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After getting serious flak for telling Women’s Health that she couldn’t handle what pregnancy would do to her body, Jillian Michaels, the tough-love fitness trainer on The Biggest Loser, came out with the full story.
According to Michaels, her quote—“I'm going to adopt. I can't handle doing that to my body"—was taken way out of context. Though the reporter took Michaels’ comment to mean she preferred a hot body to being pregnant, Michaels says what she really meant was her body actually can’t handle being pregnant due to a health condition. As it turns out, Michaels has endometriosis and polycystic ovaries, which without serious medical intervention could prevent her from getting pregnant. When asked why she wanted to adopt instead of having kids, Michaels says she panicked, not wishing to disclose her condition to the public. But after all of the backlash from furious moms, Michaels felt she had no choice but to fess up to the real reason she won’t be having a child of her own. Women on the iVillage Endometriosis board responded with empathy. “Given the state of her endometriosis, and the surgery she would have to go through to make it happen, plus the hormones most of us have to go through to conceive, that quote makes perfect sense,” writes cl-miladyknight.
“How sad that she should be forced to talk about something so private because of something like this, but I love that she has come forward and can give endometriosis another face in the public eye,” says lcampb1.
How do you feel about Jillian Michaels’ latest confession? Chime in on the iVillage boards.
Fat-free butter spread: File this one under “Things that make you go hmm…” While at the supermarket the other day, iVillage member Auntydoxzz noticed a product she’d never seen before: I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter Fat-Free Soft Spread. “I know they add stuff to the light versions so they are not as heavily fatted but this seems weirder than nonfat half and half!” she writes. With no ingredient information on the I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter Web site, members were left to speculate what it could possibly be made of. “I wonder if it is made with something like that Olestra. That stuff doesn't sit very well with my intestines,” says twosweet02.
The I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter Fat-Free Spread (ICBINBFFS ) is not made of Olestra. And like many other fat-free products, it isn’t completely fat-free. It’s made from a mix of vegetable oils, just like any other butter spread. Food manufacturers are allowed to say that if there’s less than half a gram of fat per serving (hence the asterisk on the nutrition labels). In the case of ICBINBFFS, one serving size is one tablespoon, so if you’re the type of person who heaps on the butter-less butter spread, you are probably consuming a gram or two of fat.
What products have you scratching your head? Talk about it on the iVillage boards.
Another product that’s got people buzzing this week? Butt-toning sneakers. Several brands, including MBT and Sketchers, have introduced athletic shoes with curved soles that look kind of like the feet of a rocking chair. According to the their claims, walking in unstable shoes forces you to engage your core muscles to stay balanced, which makes you work up to three times harder, so you burn more calories as you go about your day. Sounds so tempting, doesn’t it? Even though experts like sports physician Michael Ross, MD, author of Maximum Performance: Sports Medicine for Endurance Athletes have said the shoes aren’t likely to tone your body, many people who try them are instantly converted when muscles they haven’t worked in years are suddenly sore. iVillage member Melissamc, who scoffs at the shoes’ unattractiveness and steep price, can’t help but wonder if they live up to their hype. “Do you really think they work?”
She’s not the only one who feels tempted by the products’ claims. “I've thought about getting some just because I am really curious, but the price deters me,” says kaybee873.
Others are just not convinced. “I do not buy this theory. It's a marketing gimmick for people who don't exercise, thinking they've got a quick fix for a better butt,” says sienna76.
What’s your take: Are you curious enough about the shoe to try it? Chime in on the Walk On Rock On Community Challenge board.
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