Staring into the camera with her piercing blue eyes, the stunning Victoria Secret angel Adriana Lima admits that she wanted to be a doctor all her life. Now, cue the dramatic silence because, realistically, this is a woman who walks in underwear for a living.
Blame it on Regina George from Mean Girls or society in general, but our stereotypical image of a pretty girl includes one that is mean, conceited and of course, stupid. Suffice to say, our perception of beauty is seriously distorted. Low and behold, though, the Victoria Secret angels have created a new image of beauty. And no, it’s not just because they can rock lingerie like no other woman can. Rather, it’s their ability to banish negative stereotypes and prove that there certainly is more than beats the eye with these beautiful angels.
The image of Victoria Secret has always been rooted in being “healthy and muscular.” It even states so in their contract. But in April 2011, a frenzy of backlash pitted against Candice Swanepoel for appearing too skinny during a publicity event. Years ago, if you tuned into the annual Victoria Secret Fashion Show, you would see the famous curves of their former models Tyra Banks, Gisele and Naomi Campbell. Candice blamed travelling for her shrinking body, but took to the rumours by telling People magazine, “I am healthy and happy. I’m heartened to know how much everyone cares about me, but in this case, everything is normal and good.”
Despite the negative comments regarding the models being too skinny, almost all of them are passionate about health and fitness. Adriana Lima kick-boxes every single day, while Miranda Kerr lives a healthy balanced lifestyle of practicing yoga and Pilates. She also swears by the 80% healthy, 20% indulgent diet and admits to loving a plate of greasy French fries.
The models are beautiful and smart, which is an unlikely mix to most people, but Australian-beauty Miranda Kerr has helped diminish that stigma. In her first novel, Treasure Yourself, a self-help book for female teenagers, she revealed that she knew the importance of attaining an education and even furthered that belief by getting a degree in Nutrition. She has also put her stardom to good use through her charitable work such as Wildlife Warriors Worldwide, Children International and Earth Hour.
Their true humbleness comes from their upbringing and history with bullying. Most of them even considered themselves “ugly ducklings” growing up. Rosie Huntington-Whitley can be the first to admit to the torture she endured throughout high school. In an interview with television host Chelsea Handler, she said she was bullied “constantly” because of her full lips. “I always said, ‘they’ll make me money one way or another.’” Flash-forward to today and they’re one of her most envied features.
So, like most happily-ever-afters, each of the Victoria Secret angels endured trials, tribulations and wicked witches along the way. A few of them may have once been called ugly, gangly or stupid, but they have surpassed it all. Big time.
So bullies, look who’s laughing now.
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