Letter from the Editor: May '06.(Editorial)

Heavenly Bodies

I

've been watching Madonna's "Sorry" video not so much for the music, but to study the hollow above her thighs, the tautness of her abs, the perkiness of her butt (in a lavender leotard-with fishnets, no less). As she bends and thrusts and pops her hips, all I can think is, I want that.

Hers is not the only body I've coveted. Over the past 15 years, I've asked trainers for Linda Hamilton's biceps from Terminator 2, Demi Moore's shoulders in G.I. Jane, and Cameron Diaz's abs in Charlie's Angels. But it all begins and ends with Madonna.

Madonna envy sent me back to the gym again after a long and pitiful absence. I called Fred DeVito of Exhale spa begging for help. Fred was my instructor in the Truth or Dare era, and I knew he was up to the task. He never once expressed shock or derision at my sorry shape, and I took it as a good omen when he played "Hung Up" during the abs portion. I followed my Exhale class with Spinning at Equinox a few blocks away. When I stumbled off the bike, I had to wring the sweat from my hair.

After about a month of this, I was feeling sore and sanctimonious, which is always a sign of trouble. And sure enough, the fashion shows came along and disrupted my gym routine. Whatever exercise I got involved running to shows in high heels. My salad lunches and grilled-fish dinners couldn't compete with the pasta in Milan, ...