Nicola Griffin: Our Size-16 Hero

A: I have a big breakfast: porridge with nuts, a sliced banana, prunes and a drizzle of honey on top. It fills me up and gives me energy. For lunch, it's often avocado on toast with chili peppers. Dinner is fish or meat with veggies and potatoes. Maybe some yogurt later on for a snack.

Q: Do you ever wear Spanx?

A: Oh, I have a whole arsenal of shapewear. They give clothes a smooth line and seem to hold everything together. The other essential is a truly high-quality bra — something that lifts and supports, not one of those flimsy little things.

Q: You posed for a lingerie ad. Would you do it again?

A: That ad was for a 50 Shades of Grey Valentine's Day promotion, and it was a lot of fun, so I probably would. The right underwear can make a huge difference in how your clothes fit and look.

Q: Your long gray hair — such a fabulous statement!

A: I'm naturally brunette, and I had been dyeing my hair that color as the gray came in, but it looked horrible. One day I decided, enough — I'm growing it out!

After two years of a truly dreadful transition — half white, half black — I got to my authentic color, which is a platinum white. And you know what? That decision launched my modeling career. I was in line at the bank about three years ago when someone approached me about doing an ad for White Hot Hair, a product line in England for gray and white locks.

Q: Many older women use self-tanner to camouflage veins and acquire an outdoorsy glow. Did they douse you with the stuff, or is that a real tan?

A: No, I have very fair skin, so they used a salon spray tan to give me a sunny, bronzy look. We were on a beach in the Caribbean, after all! Because of the metallic gold bikini, I look a lot tanner on film than I did in person, but they didn't retouch anything for the ad.

Q: While younger models get makeup and fashion ads, older models are often stuck with spots for sexual dysfunction, depression or IBS. Is that about to change?

A: Who knows? It does feel like this swimsuit ad in Sports Illustrated is the beginning of a movement, though. Women come in all shapes and sizes, and very few of us have bodies that can be considered perfect. The ad has fostered a wave of self-acceptance about age and body image among women who relate to it.

But I think it goes beyond that. I think we're seeing size and age diversity emerging in every area of beauty and fashion now. I hope I'm inspiring other women — not just my peers, but younger ones, too — to believe there are no age limits.