WELLBEING
BODY talk
Anti-diet influencer Alex Light shares her journey to self-acceptance and speaks about the real dangers of diet culture
INTERVIEW: KATE LOCKETT. PHOTO: GEORGIA SHANE. ALEX IS WEARING LIGHT LDN
Surviving a series of eating disorders and years spent grappling with selfimage issues have given Alex Light a proactive and compassionate stance on body confidence. “For the majority of my life, I have been a chronic dieter. It’s like a mental prison, a hamster wheel you just can’t get off,” the 33-year-old entrepreneur and podcaster tells hello!.
On a mission to help others and open up conversations around body image and self-love, Alex’s debut book You Are Not a Before Picture sets out to dismantle dangerous dieting habits and encourage self-acceptance.
Here, the former fashion and beauty journalist opens up about rebuilding her relationship with her body and self-image, and rejecting the diet culture that, for her, had become so ingrained.
Alex, where did your journey to becoming a body-confidence influencer begin?
“I have a long history of disordered eating, which turned into eating disorders, anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. Six years ago, I was already sharing fashion and beauty content on Instagram, but they were pictures I had manipulated extensively. I’d run them through at least two editing apps, nipping in my waist and trying to erase my double chin, to craft a whole new person.