The 'Perfect Female Body' Has Changed A Lot In The Last Decade

The female body is relentlessly scrutinized as society pushes unattainable and arguably unhealthy standards of beauty — a definition that, frankly, isn't most women. It's not unusual for female bodies to be considered too heavy or too thin, too curvy or too lanky, too tall or too short, too girly or too masculine, too busty or too flat-chested — too this or too that. You get the point.

The media plays a large role in dictating the definition of beauty (via Hamilton College). And this means that it's ever-changing. In the last decade alone, the "perfect" female body has looked a lot different year over year, and women have been expected to adapt. After all, ever heard of the saying "it pays to be pretty?" Frustratingly, not keeping up with the times can quite literally cost women.

Study after study after study suggests that attractive women are more socially accepted, considered more competent, given better opportunities, and paid higher salaries. Well, not when they look too good, according to another study published in the Journal of Social Psychology (via University of Colorado Denver). Because, you know, women walk a fine line between being "enough" and "too much." Wondering how the idealized woman's body has changed over the last 10 years? Here's a look. Just remember: All bodies are beautiful.

What's not to love about Kelly Brook or Scarlett Johansson circa 2011 (or now)? There's no doubt that these women are beautiful and immensely talented — but would you give up your life to look like them?

A 2011 survey of women aged 18 to 65 found that one in three participants would be willing to die younger if they could have the "ideal" figure — one like that of the British model or the Black Widow (via Daily Mail). Believe it or not, 16 percent said they'd trade in a year of their lives to have this body type, while an additional 10 percent were willing to trade anywhere from two to five years of their lives. Additionally, 2 percent of women were even willing to give up 10 full years, and 1 percent were willing to shave 21 years off their lives if it meant they could look more like the popular women of the time.

Research published by Ohio State University in 2011 found that "college-age women [who viewed] magazines for five straight days that only included images of women with thin, idealized body types" actually experienced an improvement in body confidence (via ScienceDaily). Sadly, though, this was a double-edged sword; those same women were also more likely to report unhealthy dieting measures, like skipping meals.

In 2013, society loved tall and toned women, like Gwyneth Paltrow. In fact, Paltrow was touted to be the "Most Beautiful Woman in the World" by People at the time. The actress told the magazine that she felt the most beautiful while she was at home with her family.

"Around the house, I'm in jeans and a T-shirt," she told People. While she added that she didn't tend to wear much makeup in 2013, she was working out with her friend and fitness instructor, Tracy Anderson. That exercise helped her feel younger and stronger, she said. It also undeniably helped her maintain her toned body.

Not everyone was pumped about Paltrow's new title. An op-ed published in the Los Angeles Times that year called the nomination a "bad message for girls." "Paltrow is very blond, very tall and very thin," the author wrote, acknowledging that she wasn't trying to blame or shame Paltrow. "She is a talented actress, looks fabulous in clothes and has terrific taste. It's her job to look good and at that she excels. But what is the message to girls? The Barbie ideal, with a slightly smaller cup size, lives on."

In 2015, "plus-size" models were finally making headway. Sports Illustrated featured its fullest-figured model on the cover of the swimsuit issue: Robyn Lawley. At the time, Lawley was a U.S. size 12 (via Time). However, the average American woman is a size 16 to 18, according to research published in the International Journal of Fashion Design, Technology, and Education. Even as of this writing, Byrdie explained that the fashion world considers any model above a size 12 to be "plus size" — though that's a rant for another time. And in 2015, Lawley wasn't even sure if that label resonated with her.

"I don't know if I consider myself as a plus-size model or not," she told Time in an interview about her swimsuit spread. "I just consider myself a model because I'm trying to help women in general accept their bodies." Lawley added that she never imagined she'd be featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated. When she started modeling a decade earlier, she'd catch heat at castings for her size. Her feature, however, marked the start of a new standard of beauty, and she said she wanted "to be there for the regular girls" like her.

Big breasts weren't necessarily all the rage in 2017, at least among men. In a 2017 study published in Evolution and Human Behavior, researchers found that men preferred perky and firm breasts to just bigger ones. 

"Individual preferences for breast size were variable, but the majority of raters preferred medium sized, followed by large sized breasts. In contrast, we found systematic directional preferences for firm breasts," the authors wrote in the report. Why is this? While breast size can be an indicator of fertility — to which men are subconsciously attracted — breast firmness can also be an indicator.

Maxim summed it up this way: "The researchers conclude that the sagginess that comes with increasing age and declining fertility, as well as estrogen-dictated breast size come together to synthesize the mathematical equation of the perfect pair of hooters, which is: relatively higher estrogen + relatively younger age = medium sized, firm, absolutely ideal boobs."

In 2019, standards of beauty were widening even more. For one, women's lingerie retailer Victoria's Secret announced its first transgender model, Valentina Sampaio (via Elle). Unfortunately, the move came just shortly after former CMO, Ed Razek, made a comment to Vogue dismissing the inclusion of trans women in Victoria's Secret fashion shows. So many people argued that it felt forced, to say the least. Emma Elizabeth Davidson of Dazed put it bluntly: "[It] feels like an attempt to get the cash registers ringing amid falling sales as opposed to a genuine move towards diversity."

Still, becoming a Victoria's Secret model was a big deal for Valentina Sampaio, who went on to build quite the career for herself. By the next year, she became the first transgender woman to be featured in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue (via Allure). 

"I am excited and honored to be part of the iconic Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue," she penned in a personal essay for the magazine. "The team at SI has created yet another groundbreaking issue by bringing together a diverse set of multitalented, beautiful women in a creative and dignified way."