Star Secrets for Looking Skinny

May 9, 2006— -- Have you ever noticed how some celebrities have signature poses that they strike when they're on the red carpet?

Danica Lo, a former plus-size model and author of a new book "How Not to Look Fat," said stars knew how to stand to maximize their thinness and minimize their fat.

"I'm an Asian girl, too," Lo said. "A lot of Asian girls are very slender. For an American woman, I'm about the right size, but I still feel very big."

Lo said that others who shared her sentiments could do what Jennifer Lopez often did and pull an "operation hand on waist."

"If you put your hands on your waist, it brings attention to the finished part of your torso," Lo said. "And step forward with one foot to create a long, lean line with your legs."

Although she is very slender, heiress Paris Hilton takes most of her photos with her chin down, jaw up and mouth open, Lo said.

"It makes a huge difference with her jaw line," Lo said.

Even Lindsay Lohan, who recently lost a great deal of weight, has a signature "half-turn."

"She turns to the side, sticks her leg out, points her toe, and puts her hand on her back, touching her spine to get the s curve," Lo said. "Just the arch of the back makes a big difference."

Lo said that wearing really big accessories on hands, wrists and neck drew attention away from the body. Slouching, she said, makes problem areas look worse. Lo divulged a secret long-known by models: pressing the tongue against the back of the throat.

"If you feel the soft palate in your mouth and press your tongue up against it, it tenses up this part immediately," Lo said. "Have your chin slightly tilted down."