Real question: if I hadn’t put Anna Kendrick’s name in the headline and her name wasn’t plastered on the cover of Shape, would you have recognized her? I would not. I like Anna a lot and I find her cute in an “accessible” way. But on this cover, she looks… just completely different. Like Katherine Schwarzenegger and Ashley Graham had a love child and that love child got some subtle plastic surgery? It’s not just the cover either – the whole photoshoot looks like that. Is that weird? Is it just a dramatic makeup look? Or did something happen to her face? Anyway, Anna’s Shape interview is completely charming – she’s pretty realistic about wellness, fitness, diet and more. You can read the full piece here. Some highlights:
She’s not following trends: “I’ve tried a couple of meditation classes, and so far I feel like I’m doing it wrong. My mind races more when I meditate. And I was vegan for a year, or maybe even two, and it was the best I’ve ever felt. Then I just fell off the wagon super hard. I was like, Well, maybe I can just do vegan most days. But no.”
She goes through workout phases: “Every time I try something new, I’m like, I found it! I found the only workout I’ll ever need! Then I get so obsessed with it that I burn out and have to start over with something new. I went through phases of yoga, Pilates, barre classes, and running. The only thing I’ve never tried, because I know I would be bad at it, is workouts where they yell at you: ‘Come on! Get those knees up!’ Right now I’m in a hiking phase. I live in a funky hilly area of L.A., and I realized I had to commit to going on a hike because I get my best ideas then. Actually, it’s more like mental clarity. Sometimes I’m in my head too much, and I overanalyze things. When I’m walking, I can work through whatever it is.”
No food restrictions, just do things in moderation: “The times in my life when I tried to restrict the foods I love always backfired, and I ended up feeling miserable. For me, it’s all about really being present in my body, not depriving it. My favorite food is macaroni and cheese. Carbs and dairy—that’s the kind of life I’m all about. And I definitely do like sweets. There was a period when I baked a lot.”
She loves leggings: “I love the fact that athletic wear is acceptable as a real outfit, and not as just an I’m-running-to-7-Eleven outfit. I can go into the world in a stretch top and sweatpants, and it’s fashion. I live for that. I want to tell this generation: Never look back. Please don’t return to the dark age of low-rise jeans. That was a hateful time, and we don’t need to go there again.”
She believes in the power of emotional intelligence: “I used to think all that stuff about women being more emotionally intelligent than men was just something people said—the way we’d say men are worse at being sick. But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized that we have a lot more insight into what we’re experiencing. Women are so much better at dealing with challenging, complicated situations because conflict is about emotions. And it does start to feel like a superpower. In my experience, emotional intelligence is one of the only things that really matters.”
I’ve been walking and hiking a lot during the lockdown too. It’s the only exercise I’ve gotten while my gym was closed during the lockdown. And I enjoy it too – every day I do it, those hills become easier to climb. But I dislike leggings (for myself) as outerwear or whatever – sweatpants are fine, but I feel like leggings-everywhere is just thin-woman privilege. And yes, no joke, women handle everything better – we handle stress better, we’re better communicators, we’re better problem-solvers and we’re better at conflict-resolution. We should run the f–king world.
Cover courtesy of Shape, photos courtesy of WENN.
100% thought it was Katherine Schwarzenegger and was confused when I opened the article and read that it was Anna Kendrick.
She has a new show called Love Life. Its pretty good too. Im surprised there’s no mention of it here. Seems like a good place to plug it.
I’ve been watching it and it’s entertaining. Both weeks I’ve tried to say I would space out the new episodes and then I end up binging all of them at once.
I watched the Love Life seasons thus far on HBO. The remainder of the shows will drop on June 11, episodes 7-10. I’ve enjoyed them so far, and I like Anna. I agree with her, let’s not go back to low-rise pants EVER……about leggings, love them because they’re so comfy. If you don’t look perfect in them, wear a flattering longish top over them to cover the imperfections. We can’t do without them in yoga, athletics, or leisurewear.
