Jillian Michaels doubles down on Lizzo diabetes remark, warns of 'serious consequences that come with obesity'
Jillian Michaels, a former "Biggest Loser" trainer, has doubled down on her comments about singer Lizzo's body, despite facing major backlash online.
Michaels sparked outrage during an appearance on Buzzfeed’s 'AM to DM' show where she asked, "Why are we celebrating her body? Why does it matter? Why aren’t we celebrating her music? ‘Cause it isn’t going to be awesome if she gets diabetes."
The 31-year-old singer's army of fans subsequently attacked the fitness expert saying she was body-shaming the 'Truth Hurts' hitmaker. They even criticized her for suggesting Lizzo could be at risk for diabetes owing to her weight, TooFab reports.
But Michaels stood by her original message, although she did try to clarify her statements in a tweet on Wednesday afternoon. "As I've stated repeatedly, we are all beautiful, worthy, and equally deserving," she wrote. "I also feel strongly that we love ourselves enough to acknowledge there are serious health consequences that come with obesity."
According to Michaels, people must "prioritize" their health if they love their bodies and themselves.
Her statements, however, did not sit well with Lizzo's supporters in this era of body positivity.
Albeit she comes from the place of a fitness trainer who has spent her life working with overweight people.
Despite her clarification, Michaels continued to be accused of body shaming online. However, she did have some supporters on her side.
"Equating fat with automatically being unhealthy & slim with being healthy is inaccurate & incredibly dangerous," one commented. "Fat people deserve to exist without pressure to change their size or health. Fat people don't need to desire to change their bodies to be deserving of dignity."
Meanwhile, another user appeared to support her concerns, saying, "I don't think your tone toward Lizzo was judgmental. It was honest," their comment read. "Even if she is healthy at her size, most aren’t and we shouldn’t promote unhealthy lifestyles. In this case, sizes."