Model Hunter McGrady Talks Body Positivity in the Age of Ozempic

With an influx of discourse around the usage of weight loss drugs like Ozempic, Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover model Hunter McGrady is giving Us her two cents on the evolution of the body positivity movement.

“I’m in the camp of it’s your body, your rules,” McGrady, 31, told Us Weekly exclusively. “If you want to take medication, do it. If you want to get something done, do it. Is it going to make you feel truly happy? I don’t know. I’m not the one to say that, but you know that.”

A hot topic in the realm of weight loss, celebs like Chelsea Handler, Kelly Osbourne, Tracy Morgan and more have been outspoken about their usage of Ozempic. Yet, McGrady fears that even if an individual loses weight — with or without weight-loss drugs — self image issues will still persist.

“You can lose the weight and still not be happy. Because I’ve been there. I’ve been every size from 2 to 22 and every size in between, and I’ve always found something wrong with myself. The needle always shifted, she told Us. “We are putting so much emphasis on the physical, [and] I think we really as a culture need to put it on the mental. That is the workout that we really should all be thinking about.”

McGrady inspired curvy women around the world when she shot a history-making spread for SI Swim for the first time in 2017, and she is an outspoken advocate for body positivity and size inclusivity. She joined icons like Tyra Banks, Kate Upton and Martha Stewart for the magazine’s 60th anniversary legends cover last month, and she also appeared on her own solo SI Swim cover.

For the Los Angeles-born model, such high-profile gigs mean everything.

“Being a plus-sized woman, I was never represented growing up,” she told Us. “So to have this moment is just monumental, not only for me, but for everybody. Anybody who has ever felt like they haven’t been seen or valued, that was just immediately what went through my mind when I got the cover.”

McGrady also shared that she shot the cover eight months postpartum (She welcomed daughter Ava in March 2023, and she also shares son Hudson, 3, with her husband, Brian Keys). As a mom, the model is being mindful of how she speaks about body image around her kids.

“When I first had my son, I vowed to myself that I would never ever talk ill about my body in any way, shape or form,” she told Us. “Then when I had my daughter I was really like, not only am I going to not do that, but I’m going to lift myself up in front of my children. I’m going to celebrate me and my body in front of my children because I truly believe it starts from home.”

McGrady continued: “[My husband and I] had that talk. No, you’re not gonna talk about that here in our house. There’s no cutting down your body. We’re celebrating you here just as you are. Whoever you become, we’re celebrating you.”