I thought it was one of the twilight chicks from the thumbnail (i always get Nikki Reed and and Ashley Greene mixed up) and I loled at you for calling her Anna Kendrick. I’m still not convinced it’s Anna Kendrick. Her…. eyebrows look different.
She is a “Twilight chick“—and I totally agree, some Ashley Greene jumps out of that photo
She is a Twilight chick 😂
I know she’s a twilight chick. I left out “other” and only realised it after it had been posted.
meanwhile, if I even smell carbs and dairy I have weight gain and gas! Sighhhhh, such is life.
Same! I gained 5 lbs just reading this article and the word carbs.
I hate leggings. I hate them on everyone but small children. They show every lump and nobody wears them with tunics, which I think is how they should be worn. I wish they would go away.
Anna’s insights on emotional intelligence are spot on. Women should definitely rule the world. Perhaps we would be in a better place right now. Sigh.
Why are you so worried about what other people wear? Mind your business lol
I love leggings, have for years, and they can bury me in them for all I care. I think it’s a losing battle to try to police what people wear. Life is too short.
Workout leggings and regular leggings are different things. Workout leggings are generally more flattering and have some compression features. I don’t wear those with a long shirt because they are thick (so no pantylines) and tighten and lift everything up. The causal leggings, like, Lularoe, are generally unflattering for anyone not stick thin. But even then, I wouldn’t judge an adult for wanting to be comfortable and wear them in public.
Workout leggings are so comfortable!
I wear mine with crop tops! Not ashamed! (Except for when I’m generally ashamed of my body, which hasn’t been too bad lately)
And I don’t think it is thin woman privilege. A lot of women of all different sizes look great in leggings, and then a lot of people don’t. Just focus on yourself!
Thank you for saying that. I am not certain as to why we have to add ‘privilege’ to everything now. Saying perhaps that a thinner woman would have an advantage is a much more positive way to frame it. “thin woman privilege” makes me feel ashamed that I am a size 12 instead of a six 6 like I was when I was younger.
Ha! I wear leggings with tunics at least 50% of the time in my work life , nice cotton leggings, or with a spandex blend, not that thin stuff.
I find them to be comfortable (which I need because I work with preschool children) and flattering as they can be on my aging overweight self.
What I have been living in at home and for Tele-therapy are athletic compression leggings, which I didn’t realize when I purchased them would often need pulling up. I have ones that fit well, but had several that didn’t and you learn pretty quickly not to wear those to yoga either – 😄
Leggings only look bad if they are too small or made with cheap transparent fabric. A properly fitted pair of quality leggings will not be showing any lumps, camel toe or the colour of your underwear (or butt skin!).
Every time I try the tunic with leggings look, I remember why I don’t wear tunics with leggings. It’s the most unflattering look on me – I look like an Oompa Loompa. It’s cute on the right body type, which is not mine. It’s not about thinness.
“Tunic” feels like something a 60 year old hippy wears at a commune
I totally agree with you, FHMom
What is happening to the lower part of her body in that picture? Where do her legs go?
It took me a minute… I had the same reaction when I first saw the picture.
She’s sitting cross-legged and wearing dark reddish boots. You can see one of them under her calf on the left side of the pic and the other to the left of the word DAYS.
They also look bent abnormally and seem to be stick thin, as if no adult human could stand on them.
i like her…loved her in Table 19!
Table 19 was a great movie.
sooooo cute. very good movie
Low rise jeans were the worst — being the mom of toddlers in the height of the craze, with all that bending down, was not fun, lol — but I don’t think leggings are it. I think they’re great for working out but for everyday fashion, jeans (without too much stretch) and slim chinos are just as comfortable, imo, and just look better.
Count me in for the good pair of non-low-rise jeans & slim chinos.
So she felt best being vegan but restricting foods made her miserable? This doesn’t add up.
Feels like “one of us” pandering.
You don’t see how those two things can both be true?
