Body business

In the fashion biz, it's pretty rare to hear models talk. They're models for a reason, right?

I am of the view that models should talk more; about what their jobs are like, whether they are being treated fairly, whether they have body issues; hell, just talk to us about the fabulous clothes you get to wear!

And while we do sometimes get snippets backstage during Fashion Week, and we sometimes get a few well-known models on a cover of a magazine talking about their fabulous lives, it's still a rare thing when a model speaks out on her own accord, and in all honesty, about her life as a model.

Last year, Model.Live followed three wannabe models trying to make it during Fashion Week. It was a very honest look at the struggle of newbie models. A few weeks ago, Jezebel's resident brainiac model "Tatiana" revealed herself to be Jenna Sauers;

who eloquently wrote about the unglamorous life of modeling. Last year, model Ali Michael spoke out on national TV after she was sent home from Paris for aing "fat legs" even though she hovered around 105 pounds.

And now model Crystal Renn has penned a memoir called "Hungry," detailing her journey as a thin model, who had heart palpatations she was so skinny, to being a successful plus-sized model.

Renn says that when she was first scouted, at the age of 14, she was told to lose 55 pounds. She lost the weight but when her agent told her to lose more, she realized she couldn't diet anymore. That's when it was suggested she become a plus-sized model and it was when she became a healthy size 12 that her career took off.

She says:

"I got to my lowest point, when I couldn't go lower, and it was either, 'I'm going to die and not accomplish the dream,' or, 'I can become a plus-size model and keep the dream,"' she said in an interview. "I am healthy now, the healthiest I've ever been in my life - both physically and mentally."

I'm not going to wax on about how fuller figured models are practically ignored by the fashion industry; that's for another post when I can think of something new to add to that discussion; but I'm just impressed that Renn, who is still in the middle of an incredible career, is brave enough to call out the industry on his thin obsession. More models should take a cue from her.