Christy Turlington

Fashion is all about references. All these names being thrown around.

My family knows they are loved. As a mother, it is my job to let them know that they are, and it's a job I take quite seriously.

Imagine the possibilities if humanity banded together before disaster struck to relieve everyday suffering worldwide.

Yoga has been the best tool for managing stress and life's challenges. Everything from my studies to my father's death was eased by my practice of it.

In parts of the world where basic infrastructures like paved roads and transportation systems are underdeveloped, people walk for days to reach a health care provider.

When 1970s feminism hit the United States, women demanded the right to natural childbirth and to have their husband or another support person in the delivery room. My mother gave birth to me during this time.

You know, all these sentiments about beauty coming from within, they've always resonated when I've read them, but it takes a bit of living to truly appreciate them. To realise we are so much more than our experiences, that we are who we are because of the lessons we've learnt, now that's what true 'beauty' is for me.

I'm not an everyday fragrance person usually. I wouldn't put fragrance on before dropping off my kids or going to the gym.

I usually run in the morning and like to have something substantial but light to eat before and after. My go-to choices are either a banana with almond butter or a smoothie.

As a parent, I can get so frustrated. Any parent can!

Women are more likely to have a ruptured uterus if they've had multiple C-sections because there's more scar tissue.

Parents should not smoke in order to discourage their kids from smoking. A child is more likely to smoke when they have been raised in the environment of a smoker.

Getting older is baggage for so many people but I don't spend time on things I can't control. Wrinkles don't scare me; they're a part of life, and I will and do embrace them, but I look at surgery, and that scares me.

I grew up Catholic. My mother is from El Salvador, so my family on her side is Roman Catholic. My father is Protestant, and while he was spiritual, he wasn't much of a churchgoing person. I think it's fairly common for families to be brought up in the mother's religion.

I think there are so many extra benefits to running besides the health ones that come from getting your heart rate up, sweating, and all that other good stuff.

With every passing year, I feel more fulfilled.

Health is your greatest wealth, so experiencing a marathon and seeing what you're capable of is really special.

I do everything in moderation.

I run year-round and then ramp up my training for a race a few months before.

I never looked at magazines before I started modeling. I was 13 or 14, and none of my friends were into magazines. We were into the fashion of the day, though.

After delivering my daughter in 2003, I endured and survived a hemorrhage, the leading childbirth-related complication that takes the lives of thousands of other mothers all over the world.

Everybody is so anti-aging, but I don't want to look younger than I am. Our face is a map of our life; the more that's there, the better.

Yoga is not a religion to me.

As a Global Maternal Health Advocate, I get to travel the world quite a bit, meeting individuals and visiting programs with tremendous potential and incredible vision to improve the quality of life for countless others.

Imagine a world where mothers take as good care of themselves as they do their children and a world where mothers are so supported they're able to do that. That's the world we all need to create because our children, families, and communities are depending on us.

I sincerely feel that beauty largely comes from within.

The word 'yoga' means union. It's like everything in yoga yokes or unites you to something higher, the highest part of yourself.

People always think that if you eat anything as a model, it's amazing. I used to tease them and say, you know I'm going to throw up afterwards.

I think each woman has her own relationship to beauty.

Yoga has reinforced and grounded my own spiritual beliefs.

Every year, more than 1 million children are left motherless and vulnerable because of maternal deaths, and children who have lost their mothers are up to 10 times more likely to die prematurely than those who have not.

On average, African-American women are 4 times as likely to die from pregnancy related complications. Latina women are at 2 times greater risk.

If you do one thing a day, make it a headstand. It's the king of all postures and has so many benefits. It helps me sleep better and focus.

A lot of people have questioned how yoga and their own spiritual beliefs can come together. Yoga actually pre-dates religion.

I started practicing Yoga at about 18. I had a friend who was doing it and was incredibly disciplined and meditated all the time.

The way I try to live is 'Be here now.' Be your best self now.

As a child, the conversations that I liked to have with my friends - or with anyone, for that matter - were always about religion.

Sacred spaces can be created in any environment.

I always run without music. Being disconnected is what I'm addicted to more than anything. There aren't many places where you can be without your phone and computer. I've started to crave and enjoy that time alone.

I haven't left modeling completely; I just took a step out, and I now have the rare luxury of picking and choosing how to spend my days.

I like the big questions.

Like so many new moms, I felt anxiety over the impending birth of my daughter. However, most of the anxiety I felt was around the idea of raising a child. I wasn't focused on potential risks to my health or hers that could occur during the actual birth.

I enjoy the celebration of my birthday as much as anyone else does, but I always remember to start my day thanking my mom because she did most of the work the day I came into the world, not to mention all she has done throughout my life that has contributed so much to the woman I am today.

If we truly value humanity, life, and all that it represents in its highest form, then we need to do all that we can to promote quality of life over the quantity of life.

What I did for a living for so many years separated who I was from what I did.

I have a son and a daughter; I try to teach them equally about balance, gender, and gender equity.

