad that they can’t see how they end up coming across.
I really like Gwyneth as an actress and entertainer. I also think she represents the kind of public figure that we love to hate; she seems privileged and sometimes ungrateful, but also embodies what we would hope to achieve and have if we were in her place. At least that’s the way I see it.
She’s in a different world- she was born into money. You get to hire nannys, not work 40 hours, eat organic, etc. But she’s not wrong about working hard to look good- she has extremely immediate reasons to stay thin. Staying thin as a celebrity is like constantly dieting and exercising for your wedding. I’m glad I can have some excess weight on me and also not be so full of hate about other people thinner than me, unlike the author.
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