By Dani Denise
Modeling 101 – A Models Diary

For you young, aspiring models out there, please don’t be so fascinated by the air-brushing and Photoshop techniques that are so obvious. In terms of health and fitness, it’s easy to say, “Hey, I want to have a body like Giselle!” But that’s easier said than done.

First off, please realize that using supermodels as examples of body types you want to have is pretty unrealistic and setting too high of a standard for yourself.

Start off slowly with getting fit and trying to get a hard, toned body. Know that it won’t happen overnight and you have to be disciplined and dedicated to whatever exercise and diet plan you are on.

Sure, we’d all like to have bodies like the ones found on the inside of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition but you also have to keep in mind:

1) More than likely, these women were born naturally thin. Because of their genetics, they inherited their body types and their height. If such genetics don’t run in your family, then realize that this makes it very hard for you to attain the same body type.

2) For a majority of these women, they model full-time and get paid well to do their job. This allows them access to the highest profile fitness resources that most of us couldn’t afford if we started saving money at the age of 2.

3) They are required to maintain their height and weight at all times, and live a life centered around a healthy lifestyle. Unlike us, they hardly have to worry about going to school, working a boring 9-5 and dealing with common, everyday stresses. This gives them all the time to focus on their bodies and health.

4) These women have expert trainers who aren’t cheap and have them committed to daily, if not weekly, workout sessions.

5) With the money they make, these models are able to afford the best chefs or health foods around. And they have access to these types of healthy meals 24/7 and have the money to maintain their unique eating habits for as long as they need to.

Now with keeping all those factors in mind, it should be easy to see why it is unrealistic to use them as examples of how your body should look. If you’re not over 5’8″, chances are you will never look like them in the first place, no matter how hard you try.

Please don’t think I’m discouraging anyone. I just want you young girls to realize the reality of the situation and with that in mind, I will tell you this: be healthy, exercise regularly, eat a balanced and well-portioned diet. Don’t compare yourself to someone who has an entirely different body type than you. Do exercises that fit you and suit your lifestyle and stick to it.

By all means, be healthy because that is an important step in having a healthy mind going into the modeling world. But in order to be good at it, you have to believe in your body image and the way that you were made. Don’t let anybody else–the media, the latest “it” model, other girls, etc.–dictate how you should look and how you should improve yourself. Do it because you want to and pick a celeb or someone who has a simliar body type as you and work to achieve that level of fitness and results. It can only help you in the long run.