Chrissy Metz, the actress, and singer has been through hell and high waters in her quest to lose weight. Eventually, the 40-year-old learned to accept her plus-size body as a blessing rather than a bane.
The details of Chrissy Metz's harrowing journey to self-acceptance can fill up the pages of a book. From her tear-jerking childhood to her battle with depression through adulthood, one constant remained her plus size body and how much she loathed it.
Most of these rough paths were portrayed through her role as Kate in "This Is Us." A glance at the actress would immediately bring to mind the source of the majority of her life's travails.
Chrissy Metz at The 24th Annual Critics' Choice Awards at Barker Hangar on January 13, 2019 | Photo: Getty Images
One could also guess her utmost desire, which is to have a "fit, healthy body," as she has revealed on-screen on many occasions. That said, there's a lot of catching up to do on the star, to understand how far she's come in her weight loss journey.
ore importantly, when she went from being the passive Hollywood newbie to the confident, body-positive woman qualified to project Kate Pearson's struggles in real life.
CHRISSY METZ'S CHILDHOOD
Like Kate in the NBC series, Chrissy Metz dealt with a lot of body-shaming growing up, so much so that the word "fat" became her greatest nightmare.
She once recounted how her vocal coach, Dot Todma started her on the journey to self-acceptance and confidence
Her school mates, internet trolls and stepfather, all contributed in some way to her losing her self-confidence. Opening up about some of her childhood ordeals, the 40-year-old revealed she was born chubby and retained the size throughout her life.
At eleven, her mom intervened, enrolling her in Weight Watchers. The star admitted to being the youngest in the class at the time, with her mom trying hard to figure it all out for her.
Despite being physically active while growing up, embracing heart-pumping activities like roller-skating and biking, the weights kept building up. Metz's stepfather made the ordeal more unbearable, as he found her body size unacceptable and unappealing.
He conducted forced weight checks on her, shamed her each time she ate, and eventually turned to hitting her violently. The period fell within her teenage years and was one of her most haunting memories.
LIFE AS A PLUS-SIZE WOMAN
Chrissy Metz's weight in no way discouraged her from pursuing her acting dreams. By the time she attained adulthood and ventured into showbiz, she was a size 12, which automatically set her up for typecasting. But she could live with that.
The only problem was that the roles weren't forthcoming. On the advice of her manager, she lost 50 pounds before moving to LA in pursuit of better acting gigs.
She recalled a director turning her down after auditioning for a role because she was too attractive to play the overweight lady. More of such rejections came her way.
Before long, the plus-size beauty turned to marathon feeding to eat her feelings away as she experienced severe depression. As a result, she gained over a hundred pounds in no time.
While at it, the actress took up other jobs to make a living, including working as a junior commercial casting agent, further worsening her depression spiral.
METZ'S WEIGHT LOSS JOURNEY
The star's luck experienced a U-turn on her 30th birthday following a panic attack that left her hospitalized. The encounter led to her resolve to reclaim her life, and ultimately, beat depression.
Metz began adhering to a weight-loss regimen, losing 100 lbs within five months just by eating 2,000 calories and walking 20 minutes daily. The routine paid off eventually, as the icon regained her confidence.
Soon after, she snagged her first recurring role in the movie "American Horror Story: Freak Show." The role kick-started Metz's acting career, but at the same time, changed her thought process.
The star once discussed how playing a fat lady in the movie required her to wear a fat suit. In turn, the role left her fearing she would someday become that fat and have difficulties fitting through door frames.
Ultimately, she decided she never wanted that for herself, hence, doubling her efforts to attain a healthy body weight and it eventually paid off.
A WORK IN PROGRESS
Starring on "American Horror Story: Freak Show" exposed her to her life-changing role as Kate Pearson, which she landed in 2015. The series "This Is Us" portrayed Chrissy Metz as a woman in her late thirties struggling with weight loss.
The character completely resonated with the actress, who has experienced the bout of Kate's ordeals in the real world. Interestingly, the contract for the movie also called for Metz to lose weight in real-time, along with her character, which was a win-win situation.
Although the show creator clarified that the icon was under no pressure to comply with the clause and reach a certain goal, they had a flexible weight loss plan in place to ensure her weight loss was in tandem with her on-screen alter ego.
When asked if she could go under the knife to achieve her desired body type, the songstress did a hard pass. Chrissy Metz also clarified she had no intention of undergoing any form of weight loss surgery, not even to live up to the terms of her contract.
SELF-ACCEPTANCE AND NEWFOUND CONFIDENCE
After years of enduring body-shamers, depression, and low self-worth, the star finally learned to love herself for who she was, notwithstanding her body type.
Over time, she embraced her body size, striving to lose weight only to stay healthy and not because she thought the extra flesh was not sexy.
She once recounted how her vocal coach, Dot Todma started her on the journey to self-acceptance and confidence by asking her to sing naked in front of the mirror.
Although skeptical at first, Metz soon realized her coach was trying to make her feel comfortable in her own skin. She eventually got the hang of it, becoming more open to exploring bold outfit choices without care for internet trolls and body-shamers.
Today, Metz has become the ultimate representation of confidence and body positivity. Her weight loss journey is indeed a harrowing story destined for a happy ending.
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