Cheryl Cole’s Diet Revealed: Lemon Juice Purges, Smoking and Insane Workouts

She’s always been slender and in good shape, but that’s not to say that Cheryl Cole is also very confident. A new report suggests that the singer and television star had, at one point, such image issues she would literally starve herself and smoke a pack a day to make sure she maintained her figure.

Before she was fired from the US version of X Factor (after only 5 days), Cheryl had gained some weight. She was still very small, but the few pounds did not go unnoticed in the press, especially in the British tabloids.

Some of them even connected the two, saying she was also let go as judge on the show because she wasn’t taking care of herself anymore.

On the contrary, actually, says a source close to her former bodyguard, as cited by the Daily Mail. Because she could not cope with pressure, Cheryl had gone to extreme lengths to make sure she stayed slim.

She was terribly insecure and plagued by body image issues, says the spy. She would go on cleansing “diets” and chain-smoke to curb her appetite – and then hit the gym for many hours of exercise.

“The former X Factor judge apparently was so anxious about her appearance and weight that she’d go on regular purges to stay slim – as well as smoking ‘at least 20 Marlboro a day’,” the Daily Mail writes.

She was insecure and she wanted to make it in the US, but knew she couldn’t if she didn’t fit beauty standards in the industry. So, she strived to be as thin as possible, regardless of her health.

“She did these lemon cleanses where she wouldn’t consume anything except lemon juice and water with a dash of cayenne pepper and maple syrup,” the insider is quoted as saying.

“She became a fan of the Tracey Anderson gym in Studio City in LA. Cheryl worked out so hard she ended up getting sore legs,” the spy explains.

To avoid the paparazzi, she would head out to the gym at 5 in the morning and, even though her feet were killing her from the workouts, she’d always wear high heels in public.

With all this, she still gained weight because she couldn’t give up her favorite fatty or sweet treats, dishes the tipster.

“She was big on porridge as a healthy way filling up. She liked salads and loved sushi but also liked junk food, hamburgers, subway, popcorn, candy, lots of chocolate,” the source says.