Even Jennifer Lopez Has Felt “Insecure and Uncertain” About Her Body—and She Shares How She Got Past It

When one thinks of Jennifer Lopez, “body insecurities” are likely not two words that come to mind. While Lopez broke the mold in the late 1990s surrounding what the “ideal” body type is (hint: there isn’t one), she has never tried to be anything other than herself, and she oozes confidence and self-assuredness like it is one of her many jobs.

But even Lopez has had moments where she was “insecure and uncertain” about her body, she told the crowd at the Daytime Beauty Awards in L.A. on Sunday. Lopez was onstage, presenting her personal trainer Tracy Anderson with the Outstanding Achievement in Fitness Award, when she opened up about how Anderson motivated her to feel better about her body after Lopez gave birth to twins Max and Emme in 2008.

“I’ve been doing a lot of reflection lately, revisiting the past versions of myself to fully embrace the me of now,” Lopez said, per People. “And I’m reminded of how much Tracy has inspired and encouraged me to celebrate every version of my body over the years and to continue to elevate as my own life and needs changed.”

Lopez said that Anderson came into her life around the same time that she became a mother: “I met Tracy right after I had my twins,” she said. “I called her at a time when I was feeling insecure and uncertain, wondering if I would ever get back to how I was before—as most new moms do after giving birth. She came into my life and helped me embrace the new me and help me to be and to realize that I could be stronger than I ever had before.”

Lopez is fierce and successful but, as she told People in January at the Hollywood premiere of her movie Shotgun Wedding, of being a performer, “You always show the best of you,” she said. “But I’m a human being like everybody else.”

In addition to Lopez, E! News reports that Anderson has also trained with the likes of Kim Kardashian and Jennifer Aniston. Lopez said that when it comes to Anderson, there is “no madness to her methods,” just a dedication to healthy living that helps Anderson’s clients to be “in the best shape of their lives at all times of their lives.”

“I really think that I have been lucky enough to have been in training with very smart, smart people and that really care about their art and their longevity and ability to be able to do that art,” Anderson told E! at the event. “And they know that I did the work to know what I’m doing.” Anderson said she is aware of the “toxic part of our culture” that fuels body insecurities, and, for her, “It’s not about getting to a certain size or having perfect skin or shiny hair or a certain bra size or butt shape,” she said. “It’s about something so much deeper than that. It’s something that lights up behind the eyes and the soul—and not all these superficial things.”