Cebu City, Philippines—Do not do it. It is mean.
Cebuana beauty queen Samantha Ashley Lo. | photo from Lo’s Instagram account
This is the message of Binibining Pilipinas Grand International 2019 Samantha Ashley Lo to body shamers.
“Our body is our body. We know the care it needs and the appropriate time it needs to look a certain way,” she told Cebu Daily News Digital.
Recently, an Instagram follower asked her about the controversial issue between Miss Universe 2018 Catriona Gray and Miss Grand International Thailand 2019 Coco Arayha Suparurk.
Read more: Samantha Lo wins Bb. Pilipinas Grand International; marks third year for Cebu’s winning streak
“She’s not invited to pizza night with Cat and I,” the Cebuana beauty queen answered through an Instagram story.
Suparurk became controversial when she shared a meme and allegedly called Gray as “FAT.”
The controversial Instagram post of Miss Grand International Thailand Coco Arayha Suparurk.
“Someone like Cat does not have to be a size 2 with a 6 pack. She is Miss Universe 2018. She has made her name already and she has her future secured. Whereas girls who are still competing for an international crown-like myself still have to maintain a look because we are still building our future,” Lo added.
For her, people do not realize how busy life is for beauty queens and how exhausting it is for them to maintain and complete their day-to-day tasks.
“We are constantly on the move. It is difficult to get to the gym or to eat healthy at all times,” she added.
Lo shares that her workout hours and training happen between 7 to 9 p.m. or 9 p.m., even if she has a call time as early as 6 a.m. or 7 a.m.
“Bottom line, if you don’t have anything nice to say do not say anything at all, zip the lip,” she added.
Lo and Suparurk are both competing for Miss Grand International 2019 to be held in Venezuela this October.
She is the successor of Binibining Pilipinas Grand International 2018 Eva Psychee Patalinjug.
This will be her second international pageant after Model of the World 2018 in Turkey.
Advice
For those who are victims of body shaming, this is Lo’s advice: “There is no perfect body.”
“I have learned there has to be the balance of both the physical and mental, because I have achieved my goal weight and size but it was through stress and an unhealthy diet and when I looked at myself it was not a feeling of satisfaction. I felt irritable and honestly missed having the extra weight,” she said.
She also called out people who body shame.
“And let me ask you this, do you want poison in your life? If not, then why welcome it in? Health is wealth, so give yourself the respect you deserve and treat yourself right,” she said. /bmjo