I’m not exactly the hugest Lady Gaga fan-girl, but earlier this week, she did something pretty cool. After her cover photo from “Glamour” was released, she made a public statement that the image of her was unrealistic and that she doesn’t really look like that when she wakes up in the morning. She even went so far as to point out that spreading unrealistic images of women around is pretty crap for the overall self-confidence of everyone who looks at them. And you know what, she is freaking right.
It’s no cover of Glamour Magazine, but when my pics from the NY Fashion Week Oiselle Runway show were posted, a lot of people commented that it was pretty crazy to have my body change that much in three months. And yeah, it was a little crazy but in real life, people don’t walk around spray tanned and flexed. Out of the thousands of photos taken at the runway show after all that tanning and primping and posture-holding, one or two of them looked good. A lot of them looked pretty gnarly. Weird facial expressions, lumpy bits, zombie walks…but nobody would ever know…
So in the spirit of Lady Gaga, I want to post some pictures that were taken the same week as the Runway Show, in much less flattering positions. Who needs “Us Weekly” to capture unflattering images when you can post them on the internet yourself!
For comparison, Runway Shot first:
Cropped parts of photos taken later that week.
This is what I looked like with my belly not turbo-flexed and sucked in:
This is my actual posture when I’m not on stage:
This is what my inner thigh looks like when I squeeze it (not recommended):
So there you go. Never take the photos you see on magazine covers or online too seriously. Everyone has thigh cheese. It’s part of life. Nobody is perfect. 
xx
Lauren
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Update 1/26/14
A few commenters below are skeptical of my photos because of my weird belly button. When I suck in, it’s an innie. When I relax and let my belly hang out, it’s an outie. It was my “stupid human trick” for cross country camp. Truly a gift. A few pics to illustrate are below. As for the truly cynical, all I can say is my words are true. Thanks to everyone for your comments and encouragement, and even the couple of you who posted your own pics online to #keepitreal!
I just came across this, and…Wow. Great reveal. Just this morning I made note of my pouchy belly and realized that I’d now love the belly I berated myself over just a few years ago when I was a strong triathlete and really looked great. And now I’m still a strong triathlete and look great – but I emit sighs of disgust daily at my saggy belly and larger body. And now I just learned that those ripped abs in photos are sucked in! Wish I’d known sooner – Thanks, though! I appreciate the info now. To be shared with my nieces…
Its a good trick to remember the next time I am taking a photo in a swimsuit : ). I admire the honesty behind this post and love the message it sends.
Thanks.
This is such an awesome share! Thank You Thank You Thank You. As all of us keep at our individual fitness journeys day in and day out…at the same time struggle with what we are aspiring to in terms of our bodies and the image we want it to be which is an ever moving target. And yes seeing sleek muscular fat-less bodies day in and day out in the media can be quite disheartening…so Thank You again!
Awanti
35
Bangalore, India
You’re welcome Awanti! Thanks for commenting!
You had me from that post! I am now a loyal fan.
thanks for your honesty, amazing and hilarious advise and yummy running bars!
Hi Lauren! You’re truly an incredible role model! I love all of your articles and I’m a big fan. Thank you for inspiring women all over the world, including me; someone who has never felt comfortable in her own skin.
Thanks for this!! As a 48 year old who has never appreciated my body (even 20 yrs ago pre-kids when in retrospect I looked pretty hot -lol) and is very frustrated now with a slower metabolism and who needs to wear spanx almost daily to hide the rolls, this is much-needed!! As I try desperately through different exercise regimes–jazzercize, hot yoga, the gym, barre workouts and now running–to get closer to how I looked before I had kids, it’s so nice to realize that even when someone looks fabulous in a photo, the reality looks closer to my reality!
I appreciate your honesty Lauren about your body image. I”m a 38 year old mom of 2 and I’ve been running since I was 10 years old. I’ve always had strong muscle in my legs, arms, and stomach. However, I’ve never been able to achieve the kind of flat stomach your pictures show. Or most models boast. Not even if I suck in. I’m 5′ 2″, 110 lbs. Pregnancy with my second child made my abs split to allow for her to grow. She was a whole pound bigger than my first. After pregnancy I had to work very hard at pulling my abs back together. I even got down to 99 lbs at one point and my stomach still maintained a little pouch or strenched skin. I struggle with the image of my stomach. I’ve had to teach myslef over the years to try to find other parts of my body I do like. It’s not easy especially when I see women who have model flat stomachs after 4 kids and never work out. I do realize that good genes play a huge role in this. What I want to teach my daughter is that I run because it keeps me healthy and is a stress reliever. Not to run to get a model body.
