Hmmm how can helping two ppl become healthier possibily be negative?
These women werent forced PLUS they even admitted that their doctors said that they were unhealthy. They look good, healthier, probably feel better about themselves and probably added years onto their lives.

Vogue did an awesome job.

getting healthy is a positive goal, especially if these women were considered overweight by doctors (not just some string bean fashion editors!

I like this "how they lost weight without losing themselves"

Huh, helping people lose weight is out of line? I mean, sure this would be controversial if they were helping Kate Moss lose weight, but the designers' doctors encouraged them to get healthier. Lots of magazines (Self, Runners' World come to mind off the top of my head) have articles about readers losing weight. I don't see how this is any different. Laura and Kate look great now!

Would they pay for me to have a personal trainer, too.

If Rodarte mentioned it first and then Vogue made the offer, I think it was perfectly fine, however if it was the other way around I think it was out of line. Either way, the girls were at unhealthy weights before (it's not like telling a size 10 to lose a few) and now they look great!

I agree with the above comments, they were instructed to lose weight and get healthy by their doctor. And they don't look like they are anywhere near skinny which is a plus for the story. They still looking curvy.
However, it should be noted that they've said time and again they have no real interest in wearing fashion themselves. In the before picture you can tell they never gave much thought to it and those clothes probably made them look heavier than they actually were. For this feature they were styled by the Vogue team and done up with makeup. I personally think they look great and healthy and not too thin which doesn't make Vogue look like they were trying to enforce a strict size-2 policy.
There is nothing wrong with being thin and there is nothing wrong with being curvy---as long as you are at a healthy weight for your height and your overall health is fine. Otherwise, either extreme can be very dangerous.

Much agreed; I read this article yesterday and loved the honesty with which the sisters discussed their struggles and triumphs with losing weight. We all have experienced not wanting to hit the gym, but then once we've gotten there, worked out, we've felt so much more energized. I think their approach to dieting was healthy and the article focused upon how the designers learned that healthy eating habits can aid in extra energy and overall well-being.

Whether someone is a size 0 or a size 10, 12, 14 and on up is beside the point, what is at issue is that the combination of healthy, organic foods and some form of exercise is necessary for overall healthy living and longevity. Our bodies were meant to move and they require nutritious food to fuel our minds and our movements.

agreed with ekaterina and maise

They look FAB

these are grown women not lil girls....it was offered and they accepted, hell i know i would have also..

They look good and healthy. If Vogue would have offered me, I would have taken it as well...

I don't like that they agreed at the suggestion of a Vogue editor. Yes, I comprehend that they were overweight and that a doctor had suggested weight loss, but I kind of think it is out of line for someone outside of the medical profession to make the same suggestion. If a Vogue editor made a comment like that to me, I'd ask her where she went to medical school.
I just question if someone like that has a person's health as a main interest citing cardiac health, cancer rates, etc., or just looks and says "they look fat, let's put them on a diet."

I agree with julieulie. If the designers wanted to lose weight, and asked Vogue to chronicle it, it would be one thing. However, for a magazine like Vogue, whose entire existence is about image, to suggest they go on a diet, is very tacky to me. I think it makes it less about being healthy (such as the fitness magazines mentioned above) and all about looking a certain way. Isn't the shape issue supposed to celebrate the different shapes of women, not get them to conform? I buy Vogue and love it, but this just strikes me as offensive.

Granted, I have not yet bought this month's Vogue, so maybe I'll change my mind after reading the article.

I don't think it is a bad thing for them to chronicle the designers' way to loosing weight. These ladies look awesome! It's not like Vogue asked them to starve themselves. I think it is a positive and inspiring article.

The reason that its so controversial is that people probably interpret this as Vogue trying to tell all woman to have unreasonable body expectations and that we all need to be a Size 0. I can see why their receiving some flack. If O or Shape sponsored their weight loss regime, obviously, this wouldn't be talked about.

Good for them for losing the weight though, especially if it was a health issue. I just hope for their sake that they don't take it to the extreme and turn into stick figures, or their health could be endangered in other ways.

I think they knew they needed to get healthier, they just didn't make time for themselves it was all about their work. So kudos to them for getting on the right track!

Well since they had extra weight and they went along with this, then they obviously don't mind. Just because someone suggests they lose weight, doesn't mean anyone is going to tell them to lose too much. I don't get why people automatically assume that someone wanting to lose weight equals taking too far and becoming stick figures.

That they lost weight and did so in a healthy way, I applaud. However, that they agreed to chronicle their effort is a bit "cheap". They are such amazing designers and fascinating individuals... but this publicity is unnecessary for such a personal issue.

I think they lost weight in a healthy way and they agreed to letting Vogue make them over, and they looked all the better for it, so why not?

I don't see anything wrong with this. The sisters look fab and healthier so how can that be a bad thing?

I don't see anything wrong with it. Clearly the girls were obese. It's sad and I'm glad someone helped them. I'm personally all for healthy bodies. By healthy I mean not skinny but firm and toned!!

What bothers me is the fact that they were working out 6 days a week while consuming only 1300 calories a day. That's pretty low, especially if you're exercising a bunch.

And honestly, if Anna Wintour told me I was fat, I'd tell her to kiss the fattest part of my cellulite-covered butt. I will lose weight because I want to, not because Skeletor-with-a-bob tells me to.

Good for them...

This is a great story. They lost weight and changed their lifestyle in a healthy manner. All of this was recommended by a doctor. I don't understand why people have a problem with this.

Losing weight and being healthy isn't a bad thing. These girls rock. They had the discipline to stick to the exercise and diet and they look fab. They actually did more in four months than I've been doing for 6 months now.

To encourage someone overwight to get healthier is always good, but I don't think Vogue should be the one encharged to do that. I have a friend who is overweight and I do help her and encourage her to get healthier - but again, I'm her best friend. If someone who wasn't close to her would say: "You should loose wight", she would have told whoever it was to go to hell. I mean, nobody is telling Anna Wintour how unbelievably unattactive she is, she shouldn't be doing the same thing.

"Because encouraging people to live healthier lives, which in turn, makes them happier, etc is a BAD thing".

Come off it. The girls are gorgeous, and lost weight through exercise, healthy-eating and discipline. 2/3 of our country could afford to do the same thing.

i agree with julieulie and bhilb. how ever i did read the article and i liked what the girls had to say about the whole process. and i thought the way they approached it was with a healthy attitude.

I don't think it is out of line. It was for an article and help two people get healthy. I see a win-win.