Jinger Duggar Vuolo Says Her Mom Helped Her Develop a 'Healthy Relationship' with Food: 'I Thought I Was Too Fat'

Jinger Duggar Vuolo has opened up about thinking she was “too fat” as a teenager – leading her to skip meals.

“I was so insecure for so many years that it put me in some bad places,” Duggar, 31, said on the Jan. 15 episode. Unplanned podcast. “Even with the way I looked at nutrition… I struggled with not eating enough, and that was because I thought I was overweight and I wasn’t.”

Former 19 Children and counting star shared that as she entered her teenage years, she compared herself to her female friends: “I had female friends who were naturally super thin and I would look at those girls and … I would compare myself to them.”

Jinger Duggar Vuolo.

Jinger Duggar/Instagram

Although Jinger says “I was actually pretty thin at that point,” her fear of gaining weight led her to skip meals. “I didn’t think well of myself. I kept thinking, ‘Well, I’m just not pretty enough’ or ‘I’m not thin enough,’ so I would just try to wake up later in the day, trying to avoid meals.”

Duggar, who is expecting her third child with husband Jeremy Vuolo, said she would worry about what they might eat if she went to a friend’s house and whether it would “actually make me fat.”

“I mean, we were in Arkansas, it was complicated,” Duggar, who just published her memoir, People Pleaser: Freeing yourself from the burden of imaginary expectationshe joked. “You could easily get 50 pounds in a meal if you wanted to.”

Jinger Duggar Vuolo on the “Unplanned” podcast.

Unplanned podcast/Youtube

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But, she explained, “My thought process was always about food. . . . My whole day would just be permeated with that thought.”

Jinger said she was helped by her mother Michelle – who has spoken about her past struggles with bulimia. “She came up with a plan: text me what you eat every day, and I’d like to be responsible, so I’ll text you what I eat.” It was so sweet, because at the time I was struggling so much and I was so embarrassed about how I was struggling.”

Michelle told her, “Maybe we can eat healthy together,” and she focused on helping Jinger improve her diet.

Jinger Vuolo Duggar in Santa Monica, California in 2024.

Vivien Killilea/Getty

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“That was the most helpful because that’s when I started to develop a healthy relationship with food,” Jinger said. “It gave me a healthy perspective on food and then moving forward, I said, ‘Okay, I want to make sure I’m eating the right amounts for my body, what it needs.’ ”

“I started feeling better, more energy, more, like, enjoying life again,” Jinger said, “because I wasn’t thinking about food.”

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Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education