This is a follow-up to my previous Slim vs. Sick post, so read that first!

That article sparked a lively Facebook conversation with my model friends from back in the day and from today. I’m sharing their comments here so you can take more than my word for it: Models eat!

Lovely Leslie! My close friend’s comp card from the 90s.

90s Models on What Living Large and Staying Trim Meant Then

RICKY: I loved my food and wine/beer. Maybe my downfall at times was that I never really cared about weight. I didn’t care. I lived a life full of friends, culture, travel, adventures, smokes, booze (but not too extreme), and never let the business get the best of me. I didn’t do the job for the financial aspect but for the opportunity to travel and see the world, and that I did. I saw so many incredible countries, so many adventures—enough to last a lifetime! I’m sorry for those girls who struggled with eating disorders; the business never meant that much to me to sacrifice food and fun!

A page from my model scrapbooks, with Sophie Patitz and Ricky Haas. I met them in Munich in the 90s and we are still close friends.

LESLIE: I’ve always loved food and never personally understand eating issues. I never had that issue but I completely enjoyed cigs—every single one of them. That habit was acceptable in the 90s in Europe, but unfortunately it’s very addicting. It took years to quit and I finally did it. I was always healthy other than that and never had to diet.

We had no idea how fortunate we were and no touching up anything—just Polaroids to check lighting. We truly were the last generation before full-on technology. We were lucky, saw the world, had a blast, and made lots of memories together ❤️

JILL: And no cell phones. We actually had to read maps! And I’m sure we learned the cities much more thoroughly that way ;) GPS – nah, too easy!

Shows in Dusseldorf, road trip to Salamanca, model pension in Madrid (I was the only girl among all these male models!)

RICKY: My geography is so fine tuned due to the good ol’ days. The way I entered the modeling days in 1988 would be shocking to current models…”Here is a map of our city and here is a list of 10 clients you must see in a 9-hour period. Good luck! And P.S. sorry you don’t speak the language!”

The Model Diet in 2020

ALEXA: I’ve definitely had trouble with the measurements and how to enjoy healthy eating, until you took me in and taught me the heathy food ways I wasn’t introduced to before(: I was very naturally skinny no matter what I ate, until I hit the time where my metabolism slowed down. There was a time where I was desperate and too focused on the weight, and how to lose it and tried to do special “diets” that weren’t necessarily healthy but that never helped. Eating healthy and working out is definitely what is needed—good for you and your body. I am super thankful for you and taking me in and teaching me ❤ I’ve definitely heard a lot about models only drinking coffee and smoking.

Gorgeous Alexa Kissling, summer 2020

JILL: Awww, it’s a true honor to steer the next generation down a healthy path—mind and body—so you too can have the time of your life in the modeling world. When you look back years later, you’ll remember the friends you made, the places you went, the adventures you had. The tear sheets won’t matter as much—they’re the bonus. I saved all my portfolios. Half contain my modeling tear sheets and photos. The other half I made into scrapbooks of photos, notes, and keepsakes from my decade in the biz—those are the ones I look at all the time.

BIG CONGRATS TO ALEXA KISSLING, DISCOVERED THROUGH MY MODEL SEARCH, ON RECENTLY SIGNING WITH RED MODEL MANAGEMENT IN NYC! (Check out all of her amazing pics at the link!)

ENTER MY MODELING MENTOR MODEL SEARCH

First of all, there is no ideal weight. It depends on your height, your bone structure, the market you are working in, the type of modeling you are doing, and trends. Regardless of all that, your measurements are more crucial than pounds on a scale and being realistic about what size you are or can be is also crucial.

Photo – Luxuo on France Banning Ultra-Thin Models

Do Models Have to Starve to Be Successful?

No, unless your body’s natural size is not conducive to fashion industry standards. Most bodies have a set point, below which keeping weight off is difficult. For me, at 5’10”, that’s 127. Even at that weight, people outside the modeling business would chide, “Oh, you’re so thin!” They said it even when I was five or more pounds above that and easily within a healthy weight range for my height and body type. I think it’s an automatic reaction to anyone who is a model, and to the majority of models who are naturally slim or approach weight maintenance in a healthy, moderate manner, it’s really annoying. Whether accusing someone of being overweight or underweight, body shaming is not nice, so be careful. There is sickly thin and then there is genetically thin (even extremely thin), so sensitivity in your comments—including on social media—shows human decency.

Then again, there are models who subsist on lemon wedges, coffee, and cigarettes, and they give us all a bad name. I only encountered one admitted bulimic, but I always felt like non-fashion people were timing my trips to the bathroom and wondering whether I was upchucking the sizable meal I had just eaten. I wasn’t. Most models in my era weren’t either. If you think someone is, then that is the time when a caring heart to heart or intervention is in order. We can only hope that agents and clients act as part of the solution on this front, not part of the problem. (Former Vogue Editor: The Truth About Size Zero.)

Kate Moss admitted she followed a coffee and cigarette diet and conceded it ruins your skin. Photo: Anthony Devlin

Thin Is In… Usually

In this century, the industry has periodically leaned toward an even thinner norm, ushered in by the Heroin Chic phase in the late 90s. Lately there has been more movement toward including—even revering—more shapely models. But you have to face the fact that most models will need to maintain the measurements that are required to fit into the clothes clients use for shoots and shows.

Ideal Model Measurements

For women, the “perfect” measurements are somewhere around: 34-24-34. If your waist is a couple inches bigger (mine always was) and you can suck it in, OK. If your waist is smaller, lucky you. If your hips are 36, it’s not a deal killer. If your chest is 32, that’s fine. (Read my post: How Modeling Agents Take Models Measurements.) But if you are way outside of this ideal and can’t approach it without being unhealthy, the modeling industry may not be for you. At least not in front of the camera. There are plenty of fascinating roles behind the scenes, with way more longevity than a fleeting modeling career.

Patrick Demarchelier cover collage. Read about Patrick Demarchelier’s Photography Career here.

Fashion Biz Jobs – Weigh Whatever!

See the many articles and interviews in this section of my site — Tear Sheet articles — with scoop on being a photographer, agent, hairdresser, makeup artist, fashion stylist, fashion designer, and more. No scales or tape measure needed!

Stay tuned for a new development in my Getting Back on Set in Covid-19 story!