Jillian Michaels Doubles Down on Lizzo Comments, Says She’s Not Shaming Her

Celebrity trainer Jillian Michaels is continuing to stand by her controversial comments about rapper Lizzo‘s weight. Speaking with TMZ just hours after issuing her first statement on the comments, Michaels again echoed her concern over the correlation between body weight and health issues, reminding her critics that she is a “health expert” and that she had not been devaluing Lizzo’s talents.

“I’m a health expert,” she told the outlet. “For decades I have said repeatedly that your weight and your size have no baring or merit on your value, your beauty, your worth, your ability. Where it does have relevance is your health, and to pretend that it doesn’t is not only irresponsible, it’s dangerous, and it’s just not a lie I’m willing to tell because it’s politically correct.”

“My overall point is that you take care of your health because you love yourself,” she continued. “That’s kind of the whole point, and that we should value people based on their skills and their abilities. It should be irrelevant what size they are; that’s up to them.”

“Her health is her business,” Michaels added. “But again, I am a health expert, people come to me, they ask me about health information. Obesity is the number one contributor to diabetes, heart disease, cancer. I wish that on absolutely no one.”

The drama currently surrounding Michaels, a former trainer on The Biggest Loser, was sparked following a Wednesday appearance on BuzzFeed News’ live morning show AM to DM, during which the “Truth Hurts” singer was brought up during a discussion about celebrities who promote self-acceptance.

“Why are we celebrating her body?” Michaels asked. “Why does it matter? Why aren’t we celebrating her music? ‘Cause it isn’t gonna be awesome if she gets diabetes.”

“I love her music,” Michaels continued. “My kid loves her music, but there’s never a moment where I’m like ‘I’m so glad she’s overweight!’ Why do we care? Why is it my job to care about her weight?”

After drawing backlash, with many accusing her of being fatphobic and body shaming, Michaels had taken to Twitter to defend herself, writing that she feels “strongly that we love ourselves enough to acknowledge there are serious health consequences that come with obesity.”

On Thursday, Lizzo seemingly addressed the controversy, saying in an NSFW Instagram Story video that “If my name is your mouth…so is my p—y, b—…enjoy the flavor!”