I do, I’ve felt the same way about other nutrition / exercise stuff. For example, I belonged to a gym for a few months that had very structured daily whole body workouts. I “felt my best” … had more energy, more body strength/capability, but that routine … the getting up early almost every day for a structured workout at the same place with mostly the same people made me miserable. I’m happier and more balanced now being active in more varied ways, even if my upper body strength / energy isn’t “my best” compared to that rigid-workout time.
it doesn’t seem like she’s pandering. maybe overall she felt better being a vegan but the restrictive nature of the diet made her feel a bit miserable. my friends who are vegans and vegetarians struggle with that at times. it seems to me more like she’s being honest.
“One of us” pandering is great and is this one’s entire shtick. She wrote an autobiography called “Scrappy Little Nobody”, after having been on Broadway as a tween and getting nominated for an Oscar, and hosting SNL. I have limited patience for her b.s.
Did keto for 1.5 years, felt AMAZING, lost a ton of weight…but the upkeep, the boredom, the restrictiveness…it was way too much. I don’t think it’s at all pandering to acknowledge there are some great benefits with certain lifestyles, but ultimately, human beings are going to human being. I do miss how I felt on keto, and I’m sure I could have made it work with more effort, but at that time in my life it just is what it is. No shame in that.
@Girl – I think I’m finally going to try Keto. What’s a good source to start with in order to learn more it? I need a jumping in point. I hope that makes sense. Thanks.
I dropped a good 15 pounds on keto very quickly, but I did not feel great. My stomach was constantly upset and I was tired. I’m sure I was missing some vitamins or nutrients I should have substituted, but I was miserable. It didn’t even feel terribly restrictive so I feel like I could have kept it up if it wasn’t for the stomach issues and fatigue.
@Chelle,
Check out diet doctor dot com.
@chelle and @AMM, keto is such a bizarre diet. I have severe PCOS so cutting carbs made sense, but you have to be so smart about it – its ridiculously easy to fall into unhealthy fats. I hated consuming so much meat (although I did feel amazing – high almost!) but I just felt so wrong with this footprint. I started eating more avocado, lentils, but then I missed the other fun stuff and eventually I just stopped. it did help my PCOS symptoms a ton, and sure enough when I went back to my old eating all the symptoms came back too. also weird side effect, I have very little tolerance for dairy products now, which makes me doubt I could go back even if I wanted to. my advice, see a registered dietician. my body obviously responded to something, but I should have been under the care of a professional seeing as there was a huge benefit. Just know its a lifetime commitment – if you go back, be prepared for the weight :/
I totally get it. I went vegetarian and then vegan for about six months and I felt great, physically, but mentally and emotionally I was fixated on everything I couldn’t eat, and I started to get resentful. I stopped being vegan and was immediately happier. I just don’t do well with any form of food restriction, which is what I’m getting from Anna here. She knows the health/well being benefits, but restriction makes her unhappy. Ultimately, food shouldn’t be a struggle.
No lie I thought this was Katherine Schwarzenegger!!
Her face annoys me for some reason :/
Same. I think the third photo shared here is the first time I’ve seen this girl with her mouth closed.
(Yes, I know from the FKA Twigs articles/ comments that some people can’t help but to breathe through their mouths.)
I really thought this was Nikki Reed just looking at the picture. They either did some weird photoshop or she’s had work done.
I like that she’s realistic about diet and exercise though. Personally, being restrictive in my diet has helped me in the short-term, but is never sustainable. Losing weight and keeping it off comes down to finding a balance you can actually keep up.
She’s a completely different color on the cover versus the candid.
I think she’s thinner than she used to be…? And maybe that accounts for the different look. No surgery that I can *really* tell…but can’t put my finger on it.
I’m with her. Carbs and dairy. Most of my favorite dishes throughout life celebrate my grandmother’s noodles, stuffing and green apple pies and mom’s vegetable cheddar soup, extra sharp cheese bread, parmesan-onion-on-rye canapés and French silk pie lol. It’s no wonder I’ve been on a diet my entire life.
