2008 Miss America 2008 Winner Kirsten Haglund is featured in an exclusive interview with Diet.com. Kristen's platform as a beauty queen and role model is to promote eating disorder awareness. She also talks trash on Miss USA.

Video Transcription

Music Playing Diet.com Presents A Miss America Exclusive Kirsten: The Miss America ideal body type, which there is one – it is so different from year to year. I mean, from what all the girls look like, it is a healthy fit body. It is not a stick them, we know we are not Miss USA. We do not all want to be models. Miss American never does an appearance in her swimsuit, it is all in business attire. After the night of the pageant, it is done. You do not have to stress anymore. So we represent more of the average women, more different shapes and sizes than just stick than model and we all know that. Sarah: Hi everyone, welcome to diet.com video, I am your host Sarah. And today, I am at the redefining beauty lecture series at the Harris Center at Harvard University. And this year, they got Miss America 2008 Kirsten Haglund and I was fortunate to get a few words. Now, you personally had an aim start at the age of 16. Now, you are Miss American and you are traveling a lot. So, how do you maintain having a healthy lifestyle such as getting your exercise in, eating healthy on the road. Kirsten: Well, I know that I have to stay healthy. I absolutely pay attention to what I eat. I make sure that I feel my body, which is making sure I get my carbohydrates and my protein as well as I eat desserts. You are taking out a lot by, the people that hire you to be at places, and you take out to nice restaurants and nice dinners and so I eat dessert and I definitely do not restrict at all because you cannot, you need all the energy you can have. But I also do my little flattish, work out in my room because it is something that you do need a lot of space and I can just do that work and it makes me feel like I am so staying in shape but I have to do cardio every single or single day to feel healthy. Sarah: I watch the part of the live broadcast and the host for some reason, whenever there was a woman nation that was like “okay now, you can go at carbs.” That was so, I am not just smell like what like do acting all of a sudden come back in style. Kirsten: I know. Well, what is prostrating is that, you know, that was maybe a funny joke the first time that they kept saying it. Sarah: I know. Kirsten: And they were trying to apply that we do not need carbs. Please, backstage that in the dressing room, there was cake and ice cream and cookies and snack bars and just a huge snack table because they know that we are all healthy girls and that we need to keep our energy after the week because you get tired out fast. And so they have snacks available for us. So you should seen have us in rehearsal, you know. Do come back from four hours rehearsal “okay, I got to keep refuel” and that is what we did. So yes, they enjoy the doughnuts on stage but they also enjoy that before the show back in the dressing room. Sarah: TLC did kind of a behind the scene I guess look at the week – it was at the week or the month? Kirsten: Well, it was filmed in November but it was our preparation to Miss America that was what they were focusing on. Sarah: While you were there, do you notice any disordering eating behaviors and any of the other girls. I am asking you to name names. Kirsten: Yes, no, not at all. Well, you notice that people are conscious of what they are eating but I think for the most part that the girls, they understand that they need to be fit and they need to be healthy. And you can help in some ways and there were at some girls that share with me because they found out that my platform was eating just sort as a rest. I was able to share little bit of my story and they open up and they shared with me and I tried to be the role model of having a healthy relationship with food. You have no one was going over the desert I be like “hey, okay, I go take that first slice of pumpkin pie” and then everyone else would “oh, it is okay” and go over. You know what I mean so it is just a little steps like that making sure that you are good role model and that you practice again what you preach and there is a little bit of that but in an environment there is going to b