Sexy Celebs

Pop princess HILARY DUFF struts her stuff in a bikini on the cover of Shape magazine, on newsstands June 29.


The former "Lizzie McGuire" star, who turns 20 this September, reveals
that growing up in Hollywood caused her to do so at an accelerated
rate. Even so, she is "still a girl" and, while she is a pretty
well-grounded one, she is not immune to the pressures of living her
life under the microscope that is the media.


"Being in the public eye, it is really hard," she admits. "Everyone is
constantly criticizing you and picking you apart. You see these
magazines and people are enjoying themselves on the beach, and people
are zooming in on their cellulite. They notice everything about their
body. It is mean and it is hard to stay sane."


It was when she turned 16 that Hilary made the conscious decision to get in shape, but more importantly, to get healthy.


"My friend was on tour with me and we made each other eat healthy," she
recalls. "We ate a lot of protein, lots of veggies and oatmeal for
breakfast. We tried to find a healthy mix, but still eat things that
you like, but doing a trade-off. For example, if we wanted to eat
dessert, we tried not to eat bread before a meal, or if we wanted to
eat bread, we tried to lose dessert."


These days, Hilary is constantly on the go. She released her latest CD, Dignity,
this year, she has her Stuff by Hilary Duff clothing line, plus her
With Love... Hilary Duff perfume, all in addition to her acting career.



"Work out," she advises. "It makes you feel good to work out. It
doesn't have to be strenuous and boring. What I [used to think] was
when you work out, you have to break a sweat, it is not about that."


These days, the teen queen is very much into Pilates, and she enjoys
swimming laps or treading water, which firms her up. But she recalls a
time when she got too thin. And it was her sister, HAYLIE DUFF, who cautioned her that she wasn't being healthy.


As a result, Hilary got involved with the "Stay fit. Eat right. Looking good, California!"™ campaign.


"Stay healthy, eat healthy, eat what is good for your body and what
gives you energy -- and feed your sweet tooth every once in a while.
That is the best way to go," she says.


For more on Hilary's tips on firming up and trimming down -- plus a few
other of her favorite things -- pick up the August issue of Shape.