Adele’s former personal trainer has leapt to the defense of the recently slimmed-down star who has come under fire for betraying her plus-size fan base.
On May 6 — her 32nd birthday — the “Rolling In The Deep” singer caused a stir by flaunting her drastically altered figure on Instagram in a post thanking healthcare workers for their service during the coronavirus outbreak.
Pete Geracimo, who worked with Adele for four years between 2012 and 2016, called for less judgment of the newly-lithe mom-of-one on his Instagram page.
“My hope is that people appreciate the hard work that Adele has done to improve herself for the benefit to her and her family only,” he wrote. “She did not lose weight to make others feel bad about themselves.”
The trainer was addressing critics like Twitter user Kayla Marie who posted that she felt let down by the 32-year-old’s reported 98 pound weight loss, saying: “I feel betrayed, lied to, and stabbed in the heart. Adele really went to the twig side….the GALL.”
Geracimo continued in his Instagram post: “The personal transformation has nothing to do with me or you. It’s about Adele and how she wants to live her life.”
Speaking to Insider, the trainer revealed he worked with the songstress in London, England before she moved across the Atlantic to live in Los Angeles with her son, Angelo, now seven.
On Instagram, he said it was well documented that Adele has undergone some tough personal changes since switching continents.
“It’s only natural that with change comes a new sense of self and wanting to be your best possible version,” he said.
Earlier in the post, he said it was “disheartening to read negative commentary and fat-phobic accusations questioning the genuineness of her amazing weight loss.”
He said that his mission with Adele was never “about getting super skinny,” but about “getting her healthy.”
“When [Adele’s 2015] ‘25’ dropped and the tour announced, we had to get ready for a 13-month grueling schedule. In that time, she warmed to training and made better food choices.”
He said he could not be happier for the crooner, who is currently in the process of divorcing her husband, Simon Konicki, an investment banker turned charity boss.
“This metamorphosis is not for album sales, publicity, or to be a role model,” continued Geracimo. “She’s doing it for herself and for Angelo.”
Targeting Adele’s haters in his conversation with Insider, he went on to say: “No matter who are you, regardless of celebrity status, your personal goals are just that….personal.
“Sadly, social media is too commonly used as a vehicle to spread armchair negativity without any consideration or responsibility for the personal impact on an individual.
“This is all too common in the world today, so I felt compelled to remind those that no one should be criticized for achieving their goals, which for all my clients is about improving fitness and health, first and foremost for themselves.”