Tyra Banks Gains 30lbs!

In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Tyra Banks, 33, is publicly discussing her weight gain. The one time super model has gained 30lbs since her modeling days sparking headlines like, "America's Next Top Waddle" and "Tyra Porkchop."

Banks says she weighs 161 lbs. these days, about 30 lbs. heavier than when she landed on the cover of Sports Illustrated's swimsuit issue in 1997 - she says: "I still feel hot, but every day is different. It's when I put on the jeans that used to fit a year ago and don't fit now and give me the muffin top, that's when I say, 'Damn!' "

"She has a very womanly, gorgeous body that goes up and down," says her good friend Heidi Klum.

"I get so much mail from young girls who say, 'I look up to you, you're not as skinny as everyone else, I think you're beautiful,' " Tyra Banks says. "So when they say that my body is 'ugly' and 'disgusting,' what does that make those girls feel like?"

"I get so much mail from young girls who say, ‘I look up to you, you’re not as skinny as everyone else, I think you’re beautiful. So when they say that my body is ‘ugly’ and ‘disgusting,’ what does that make those girls feel like? "

"I’ve made millions of dollars with the body I have, so where’s the pain in that? If I was in pain, I would have dieted. The pain is not there - the pain is someone printing a picture of me and saying those (horrible) things, " Tyra Banks says

By Fabien Montique posted time [10:43 AM]