Yahoo Finance Instagram Star Courtney Black Gains More Followers After Ditching Dieting, Embracing Curves
An East London teen went from “thinspo” to “fitspo” and is basking in the benefits of weight gain. Courtney Black, 19, was once about 98 pounds (7 stones, in her native country), and appeared so skeletal that she was ridiculed on her Instagram page. But after growing tired of starving herself and working out to excess, she made an about-face and adopted a healthier attitude and lifestyle, according to the Mirror.
Now, at 119 pounds, the 5-foot-3 blonde not only looks and feels great, but she’s also earned a huge, supportive social-media following comprising 100,000 followers — and she couldn’t be happier. “I love my curves now and I’m truly ashamed of how I used to eat and exercise,” Black told the Mirror.
Just gunna drop a gym selfie in between all the political drama ????
A photo posted by Courtney Black (@courtneydblack) on Jun 24, 2016 at 12:35am PDT
An accounts clerk, part-time personal trainer, and aspiring fitness model, Black now eats five meals a day, telling the Mirror she’s “quite a big eater.” She couldn’t say the same for herself just two years ago, when her obsession with being as thin as possible led her to deprive herself of nourishment with such regimens as a bit of Greek yogurt and berries for breakfast, chicken breast and vegetables for lunch, and a snack of low-fat yogurt or an apple for dinner — and that’s it.
Her paltry meals were punctuated by intense cardio, 8-mile daily runs, sit-ups, and crunches. “Honestly I don’t know how I had the energy to exercise on such a poor diet. I honestly believed I wasn’t skinny enough,” she shared.
The former dancer’s obsession with being stick-thin began when she stopped dancing and put on some weight, which made her feel “chubby,” she told the Mirror. At first, she was caught up in her fixation. But eventually, Black began to look severely unhealthy and feel “miserable,” plus she was alienating friends and family and suffering public humiliation for her physique.
A photo posted by Courtney Black (@courtneydblack) on Jun 22, 2016 at 11:50pm PDT
In the summer of 2015, she’d had enough and embarked on a fitness journey, which she chronicled on Instagram. “As I got over my fears, I slowly reduced the excessive amount of cardio exercise that I was doing, began to introduce carbs into my diet and upped my calories,” she said, according to the Mirror.
Her diet now includes oatmeal and berries for breakfast, midmorning protein pancakes, chicken and vegetables for lunch, chicken with sweet potato in the midafternoon, and salmon and cauliflower rice for dinner. Black also enjoys a protein shake with peanut butter and banana as a snack.
#thehangout @want_her_wardrobe sunnies ????
A photo posted by Courtney Black (@courtneydblack) on Jul 17, 2016 at 6:25am PDT
And her body needs the fuel, as she works out five to six times a week “simply because I love it,” she says, and no longer because she’s compelled to be as thin as possible.
And her fans are eating up Black’s personal body-positivity mission. “Fantastic!! Amazing inspiration!!” “So much power in one photo,” and “Body goals,” are among the abundant accolades heaped on the fit beauty daily as she posts images of her workouts, diet, and body-hugging outfits to Instagram.
Shooting a few months ago @tommygggphotos
A photo posted by Courtney Black (@courtneydblack) on Mar 15, 2016 at 12:30pm PDT
For Black, it’s not just what you can see in a photo that’s so significant. Although she’s got it going on on the outside, it’s also what’s going on in her mind that’s been transformed. “I’ve embraced my curves now and realize how attractive they are,” she told the Mirror.
And her message to fans? “Put your health first and worry about your image second.”
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