Erin Heatherton: Victoria's Secret Told Me to Lose Weight

"I was really depressed," supermodel says of the pressure to stay thin

Erin Heatherton is explaining why she walked away from the Victoria's Secret runway. 

In a recent interview with Time magazine's Motto website, the supermodel revealed that the lingerie brand told her she wasn't thin enough to star in their highly anticipated annual fashion shows. 

"My last two Victoria's Secret shows, I was told I had to lose weight," she said. "I look back like, 'Really?'" 

During preparation for the 2013 show, Heatherton says the pressure made her "really depressed because I was working so hard and I felt like my body was resisting me," adding, "And I got to a point where one night I got home from a workout and I remember staring at my food and thinking maybe I should just not eat."

In the end, the 27-year-old left her five-year career with VS to focus on her health. "I realized I couldn't go out into the world—parading my body and myself in front of all these women who look up to me—and tell them that this is easy and simple and everyone can do this," Heatherton admitted to the mag. Victoria's Secret has no comment.

Now she's taken her own struggle with body image to social media, where—in a lengthy post—Erin addressed how she's overcome "failure". 

"I look back on that moment now, and I embrace it. This feeling I once perceived as 'failure' was, in truth, a powerful awakening for me to stand behind my purpose in life," she wrote alongside the sultry photo above. "I stepped away from hiding behind a fabricated version of myself. I no longer put actions behind my fears and insecurities. I made a choice to redirect my energy to be a catalyst for change."

Erin has never let the naysayers keep her down! The blond bombshell struck a pose for this year's Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue and continues to dominate the modeling world.