Gwen Stefani Never Stops Dieting

Adorable Gwen has talked before about her struggles with body image, and now she's admitting to extensive periods of dieting. How extensive? Follow the jump to find out!

Gwen's telling press she's been on a diet since sixth grade!

"My grandmother was one of those really obese women and I think that frightened my mom. I've always been on a diet, ever since I was in the sixth grade. It was out of my mother's love for me. But I don't know if it's good for a kid to be concerned (with their weight) so early."

Yup Gwen, it's not good for kids to be so concerned about their weight that young. Too bad you're still feeding the machine that tells girls they have to be super-skinny by keeping up with the dieting! I think you'd be just as hot if you gained a little weight.

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Comments

[Butrfly Garden]

I don't think she needs to gain weight. I think that really, people need to stop obsessing about celebrities' weights. THEN maybe THEY will.

When every day, someone is being torn apart for being too thin or too fat BY US - how can we expect THEM to live 'normal' lives not obsessing over their weight?

Seriously. Every Day.

[Sils]

My problem with Gwen isn't her weight, she's very fit, I just worry about her mindset. I actually wrote about this in my personal journal months ago:

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From the May Harper's Bizarre:

Gwen didn't waste time getting back into shape after Kingston's birth. Was it tough? She sighs at the memory. "Yeah, it's so much work afteward to get the weight off." Yesterday she ran for the first time in months and found it excruciating: "I thought I was going to throw up, but..." She continues, "If you just do it, it comes off. And when you're nursing, like I am, your metabolism is like, whooosh! You're sleep deprived, but you have this crazy amount of energy because of all those hormones. I'm scared what'll happen when it all stops," she chuckles, "what it'll feel like, going back to the regular me."

Gwen admits, though, that she struggled to maintain her size 4 figure even before pregnancy. "Seriously, though, it's very boring and embarrassing and I hate talking about it, but it's true: I've always been on a diet, ever since I was in the sixth grade. It's an ongoing battle, and it's a nightmare. But I like clothes too much, and I always wanted to wear the outfits I would make. And I'm--" another chuckle "--very vain."

"I don't have a daily food regime," she insists. "I eat pretty healthy most of the time, but I let myself cheat once or twice a day with a cookie or pizza. The rest of the time, it's salads, fruit -- all the healthy stuff. But I do like eating the fat way, too, especially when I'm training, because it just makes me feel better. But I'm, like, supernormal about it." She pauses to consider this statement. "Normal meaning I'm obsessive. The way we all are. Right?"

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What I said about it then was this: Thank God this woman hasn't birthed a girl yet. No sixth grader should be "dieting" and be aware of it -- maintain a healthy diet and have some physical activity? Yes. Pinch their stomach and start "restricting?" No. It scares me that being obsessive about weight is being passed off as normal.

[Andrea]

I wonder about that too...what is this site for? For mothers to post pics of celebs and then pick them apart?

I hope you don't do this to your kids too.

[michelle1]

i really don't think that gwen should be dieting she looks perfect thw way she is and if people think that she should get skinnier than they have problems and just because gwen is dieting it doesn't mean that everyone should.

[chatty cricket]

Truthfully, she looks fantastic. But what I really love about her is how much she seems to enjoy being with her little boy. Now THAT is what I like to see as a Mom.

[kr]

Some one who is a size 4 should not be on a "diet" - end of conversation. What does she want to get down to a size 0? Which personally I find that very offensive since it speaks volumes about what we want women to be.

[chatty cricket]

I think she meant she diets in order to be a size 4, and maintain a size 4...not that she's necessarily trying to get any smaller. Or maybe I'm reading it wrong?

Remember Beth Ditto's idea that a size zero needs to go? I love it. Let's talk about that again.

[Jill]

Being "on a diet" doesn't mean she's desperately trying to lose weight. I think when she says she's "constantly on a diet" and has been since she was a young age she means something along the lines of she watches what she eats and reads labels in order to stay at a certain weight. But that said, this statement of hers also makes me worry that she has become TOO consumed by counting calories and jumping on the scale. I was anorexic once upon a time, and counting calories was sooo important to me even years after I got back to a healthy weight. It's an awful feeling to think of food, calories, if you've made enough time for the gym, to obssess over it, compulsively. I remember that when she first came onto the music scene with their first single, she was constantly asked about how she got those trademark abs. She was one of the first women to say that it DOES take WORK to get those famous abs, and that she has to WORK at it to stay in shape. At the time, and even today, many celebs say they do some sort of light routine and just say they have "good genes." Well, that makes us typical, wonderful women who would like to tone up and drop a dress size or so feel like giving up on exercise and a healthy diet if it's all about genes (and perhaps a good plastic surgeon!). Gwen however, told the truth and was an inspiration! Her message was that if you learn how to obtain your goals and WORK for them, you will reach them! Now I worry that she may have a distorted view of proper and healthy goals. BTW, a typical female in the U.S. is 140lbs. and 5'5." Not all of us look good, as a size 4, let alone a size 0. And nevermind how you look, how will you feel? Most retired actresses and even more retired models say that they felt unhealthy and AWFUL at the weight at which they were often asked to be! I really hope Gwen can relax about her weight and not fall into Hollywood's pressure to weigh the least.