Valerie Bertinelli, 63, Shows Pics of Her ‘Overweight’ Body in a Swimsuit, Sparking an Online Stir

Valerie Bertinelli recently shared a photo of herself in a swimsuit and shared her firm views on her body and self-confidence. Since she shared the image, her followers have weighed in.

Valerie Bertinelli at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books in 2022 | Source: Getty Images

Valerie Bertinelli, at 63, shared a throwback photo of herself in a swimsuit from 2014 on social media, accompanied by the caption stating, “This is a 150lb body on a 5’4 frame. […] This is considered overweight.” This post has ignited a flurry of support and admiration online.

One follower stated: “Aging strong not skinny is where it’s at!” Bertinelli’s openness about her body image, even looking back, has elicited responses ranging from “you’re so real” to exclamations of surprise and appreciation: “Oh my goodness,” “I am beyond speechless,” and “You look better than a model.”

Valerie Bertinelli as seen in an Instagram carousel dated February 9, 2024 | Source: Instagram.com/wolfiesmom/

Reflecting on her journey, Bertinelli recounted a pivotal moment years ago. As she contemplated her perennial goal to lose “the same 10 lbs. I had been trying to lose for the past forty years,” she experienced a profound shift in perspective. One morning, as she stepped onto her scale, she knew she could no longer keep the habit.

This introspection led Bertinelli, a renowned star and Food Network host, to a significant realization about self-worth and the futility of tying it to the scale. The passing of her ex-husband, Eddie Van Halen, in October 2020 further catalyzed her reflection on what truly matters in life — a narrative she explores in her memoir, “Enough Already: Learning to Love the Way I Am Today.”

 

Valerie Bertinelli as seen in an Instagram carousel dated February 9, 2024 | Source: Instagram.com/wolfiesmom/

Bertinelli’s transformation is not just about rejecting the scale; it’s about embracing life’s joys and finding contentment beyond physical appearance. “The goal is to live in the moment,” she emphasizes, advocating for a life appreciated for its beauty and simplicity rather than constrained by weight.

In her candid reflections, Bertinelli touches on the challenges of overcoming decades of societal conditioning. She recalled her mother being badly treated by her father for her weight, sharing the painful memories of being judged on her appearance from a young age. Yet, her message remains hopeful and empowering, as she is learning that one’s body is not what makes one lovable.

Valerie Bertinelli at the 64th Annual GRAMMY Awards in 2022 | Source: Getty Images

Bertinelli is now learning that she doesn’t have to wait until she’s lost weight to treat herself and others with kindness. The TV personality shared that she now understands it doesn’t matter how she looks so long as she is kind to herself.

Bertinelli is not the only famous actress who sparked a stir with her swimsuit snapshots.As we previously reported, photos of Helen Mirren and Demi Moore showing their figures became a topic for discussion:

In 2008, Mirren and her husband were having a wonderful Italian beach vacation. She said they trekked over cacti just to get to a swimming spot with nobody else around, just as her hubby liked it.

Helen Mirren and Taylor Hackford attend the Los Angeles premiere of Paramount+’s “1923” at Hollywood American Legion, on December 2, 2022, in Los Angeles, California. | Source: Getty Images

She took a snap of the director and, in turn, struck a pose for him. The moment she sucked in her stomach, she saw a flash in the distance in the hills and went down “spread-eagle” on the rocks to get out of the shot of a perceived paparazzo.

When her husband turned around, the photographer was effectively hiding, and he called his wife “paranoid.” Three days later, a photo of a 63-year-old Mirren looking into the distance in her bikini, hand held over her brow, was posted by a tabloid and went viral.

Recounting the event on season seven of “Ellen” a few years later, the dame said the shot was “pure luck.” She deadpanned, “I look at that picture and say, god, I wish I look like that. But I don’t.”

The Helen Mirren effect: Bikini sales soar with women over 50. http://t.co/r4FtCv8Tvk pic.twitter.com/NIUGjzmxz2

— Independent Style (@Indo_Style_) July 13, 2015

The actress explained that just a week before, she had been on a public beach with hundreds of people around in France, and no one bothered to take her photograph. Ellen DeGeneres joked that now we know why she was in such great shape, with her “scaling cactuses and mountains.”

Demi Moore as seen in an Instagram carousel dated October 30, 2023 | Source: Instagram.com/demimoore

Demi Moore as seen in an Instagram carousel dated October 30, 2023 | Source: Instagram.com/demimoore

Demi Moore as seen in an Instagram carousel dated October 30, 2023 | Source: Instagram.com/demimoore

Valerie Bertinelli admits Eddie Van Halen was ‘not a soulmate,’ marriage declined into drugs, infidelity

Valerie Bertinelli is getting honest about her relationship with her late ex-husband, Eddie Van Halen.

