Women's Health

Q&A With Sarah Silverman

Do you think most real comedy comes from a darker place?

Probably yeah, real comedy comes from pain. But I don't think that the pain is something you have to maintain as a kind of fuel. Some comics may think that way, but I'll take happiness over a really dark, good, angry joke. I think it's worth trying to find happiness or be less miserable. Also, because if you don't keep growing as a person, you can't grow as a comedian. And then you're just kind of the same. Either you don't find success or you become a caricature of yourself.

There's been a lot of press over your nude scene in Take This Waltz, although it's not sexual, it's just you in the shower. Why do you think it's been such a big deal?

I think it trickles down from a conservative male perspective. As women, we're made to feel that our value is in our sexuality and yet it's also what women are punished for. [The focus on women's bodies is] a lot more about men than it is about women. But I think women buy into it and become their own worst enemies. Whether you look like you're getting old or you look like you're getting Botox, there's constant punishment and judgment.

What's your favorite part of your body? What body image issues have you had? How do you deal with them?

I like my teeth! I like it all. It works, it's strong. I think I still struggle with it like everybody does. I'd love for young girls to think I'm comfortable with my body -- and more and more, I am. When I was younger I was tearing myself apart about having cellulite on my thighs and all of a sudden I realized, you know, no woman ever started a revolution complaining about her thighs. You can't change the world complaining about your thighs.

What's your best health habit?

Probably stretching. I really try to stretch every day. I feel like I'm in training for living the rest of my life comfortably. Before I work out, I stretch for a half hour. I try to get yoga-style patience with it and get into it and love it. But I also have the TV on.

Your worst?

I'll have a cigarette or two occasionally.

Is it hard to eat well on the road as a vegetarian?

Yes! Here in LA you have access to healthy things, but on the road, you get "Oh well, we have grilled cheese, that doesn't have meat." You get a lot of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I love cheese and milk and eggs -- if I could cut out dairy, I'd be perfect. But I love cheese so much, I'm probably addicted to it. If I could eat whatever I wanted and never gain a pound, I'd just eat shells with butter and grated jack cheese every day. And sheet cake.