Tyra Banks Flaunts Svelte Figure in New Photo Shoot

Tyra Banks before ...
... and after!

Two years after telling the world to "kiss her fat a--" when an unflattering bathing suit photo took the Internet by storm, Tyra Banks proudly showed off her new, more streamlined figure in a New York City photo shoot Monday. The supermodel turned actress turned TV host, famous for championing "real beauty," has reportedly gone from a size 14 or 16 to a size 8.

Two weeks ago, Banks talked about her weight loss with CNN's Larry King:

"When I told the world to kiss my fat a--, I remained that size for two years. I maintained it with my ice cream and my salad with ranch dressing and croutons and bacon bits."

Tyra also explained to Larry how she got the idea and motivation to lose the weight -- she started a weight-loss challenge with her "America's Next Top Model" staff members:

"We were sitting around a table and kind of trash talking," Banks said. "And decided to do this challenge because we all love food. I trash talked so much where I had to win -- and I did."

The talk show host has reportedly gone from a size 14 to a size 8!

Banks, who elevated her status as a cheerleader for natural womanhood by revealing her real hair (and saying goodbye to fake hair) on the season premiere of "The Tyra Banks Show" last month, is careful to connect her body makeover to the challenges presented by todays fashion:

"I may be doing a little bit of TMI, but I always feel great when I don't have clothes on, unless the lighting is bad in the dressing room. But sometimes certain clothes, when I put them on and they don't fit the way that I would like them to, that's when I tend to get self-conscious."

Tyra remains a champion of different types of beauty -- this season, "Top Model" features contestants under the traditional modeling height minimum of 5'7".

The supermodel kicks back on a pile of fall leaves.

Tyra ditched her extensions on the season premiere of "The Tyra Banks Show."
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