My weight fluctuates, and I haven't always been skinny. I became curvier in my twenties, but I never felt self-conscious about it; going through different periods is all part of being a woman.

Giving birth was probably the most empowering thing I've ever done physically. I was like, 'Now I can do anything. I can run a marathon... I can run three marathons!'

I remember doing a shoot for Herb Ritts, hanging off the Eiffel Tower - that wasn't your usual day at the office. It was terrifying, and in the end, you couldn't really tell how high I was because the photographer was scared of heights, so he was quite far away from me.

I feel like being a good model for my children is something that I do take seriously.

Modeling is a profession where your worth is tied up with looks.

Access to maternal healthcare is a human right.

Mothers need mothers. Let's be there for one another.

I have lots of other mountains that I would like to climb. I have no dream of Everest, but there are some, like Mount Fuji, I'd like to do.

I would be very proud to have influenced anyone that I know or don't know to quit smoking.

I didn't know anything about running gear when I started out, but after trying a few shoe brands, I've discovered that Brooks are my preferred shoes.

I never thought I would model for more than a few years.

You can usually tell when I'm happy by the fact that I've put on weight.

If Mom is healthy, then her child is more likely to thrive, more likely to have a better quality of life and, ultimately, better able to provide for his or herself.

I almost had to exhaust myself at modeling before I could say, 'O.K., I'm ready for school.'

In my teen years, I was hanging out with adults - Steven Meisel, Francois Nars, Oribe, Paul Cavaco. We had so much fun! We'd go out in New York.

Those of us focused on issues related to social justice and equality are grateful for the significant steps President Obama has made to advance women's equality and status all over the world.

As long as I was breathing with the contractions and not pushing against them, I felt better. That idea is fundamental-to feel pain and not to resist; to go towards it. It is an incredibly spiritual practice.

I tried acupuncture, the patch, and hypnosis, but found that I needed to do it alone - when the time was right for me.

I'd rather go naked than wear fur.

When you are balanced and when you listen and attend to the needs of your body, mind, and spirit, your natural beauty comes out.

I was never directly pressured by peers, but by surrounding myself with others who were experimenting with smoking provided a certain false comfort.

Style is something you either have or don't have.

If we can't support a woman while she is giving life, then we don't support women.

I want my daughter to see that I am a professional and have commitments, but that I'm there when the family needs me, and so is their father. In some cases, more so.

Yoga puts me in a place that is a little bit less about doing and more about being, which enables me, in fact, to do more.

I was really gangly and uncoordinated as a kid. I couldn't even do a cartwheel.

I don't think that artists of any kind would or could sacrifice their artistic freedom by being more responsible with their influence on people, especially young people.

When I was 18, and my looks were what I was - and all that I was - it did feel very limiting.

There has been a lot of media attention around the dangers of drugs used to treat mental illness on the fetus.

Walking strengthens my legs, and I swing my arms to tone my upper body.

On the days I don't run, I do yoga and cross-training.

It is education that will arm us with the tools that will enable us to succeed and put a stop to the rising rates of preventable death.

It is possible to experience an awakening in this life through realising just how precious each moment, each mental process, and each breath truly is.

Most of us harbour a significant amount of subconscious fear about death, and act out of this fear in our daily lives.

My day-to-day life changes; I don't have any standard day.

I associate wisdom and grace with age.

Even though Haitian women are considered the 'poto mitan' - the 'central pillars' of the family and their communities - they are often the most underserved members of already poor communities.

Yoga gave me the ability to calm down.

Pranayama is the practice of breath control. The word prana refers not only to breath, but also to air and life itself.

One thing that has become abundantly clear to me as I have advocated for the health and well-being of girls and women over the years is the innate power we each have within us to establish deep connection with one another and heal ourselves simply by sharing our stories.

In the world of maternal health, cell phone technology is being used to provide prenatal care, linking pregnant women to health care providers when they can't otherwise reach healthcare facilities.

There are disparities in accessing quality maternity health care in most every country, and most all health systems could and must be improved upon if we want to create healthy families who will thrive.

I was a regular kid with a normal family life.

Oh, I'm hardly stylish! I'm such a mess. I don't even think about what I'm going to wear; it's the last thing I think about.

Parents should be the most important examples for their children.

Participating in a sisterhood with other women is hugely important in my life and a source of joy.

I always recognized that modeling would allow me to see and do a lot, so I looked for opportunities to learn and grow.

It is better to not even try it than to endure the ramifications of either quitting smoking or dying.

I'm not a morning person.

I have my family, which is my main thing; the organization; a modeling career. All these things are important, but family definitely comes first.

Yoga is about compassion and generosity towards others. It means being mindful of the world around us.

Any spirituality can be enhanced with the practice or study of yoga.

A lot has changed since the 1980s, when the United States was a country with one of the greatest numbers of people infected with HIV.

So much of religion is exegesis. I would rather follow in the footprints of Christ than all of the dogma.