Bethenny Frankel addressed social media chatter about her appearance after the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Runway Show.
The former “Real Housewives of New York City” star posted a video on Instagram on June 2 sharing more details about what it was like to walk in the runway show.
“I guess we have to discuss what I looked like on that runway, because the internet is so fascinated with my age, my weight, my face, my hair,” she said.
Frankel, 54, wore several bathing suits during the runway event in Miami, including a one-piece swimsuit with cheetah print and pink bikini with black polka dots, plus a black mesh cover-up that she took off at one point.
“Listen, I can tell you with great certainty that every woman that was with me on that stage did not look that way two hours prior,” Frankel said. “OK, it was everybody’s job, and that’s what goes on in Hollywood, in the entertainment industry, and the images that you and your daughters see of women, of Kim Kardashian, of Beyoncé, of J.Lo, of every famous person, that there is a lot of work that goes into that, a lot of glam, a lot of contouring, a lot of lighting, a lot.”
Frankel added that she does not normally wear makeup, and that she doesn’t crash diet.
“I don’t go to a gym. I don’t have a workout. I walk on the beach. Everything I do has balance. I self-regulate so I have a good relationship with food and exercise,” she said. “It wasn’t always that way. This is not that I have a good metabolism or just good genes, because I used to be 25 pounds heavier in my early 30s.”
Frankel said she doesn’t have issues with “food noise” or “exercise noise” at this point in her life.
“The reason my body is natural is because the exercise that I do, and have always done for my body is natural. I’ll go months without exercise, and definitely days without doing anything, but I always come back to it,” she said. “I have a good relationship with it, and I have a good relationship with food because it’s the obsession, it’s the extremes, it’s the binging, it’s the emotions, it’s the noise. That is why we are struggling.”
She concluded by telling her followers, “I want you to allow yourselves to have, but not beat yourselves up when you do indulge. And I want you to have a good relationship with food and exercise.”
Frankel spoke more about her experience participating in the show in a June 1 Instagram post.
“There are so many things I could say about the Sports Illustrated experience. I didn’t know much going into it. I mean, I know it’s a magazine, and I know that once a year they do a swimsuit issue,” she said.
“What I didn’t know is what the culture is like there. And I didn’t know who 90% of the women were. I will tell you that the resounding theme and culture is women supporting women,” she continued.
Frankel said the women at the event were not just giving compliments, but asking about what people were planning to do during their walks and helping them with their ideas.
“I have to say that as much as the runway show was really fun … I wasn’t nervous. I was aware of my age. I was aware that I’m not a model, and there were a lot of models, and I was just like, ‘Am I gonna stick this landing or make an absolute fool myself and embarrass you guys?'” she said.
In the caption of another Instagram post, she summarized the event: “This runway show was such an amazing experience and I am forever grateful to my community here in Florida and the people for your endless support.”
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