April, I feel the same way. I am 5’5″ 122lbs and work out run etc and after 3 babies my belly has a pooch that won’t go away. At age 36, I almost did a mini tummy tuck because I hated how it pooches out and then I thought, why go under the knife and all it’s risks so I could have a flat tummy? I had 4 miscarriages and those stretch marks and those torn abs are a sign that I finally carried 3 children to term. They are my battle scars and I survived. I am 46 now and I exercise to be strong and for the pain and joy of running. This body with it’s imperfections, is the one I will miss at 80 if I am blessed to live a long life. Thank you Lauren and all the brave women out there that embraced their bodies as they are. We are beautifully and wonderfully made.
This is incredible, just as the fact that you would post these pictures yourself! You and your honesty with us Laura, are amazing! Thank you so much for posting this!
You are so awesome! Im a runner and I have been frustrated lately because I have pretty decent abs but when I don’t control my stomach, its super big! I have actually been struggling with accepting that but your photos and post were a huge help. It proves that even the owner of the greatest abs in the world doesn’t have the perfect everything
Thank you for being so truthful and wonderful!
Fantastic…. thanks for doing the relaxed vs posed. I have been trying to figure out what ‘in great shape normal’ is and I think you’ve showed me.
Hiya Lauren, love this, and you for doing in, including your honesty about being ambivalent up to hitting the “post” button. (And a toast to your friend!) I’m a 60 year old runner who does ok at races (love those age-graded results!) but still frets about the “thigh cheese” that appears on race photos. What a waste of precious time. Glad to share part of your journey with you and hope to stay up with you for at least a little bit longer.
You are wonderful! I really need a dose of this reality — and I didn’t think I did, after nearly 50 years on this planet, I thought I had my perception under control.
Congratulations Lauren! That is great for men too. We need show this things to our girlfriends, wives and sons. And why not use to us? Generally media shows men’s bodies that we rarely can have, but we certainly can be healthy and happy with our bodies like they are!
Excuse any error, English is not my first language.
Ok, i just ran into this as a note at the bottom of a Runner’s World article so i’m a bit out of date, but seriously, thank you so much for posting it. Post-30 (i’m 47), it’s tough to look in the mirror and see the wiggly bits even when your brain knows that it’s ok and perfectly normal – even when you can go out and do a 7 mile run and 50 mile bike ride. I wish we were all able to be more comfortable with our bodies no matter the size, no matter the scrunchy parts, no matter the scars (even cool sports related ones), no matter the age.
It really was good of you to share this as well as the women willing to share their comments. I struggle with my body image on a daily (hourly) basis. I hate the way this 56 yr. old body is sagging and drooping. I started running 2 yrs. ago and love the way I “feel” my body “looks”……then I look in the mirror and wonder what happened…..why it feels so much better than it looks. I hate not having a flat firm stomach and am always looking at women and their stomach area and comparing it to mine. I’m envious when I see the flat, slim stomach and the curve in the waistline at just the right spot. And they are usually 30 yrs. younger than me. Why do I torture myself b/c I don’t have a 26 yr. old looking body????? I’m not 26!!!! I’m going to work on stopping putting myself down and hating my body and embracing who I am on the inside. I know that won’t happen all at once but I’m going to try to not be so hard on myself. Thanks so much for sharing.
At the age of 41, after two kids followed by a decade of endurance training, over a dozen marathons, and countless triathlons (including an Ironman) I have NEVER been happy with my body. Just when I think I’m reasonably satisfied with how I look, I see an image on a magazine cover, or an actress in a movie and next thing I know, I can’t help but think about how my body DOESN’T look like that. Ironic that while doing a search of Hollywood personalities and athletes, googling how much they weight and what they eat (or don’t), I came across this wonderful blog from Lauren. Needless to say, it completely changed my entire outlook of what is real. And most importantly, it made me realize how hard I have been on myself. Especially considering I’m not a model or professional athlete! Thanks so much for sharing Lauren. Hopefully other women see this and can start feeling as good about themselves as we all deserve to!
Thankyou Lauren ,I am closing in on 55,and over the years have been a casual runner. 26years ago I was first diagnosed with my rare,bizarre brain tumor. After surgery & radiation I got on with my life ,found my inner ski bum and while raising my brilliant only son, I became a professional ski instructor(classic Nordic &telemark) also a national ski patrol volunteer. I was in great shape,skiing 80-100+ days a year for 2+ decades. I still had the squeezable cellulite only we,the Tele divas, called it hail damage. My insurance won’t pay to fix it, but they did pay for chemo which increased my weight by 50 pounds, and another surgery, two in fact and maybe one more, we will see. My point in all this is that though I’m still over weight and lumpy,it helps me to read AND see the truths you and all the women have shared. I may look obese to myself in the mirror, I may stick to low speed Nordic ,and I will ski in my patch,even with facial droop. I will focus on the way I feel inside when I’m gliding along which is beautiful . So Thankyou again. Pirate Patti proud mother of Marathonsam .
