Hoda Kotb Recalls Body Shaming from Former Boss and Being Told to 'Get on the Treadmill'

Mar. 15, 2025

Hoda Kotb.Photo:John Nacion/Getty

John Nacion/Getty

Hoda Kotbis reflecting on the moment a former boss body shamed her.

“I mean, look, sometimes people will tell you things that you’re not right for,” Kotb told co-hostJenna Bush Hager. “I still remember I had just started working in a small market. And I played basketball in high school so I always assumed I was in shape even though, literally, after college and stuff I wasn’t.”

“I still remember my boss going to me, ‘Hey, Hoda,’ and I was like, ‘Yeah?’ He goes, ‘Hey, I got an idea. Maybe you might wanna try to get on the treadmill,’” she continued, impersonating her then-boss’s voice and moving her arms as if she’s running.

Bush Hager, 42,  gasped in shock at the comment, shouting, “No!”

Hoda Kotb And Jenna Bush Hager.Eugene Gologursky/Getty

Eugene Gologursky/Getty

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“You know when you have a perception of yourself that is not the perception of the world?” Kotb asked before Bush Hager quipped, “Yeah, it’s called reverse body dysmorphia. I have it too.”

“Yeah, so I was like, ‘What are you talking about?’” Kotb recalled. “But, if you don’t fit, they want you to wear something a certain way, cut your hair a certain way, speak a certain way.”

Bush Hager then recalled being initially told to refrain from saying “y’all” on theTodayshow, but said she ultimately couldn’t “pretend” to be someone she wasn’t.

“I think you know when you’re pretending deep down and no matter what it is, you start losing who you are,” Kotb added, noting that “sometimes” people still do have to make small changes to “fit into a work environment.”

source: people.com