Miranda Lambert is, to me, someone I enjoy covering because she’s so messy. I feel similarly about Gwyneth Paltrow: horrid woman but so much fun to talk about. Different kinds of horrid, though. In Miranda’s case, she’s the kind of woman who gets off on breaking up marriages and tossing salads at strangers. She is also the kind of woman who speaks with a lot of authenticity about yo-yo-dieting and weight struggles and all of that. Almost as if her insecurities about her looks are part of the reason why she goes after traditionally “unattainable” married men, huh. All of that to say, I actually half-way like Miranda when she’s being real about diet and fitness and her weight. She talks about all of that and more in her Health Magazine cover profile. Some highlights:

When she feels sexy: “I feel most sexy when I feel happy. If I’m dolled up to the nines but I’m miserable, then I don’t feel sexy.”

Her 2015 divorce from Blake Shelton: “When everyone’s worried about your personal life, it makes you feel like, “Well, if you could just spend some of that time talking about my actual art, that would be great!” But I guess I asked for it, getting into this business. I’m never gonna get used to the public eye in that way.

Falling for her husband Brendan quickly: “I feel like I’ve been through enough in my life to know what I don’t want. So when I know what I do want, I snatch it right up.” Would you call it love at first sight? “I guess so. If that’s a thing. I have eight dogs. Had love at first sight with them, too. Must be way easier than I thought.”

Weight struggles: “I’ve been all sizes. My whole life, I’ve struggled with ups and downs in weight. I’m only 5’4? so weight shows quickly on me. I’ve hit a comfortable place; this is pretty much my size. I’m a size 6, give or take five pounds, depending on the day. It’s so good to find your place. I don’t like being onstage worrying about my body. That’s the last thing I want to be thinking about. I don’t give my best performance when I’m distracted by my insecurities.

She’s not on a diet now: “I don’t have any rhyme or reason to my fitness routine or dieting. I’ve been on every diet. Every time I did low-carb, I would gain [the weight] back so quickly. Sometimes I have a couple weeks where I just drink beer and eat cheeseburgers. And then I’ll go, “That was fun, but my stuff doesn’t fit.” Then I’ll spend a month doing Pilates or riding a lot and running. I’m not a runner, but I’m trying to be one.

Working out with Brendan: “Sometimes. He does a pity run with me, and then he does his real run. It’s sad. These days, I just try to feel good about myself and know that I’m trying. And if there’s wine and cheese, sometimes I have it.

On her mom: “My mom is so beautiful. She’s a tall Cherokee Indian. If I can look like her at 60, I would be golden. All she ever used was witch hazel and Vaseline. And she’s always been a stickler for taking off your makeup. To me, a good face-wash feels like an emotional cleanse. And nowadays, sunscreen is a big part of my skin routine. It wasn’t when I was young, but now I’m in a hat all the time. I take really good care of my skin, especially being out on the road.

[From Health]

My mom uses Vaseline to take off her eye makeup too and I swear it works on her. I don’t wear eye makeup so I never do (but I buy nice eye cream, so that counts). As for this: “I’m only 5’4? so weight shows quickly on me. I’ve hit a comfortable place; this is pretty much my size. I’m a size 6, give or take five pounds.” True or false? She’s definitely short and I would say that any weight gain shows quickly on her. What I don’t believe is that her natural body type hovers around a size 6? I’m going to need the receipts on that claim! But otherwise… yeah. I like how she kind of sounds over Brendan already too.

Cover courtesy of Health, photo courtesy of Backgrid.