Thank you Lauren ,I am closing in on 55,and over the years have been a casual runner. 26years ago I was first diagnosed with my rare,bizarre brain tumor. After surgery & radiation I got on with my life ,found my inner ski bum and while raising my brilliant only son, I became a professional ski instructor(classic Nordic &telemark) also a national ski patrol volunteer. I was in great shape,skiing 80-100+ days a year for 2+ decades. I still had the squeezable cellulite only we,the Tele divas, called it hail damage. My insurance won’t pay to fix it, but they did pay for chemo which increased my weight by 50 pounds, and another surgery, two in fact and maybe one more, we will see. My point in all this is that though I’m still over weight and lumpy,it helps me to read AND see the truths you and all the women have shared. I may look obese to myself in the mirror, I may stick to low speed Nordic ,and I will ski in my patch,even with facial droop. I will focus on the way I feel inside when I’m gliding along which is beautiful . So Thankyou again. Pirate Patti proud mother of Marathonsam .
Oww! this is really a great truth the media sells the “perfect body” and in real life does not work that way.
Lauren, I am a little late reading this post but thank you, thank you, thank you for posting this!!! I am the mother of 3 children and even though I started running again 5 years ago and am slim and fairly fit, I have a lot of extra skin on my belly area and it sometimes hangs over my running shorts. Lately I have been focusing on that area of my body expressing love and gratitude for carrying my children and allowing them to grow to full term. I appreciate you being real and showing these photos. A lot of women see the ‘perfect bodies’ of athletes and celebrities in magazines, but don’t realize these ladies are nipping, tucking, sucking in, and are photo shopped. I think it’s important to strive to be healthy and fit, but women need to embrace their bodies and love themselves no matter their size or shape. Everyone is beautiful and unique.
I don’t get it. I run 20 miles a week and bike 150. I am in excellent shape. I don’t tone. I don’t look as ripped as the “perfection” picture, but despite not being in nearly as good shape as Lauren, I don’t have thigh cheese and can’t, no matter how hard I try, make my belly stick out anywhere close to like in the “real” picture. I am male. Is it a gender difference? Body type difference? Just not reconciling for me. I don’t doubt it because the pics don’t lie, but…
Yes, it’s because you’re a man. It’s also because you didn’t have a baby recently, which causes female bodies to do strange and wonderful things.
You are really pretty, my lady ! Eliza
Wow! Sometimes I feel bad whenever I browse fashion magazines and face the mirror. The ladies in the mags looked really awesome, like they’re almost perfect. But THANK YOU for this post! It’s an eye opener — not just for the ladies but for the gents too
Great post
all my life i have been thinking i was the only one with that stupid human trick! It must have been that i had better abs as a five year old than now and that is why i was able to pop it out on command… (sadly i have lost the ability haha)
thank you for all your posts on beauty and image, you are doing a great thing!
Many of us know this but show this on your blog is so inspiring. Thanks a lot for sharing those pic! You are so lovely!
Your awesome. Thank you for this. I like my baby belly a bit more now. Sadly a bulging disc in my back stopped my running.
You are awesome for doing this. Thank you so much!
Wow…! Its so good to hear this. I was so stressed everytime i looked in the mirror and compared myself to these fitness models in magazines. So turns out it isn’t true…?! Am sooooo relieved….!
Thanks for sharing your humanity and humility. In today’s world that is an amazing gift to share.
Best of luck to you in all of your endeavors and THANK YOU.
Awesome!! I’ve also posted my “imperfect” weight online a few times (back in the days when I owned a scale). The impact you have as an accomplished professional athlete is immeasurable. Thank you!!!
Definitely consider that which you stated. Your favorite reason appeared to be at the internet the easiest factor to take note of. I say to you, I certainly get annoyed whilst other folks consider concerns that they plainly do not recognise about. You managed to hit the nail upon the highest and also defined out the whole thing with no need side-effects , folks can take a signal. Will probably be back to gt more. Thanks
This is my first time in your blog and I love it!! You are really awesome!!!!!!!! ^____^ Thank U.
I love this post Lauren! thanks for your honesty. everyone has their own beauty and you are just as beautiful as you are now no matter what other people think about you!
THANK YOU! Really awesome that you are keeping it real, what a great role model for young women!
Lauren, I know this is an old post. But I want to thank you deeply for writing it. I have pulled it up twice now to show my girls… the latest time just this evening to my 6 year old, who thinks she is “fat”. She doesn’t hear negative things like this in my household, but it doesn’t seem to matter. I constantly show her my “post 2 kids” belly and remind her that I’m healthy and strong, and that I can race and do well… tummy and all. But somehow I think the message gets through better when it’s repeated by someone else. Thank you so much for being that person. I appreciate you putting yourself out there, in what can be a cruel and judgemental medium, to share this dose of reality.