‘This Is Us’ Star Chrissy Metz Gets Real About Her Weight Issues: Why ‘Progress, Not Perfection’ Is Her Goal

Actress Chrissy Metz doesn’t want to beat herself up about her weight issues and, in the new issue of Good Housekeeping, she’s sharing how her journey is about progress and not perfection. The This Is Us star opens up about why she’s embracing this healthy philosophy.

Metz focuses on changing her perspective

Metz graces the cover of Good Housekeeping and, inside the issue, she has plenty of positivity to share with readers about how she’s worked to reach her goals. One of the tips she shares is how to better embrace each day — and you don’t need a lot of time to make a big difference.

The This Is Us actress shared: “I will make sure I’m eating what’s going to be good for me and not, like, eating in the car and rushing. I didn’t realize how much an extra 35, 45 minutes would change my life, but it sets the tone for the whole day. It’s like, whatever happens, I’m going to figure out how to react to it in a sane way and not from a place of harried chaos.”

The actress is forgiving of herself and doesn’t aim for perfection

Metz acknowledges that it can be tough to put pressure on yourself to be perfect, sharing: “I’ve battled weight issues, but I realize that I don’t have to beat myself up if I have XYZ food. Instead, I change my perspective and think, ‘What is it that I’m angry about?’ since we tend to want crunchy foods when we’re angry or ice cream when we soothe ourselves. All these things I’m just trying to be cognizant of.”

She notes that “it’s really about progress,” sharing this perspective: “If a waiter takes a tray of food and a glass falls and the drink spills, they don’t just throw the entire tray on the ground. You get another cup of whatever you spilled and you keep going.”

The actress continued: “So often if something isn’t perfect, we go ‘I quit!’ That’s not conducive to forward progress, and it’s really about progress, not perfection. If we were perfect, we wouldn’t have anything to attain or achieve.”

How Metz handles social media

When it comes to handling the haters, Metz has some clarity around the situation, using a message from Brené Brown, a University of Houston research professor, as her inspiration.

She explained: “those people [the haters] are in the cheap seats; they’re not in the ring with the blood, sweat and tears, and they have no idea what my daily life is like. Let me know when you’ve walked in my shoes, but oh, you’re in the cheap seats. That, to me, is how I sort of reconcile whatever you want to say. It’s absolutely your opinion and your perspective, but it’s not the truth.”

As for what she posts on social media, Metz is deliberate about her messages, sharing: “Every single time I post something [I think]: ‘What is my intention? Am I seeking validation? Do I want somebody to think I look pretty because I’m feeling bad about myself today?’”

She added: “I always start with that. Sometimes people come to my page to look for positive encouragement… but the only thing I can do is be myself, and hopefully that inspires people.”