Bethenny Frankel is speaking out about unrealistic body image.
On Wednesday, the Real Housewives of New York City alum, 51, posted three photos to her Instagram. The first and second appear to be similar, with Frankel in a blue bikini. The third reveals the comparison — her first photo appears to be photoshopped, while the second was not.
The Skinnygirl mogul explained in her post that she finds photoshopped images “the opposite of inspirational.”
“This is NOT what I look like…and you know that bc I’m not vain and show you the real me. But if I posted a version of this every day you might start to believe that it might be. This is just how distorted this has all gotten…” Frankel’s caption said.
“Filtering is lying: it is deceptive,” she continued. “It makes women feel badly about themselves. It makes young girls insecure and obsessed with an unattainable perfection. It makes middle aged women and mothers feel insecure about themselves. This creates a false ideal for men. It’s the opposite of inspirational. It’s destructive. It’s irresponsible. It’s insecure and it’s inaccurate. There is a line between making an effort to look pretty and an outright falsehood.”
She concluded, “Swipe to see what I really look like????????,” adding the hashtags #instagramvsreality #thisisme #speakyourtruth and #liveauthentic.
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Frankel is taking bikinis — and all swimsuits — very seriously these days, as she prepares to launch Bethenny Swimwear, her first collection of bathing suits with HSN. She announced the news in June with a poolside Instagram post.
In the photo, Frankel posed in the Emerald Bethenny Corset 1-Piece Tank Swimsuit and a pair of shades. “Launching elevated, elegant, sophisticated, shaping swim to make EVERY BODY feel their best & beautiful,” she captioned the post.
“This is finally a brand that’s making you feel excited to put on a bathing suit,” she said while promoting the collection on her Instagram Story. “This is a woman who people are going to stop and look at — all shapes, all sizes — ’cause everyone just looks like a ten.”
bethennyfrankel/Instagram
Bethenny Swimwear joins Frankel’s other fashion endeavors, which include Skinnygirl denim and Skinnygirl shapewear.
In a July TikTok video, Frankel answered a fan’s question about how she’s able to “stay so thin.”
“I get asked this all the time. I don’t exercise. I do what I can, when I can,” Frankel began. “I’ll snowboard if I can, I’ll surf if I can. I’ll walk on the beach… but I choose sleep first. Sleep is the number one priority, and being happy is the number one priority.”
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The reality star said she no longer believes in the idea of exercising to work off calories consumed.
“I believe in balance. I believe in sleep, I believe in living, I believe in french fries, I believe in alcohol, and I believe in not being crazy,” she said.
“The crazier you get, the worse it gets for you. And as you get older, you realize the ‘zero f—’ lifestyle works better,” Frankel added.