I’ve never liked Shape’s covers. It’s a mind, body, health publication that seriously distorts cover shots seemingly missing the magazine’s mission.
Usually they do something where the woman’s midriff is exposed, so this one is rather unusual in that respect.
“A Simple Favor” is a fun movie and I enjoyed her in it. The French pop songs in that movie are so fantastic.
I’m not buying that she lets carbs or dairy cross her lips very often. She has always been really tiny but she is shrinking. If you look at her in “Up in the Air” vs. now, she is a lot smaller – her legs really show it. She makes me think of the actresses of the mid-to-late 90s who were just disappearing before our eyes: Lara Boyle, Calista Flockhart, Portia De Rossi, etc.
I thought this was a young Amanda Peete? I do like her-she’s funny and approachable in the things I’ve seen her in.
I saw Amanda Peet, too!
I hate formal workouts. I do love hiking, walking, and chair yoga ( best for me due to a chronic condition). I recently discovered I am intermediate fasting although I always thought of it as no food after 7 and skipping breakfast lol. Like Anna I too feel deprived on diets that restrict what you can eat so I monitor my portion sizes. I am a curvy woman who comes from a long line of curvy women. And I am so ok with that. I also love a yoga pants and tunic combo. I say f@&$ thin woman privilege lol. But it took me a long time to get here. To figure out what worked physical health wise and mental health wise. She is probably still on that journey.
I find her charming when solo. She pulls off the relatable girl next door fairly well, and she’s funny. But when she gets into a group interview I’ve noticed that she tends to pull a JT and talk over her coworkers and attention pull back to herself. It was noticeable during all the pitch perfect promotion tours.
Back when the nude hacking scandal was ongoing and all the women involved were being publicly shamed by men online she was out there making cool girl tweets about how if somebody were to break into Her photos it would be just photos of dogs and food not nudes like all those Other Women *hint hint*. Good for you, Anna.
Ah well here it is again. The woman who suddenly got and stayed super, super skinny when she became famous who loves to talk about how she doesn’t restrict herself and eats what she wants. This is a really well-worn theme in profiles of white actresses. It is so boring. How can anyone really believe that?
It’s the way it’s framed that bugs me. It is possible to eat “whatever” you want and maintain a healthy weight — but that doesn’t mean these actresses are eating chocolate cake and fettucine alfredo everyday. On a daily basis, most of them probably consume the fewest number of calories they can realistically function on, while still being able to exercise for at least an hour a day. Julianne Moore said in an interview a few years ago that she is basically always hungry, and that her diet consisted of yogurt, cereal and granola bars. Maybe I’m cynical but I’m guessing a lot of actresses live like that most of the time.
Wow, that’s a terrible cover.
I think it might be the tan? ‘Cause that is not her skin colour. She looks unrecognizable.
Terrible cover but I suppose the stylists and photographer did the best they could. She’s not pretty. She looks like a praying mantis with hair.
OK, I like Ana but this actually made me laugh, she does the most of what she’s got but she’s no great beauty. Not that she needs to be but sometimes her poses make you go, eeek.
I would just like to say that for certain body types, low-rise jeans are very comfy.
But tights are also really comfy. Do what you like.
Her top lip is thicker, her nose tip is different, and her marionette lines are gone. The lip may be fillers, but I think the rest is Photoshop. They didn’t need to do that. Anna’s cute.
She’s annoying af!!!! Why on earth is she on the cover?
I like that leggings/athleisure are now acceptable for the people who enjoy it. Personally, I hate it for myself. It doesn’t matter how fitted/tailored the leggings look, to me outfits built on them always looks sloppy and lazy. Give me a fitted tank, midi skirt, and wedges or block heels any day. What happened to looking polished and put together? What I do resent is that while I think people should go for what they want to wear, athleisure-wearing people in my life have knocked me for “dressing up” or “trying too hard” when I’m actually comfortable in what I’m wearing. Like sorry, but wearing an underwire bra makes me feel more put-together haha.
It’s the teeth! The teeth and the eyebrows.