Breaking Barriers

As the first African-American principal dancer for the American Ballet Theatre, Misty Copeland is breaking barriers. The Under Armour ambassador also has a new book out, she’s filmed a movie role and she’s shattering the ballet mold.

- Lara McGlashan

Ballerina. Athlete. Ambassador. Role model. Barrier breaker. Misty Copeland is all these and more, and during one of the biggest snowstorms of 2017, she glides effortlessly into our New York City studio and breaks into the thousand-watt smile that is as much her trademark as is her impossibly flawless body.

Lean, lithe and beautifully strong, Copeland’s physique is part iconic Balanchine and part Olympic sprinter, and with full, round muscle bellies and elegant lines competing for attention — the eye is not sure where to focus. As she strikes pose after pose for our photo shoot, it’s equally as easy to imagine her as a hardcore Under Armour athlete as it is dancing the graceful part of Clara in The Nutcracker — a yin/yang dichotomy that has defined her dancing career thus far.

But Copeland’s physique has not always earned her such respect. As a young dancer, she sported the typical pixie-like ballerina frame. She ate whatever she wanted — soda, chips, fast food — and had the lightning-fast metabolism of a hummingbird. But when puberty hit — arriving remarkably late in life (she was in her early 20s) — the rush of hormones sprouted D-cup breasts and curvy hips on her lanky frame and brought her metabolism to a screeching halt. Almost overnight, her leotards didn’t fit, her balance was wonky, and in short order she was taken into the office by the ballet company bigwigs and told she needed to “lengthen” — their PC way of saying, “Lose weight (or else).”

Nutrition, en Pointe