Lisa Kudrow discusses her battle with body confidence after appearing on Friends

Friends star Lisa Kudrow, who is known for portraying Phoebe Buffay in the nineties sitcom, has opened up about her battle with body confidence and insecurities when she was younger. 

The 59-year-old actor has admitted she never felt insecure about her appearance until she starred in the popular show, which ran for 10 years from 1994 to 2004. 

Speaking on Podcrushed podcast, Lisa said: "I thought I was just really skinny. I can do whatever, [but] no, especially in high school."

However, it wasn't until she starred in Friends and started to reflect on images of herself that she convinced herself she needed to make lifestyle changes. 

She continued: "I look at pictures and say, 'Wow, pictures really distort reality.' 

"And it wasn't until Friends that I realised, 'Oh, I don't look like I thought I looked.'

"And that's what was so jarring, and that's when it was like, 'Oh, I've got to actually lose weight? I have to diet? Shoot.'"

It wasn't only reflecting on the images, but starring alongside Jennifer Aniston, who played Rachel Green, and Courteney Cox, who starred as Monica Geller, which also contributed to her insecurities. 

She said: "It was just seeing myself on the show and seeing myself in clothes and seeing Courteney and Jennifer in clothes."

But it wasn't about how the garments were designed and tailored, which made her compare herself to her colleagues, as Lisa said: "It's not just about tailoring."

She continued: "And I'm not trying to say I was overweight, either. I was not. I just had no idea the shape of my actual body."

Lisa has come a long way since, and says she now accepts her body. 

She continued: "I just realised... it's okay. This is just what I look like. That's okay. Do what you need to do to be healthy, but this is your body and it's okay."