The 64-year-old actress first met the iconic rocker in 1980, when she was 20, and he was 26, and the pair tied the knot a year later. Bertinelli and Van Halen, who shared son Wolfgang Van Halen, separated in 2001 and made their divorce official in 2007.

On Thursday, Bertinelli got candid about their marriage while sharing her reaction to Wolfgang’s episode of “Behind the Music,” which was released on Wednesday.

“I was finally able to watch Wolfie’s ‘Behind the Music.’ It was not easy,” she admitted in an emotional Instagram video. “I’d stopped it many times because it was just too brutal to watch for many reasons.”‘

Valerie Bertinelli was candid about her marriage to Eddie Van Halen. (Getty Images)

Bertinelli continued, “One, seeing Wolfie’s pain. Two, seeing what a better job I could have done as a parent even though he turned out magnificently. I made a lot of mistakes.”

“And three, seeing what I had turned of Ed’s and my relationship — into some sort of fantasy, soulmate recreation of history,” the “One Day at a Time” alum said.

“I fell in love with him when I was 20, and it rapidly declined into drugs and alcohol and infidelity. Nothing that makes you feel loved and wanted and cared for. Nothing that would scream ‘soulmate,’ that’s for sure.”

“But after Ed died, I was more than willing to put myself in the grieving widow category for a man that I hadn’t lived with for 20 years,” Bertinelli shared while tearing up. “What we had together was this beautiful son that we both unconditionally loved.”

“That’s what I got out of that marriage was Wolfie, the best thing that ever happened to me,” she concluded. “Not a soulmate.”

Van Halen, who co-founded the legendary rock band Van Halen with his brother Alex Van Halen, died in October 2020 at the age of 65 after a long battle with throat cancer.

Valerie Bertinelli and Eddie Van Halen were married from 1981 to 2007. (Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)

On Thursday, Wolfgang, who is Van Halen and Bertinelli’s only child, shared the trailer for his episode of “Behind the Music.”

“I had the honor of being asked to tell my story on Behind The Music,” Wolfgang wrote in a post that he shared on X.

He continued, “It was difficult, but also incredibly cathartic being able to reflect on my experiences, the incredible people I’m blessed to have in my life and most importantly, my bond with my father. I don’t normally talk so openly about things, so this was new for me.”

“Thank you to [executive producer] Alex Castino for making the process as easy and as comfortable as possible and thank you to Behind The Music and @paramountplus for deciding that my story is worth telling.”

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A post shared by Valerie Bertinelli (@wolfiesmom)

The official description for the episode reads, “Wolfgang Van Halen reveals his story that’s wrought with trauma, perseverance and immense talent. Born to guitar god Eddie Van Halen and actress Valerie Bertinelli, Wolfgang instantly became bound to music.”

It continued, “As he developed his own sound, Wolfgang turned to his solo project, Mammoth WVH, before tragedy struck. Eddie’s death rocked his son’s world, but Wolfgang solidified his music career with a sound all of his own while continuing to honor his father’s legacy.”

After parting ways, Van Halen and Bertinelli remained close. Bertinelli was a guest at the musician’s 2009 nuptials when he wed his second wife, Janie Liszewski, and Van Halen attended the actress’s wedding when she married her second husband, Tom Vitale, in 2011.

Eddie Van Halen died at the age of 65 in October 2020. (C Flanigan/WireImage)

In her 2022 memoir “Enough Already: Learning to Love the Way I am Today,” Bertinelli detailed her complicated relationship with Van Halen.

“I loved Ed more than I know how to explain,” the Golden Globe winner wrote. “I loved his soul.”

“I hated the drugs and the alcohol, but I never hated him,” Bertinelli admitted. “I saw his pain.”

Bertinelli described how she and Wolfgang spent every day with Van Halen at the hospital in the final weeks of Van Halen’s life.

The late rocker shared son Wolfgang Van Halen with Valerie Bertinelli. (Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)

“’I love you’ are the last words Ed says to Wolfie and me,” she wrote. “And they are the last words we say to him before he stops breathing.”

Earlier this month, Bertinelli told People magazine that she realized that she and Van Halen would never have reconciled despite the love they shared.

“I continued for years to rewrite the facts in my head and build them into some sort of fantasy,” she said. “But now I know we were never going to get back together. We were becoming kinder souls to one another. Our bond was the unconditional love we had for our son.”