Rachel Hunter has never been stick-thin – and now, she’s proud of it. The 5-foot-10 former supermodel, who shot to fame in the late ’80s with her voluptuous body, hopes to become a role model for regular-sized women everywhere. She’s the spokesperson for Slim-Fast’s Find Your Slim campaign, which encourages women to set reasonable weight-loss goals. OK! recently sat down with Rachel, 38, to find out about her weight struggles, diet, and workout.
Why did you get involved with Slim-Fast? I wasn’t eating breakfast in the morning, running out with the kids and going through to 1 p.m. not having eaten, and my energy levels were just down.
Find Your Slim really gives women an opportunity to put it in their own hands. [This says] I can go where I feel comfortable, in the 10- to 20-pound weight-loss range. I actually find by getting myself into a routine, having the shake in the morning, getting the kids to school, my energy level has lasted a lot longer.
How much weight have you lost? I’ve lost depending on what I’ve eaten that morning between the eight-to-10 mark. I’m happy with where I am.
How much do you weigh now? Between 140 and 143. I can’t be 135 pounds. I can’t be in the 30s anymore. For me, that’s too skinny. I’m not comfortable with that. I think the dress sizing has changed so much because I have actually hopped into a size 6 and I’m like, “There is no way in hell!” I was a size 8 in normal modeling and that was back then, and now I fit a size 6? That’s not possible, because I weigh more.
Have you ever set unrealistic weight-loss goals for yourself? Yeah. You look at what’s “in” and having been a model for years, you go through the pressures of going, “Oh, my god, I need to look great for this photo shoot.” I remember being on one particular shoot for a magazine and they were going to choose the girl who was going to be the swimsuit model, and that puts a tremendous amount of pressure on three young girls, going, “I wonder which one of us is going to do it?”
There are times when you go, “If I was thinner, I could do that.” I’m 38 and maybe can’t do that anymore. I think finding something, feeling comfortable with it and being okay with that is important.
When were you at your heaviest? After I had my children… oh, god, does that suck! The last 10 pounds took me at least five years to go down. I put on 40 to 45 pounds. I remember a friend of mine – her little girl goes, “What are those dimples on your leg?” I was like, “Oh, no!” I don’t know how some of these women do it. They get back their figures like that.
What’s your fitness routine? I don’t do the private training because I get bored very fast. I don’t like lifting weights; it adds muscle. I do Pilates. I do spinning class.
What is a typical day of food like? Usually, it will be a [Slim-Fast] strawberry shake in the morning, then a piece of fruit and a strawberry shortcake bar for lunch and then again a piece of fruit and dinner of chicken, mashed potatoes, peas and carrots, and a normal-sized salad.
Do you ever get to indulge? On Sundays, I eat what I want. That’s usually my roast dinner day, where I cook roast lamb or roast pork with potatoes. I love cooking.
What have you cut out? Bread and cheese are big weaknesses for me.
How do you feel about the bone-thin craze in Hollywood? To each his own is all I can say. People do what they want to do, and it’s their choice. It’s just the way fashion is.
During that time period with Cindy Crawford, Elle [Macpherson], Naomi [Campbell] – all these people are still very visible because it was a time when that body shape was somewhat normal and people could relate to it.
