Emily Nolan has modeled at 16 different sizes over the course of her life as a model, she wrote in a September 29 blog post, but she'd never modeled nude. She didn't even consider it until photographer Victoria Janashivli asked her to model for Curves, a book focusing on women's self-acceptance. Now that Nolan's posted some of the nude photos of her that appear in the book, she writes that it's been an integral part of coming to love her body exactly as it is.
In the photos, Nolan is a size 14 or 16. It doesn't matter to her though: What matters is that each picture showcases how important yoga is to her, as the sport was something that helped her with her insecurities before these nude pictures did:
Yoga is patient, it's kind and the yoga studio has been an exceedingly supportive environment in which to continue my healing process. (I started practicing when I was 18 in outpatient therapy for my eating disorder, and at 29, I still practice regularly.)
"This isn't easy for me. In fact, it's deeply personal," she wrote of deciding to post the photos. "It's the most vulnerable I can be, but in a way, I'm glad you can see me for exactly who I am: strong, confident, worthy, loved." She hopes it'll help people of all sizes feel acceptance in their sports.
See some more of the gorgeous pictures below:
Tess Koman covers breaking (food) news, opinion pieces, and features on larger happenings in the food world. She oversees editorial content on Delish. Her work has appeared on Cosmopolitan.com, Elle.com, and Esquire.com.
