Bobbi Althoff Addresses Body Image Insecurities and Why She Forced Herself to Stop Reading Hate Comments (Exclusive)

For Bobbi Althoff, stepping in front of the camera for a lingerie campaign was never part of the plan.

“I definitely never saw myself doing a lingerie shoot,” the podcaster, 28, tells PEOPLE exclusively while discussing her new partnership with Adore Me, which she fronts for the intimate apparel brand’s 2026 Valentine’s Day collection. “I was, like, very nervous about it.”

Despite her nerves, Althoff says the collaboration felt like the right fit. “I’ve just seen the work that they’ve done before, and I am familiar with the brand and it felt right,” she explains. “So I was like, ‘You know what? Let’s do this.’”

Althoff admits the pieces pushed her outside her comfort zone. “It was very cute, very unlike me,” she says with a laugh. “Not necessarily something that I’d normally see myself in, but I was very pleasantly surprised by how nice the pieces were.”

That initial discomfort, she says, is what makes the campaign relatable. “If I can wear lingerie and look somewhat OK in it, other people can also see themselves in it,” Althoff says. “Because I feel like I’m not really the poster child for lingerie.”

Her message to women is simple. “Just put it on,” she says. “And I think that even if you think you’d feel bad in it, put it on and it will… it might surprise you.”

The collection, which launches Dec. 30 on AdoreMe.com, includes bras, lingerie, sleepwear and panties and is designed to span the entire season from Valentine’s Day to Galentine’s Day. Staying within Adore Me’s accessible price point, lingerie sets retail at or below $70 and are offered in sizes 30A to 46DDD and XS to 4X. This year’s theme, “Leave Your Mark with Kisses,” features bold, flirty styles with red and pink colorways and kiss motifs throughout.

The campaign also aligns with the influencer’s long-standing openness about body image and cosmetic procedures, topics she acknowledges can be uncomfortable but necessary to discuss honestly.

Ahead of the shoot, she recalls feeling especially anxious after recently getting Botox in her jaw. “I guess it moved into my smile, so I couldn’t smile at all,” she says. “I felt so crazy, like I couldn’t smile. But I feel [the photos] still turned out really, really good.”

Althoff says that transparency is intentional. “Before I was on social media and stuff, I would just look at people who looked perfect, and I assumed that they just were born that way,” she explains. “I think a lot of people just get stuff done, especially in L.A.”

“I think the one thing it does do is I think it helps people be more happy with how they were born and be happy with what they already had because it’s like, look at how wrong it can go. And it’s like, it definitely has helped me appreciate what I naturally look like more because I will look back at pictures of me before I even touched my face and I’m like, ‘Oh, I don’t know why I was so upset with how I looked or why I wanted to change this, because I used to like how I looked.'”

“And I think people see me and they’re like, ‘OK, maybe I won’t.’ Or I hope they see me and they’re like, ‘Maybe I won’t touch my face,’ because honestly, it could go so wrong and you honestly look good before you do any of that.”

Along with scrutiny over her appearance, Althoff has also dealt with online scrutiny, something she is now actively stepping back from. “I used to read every comment section about me,” she says. “And now if I see something, I just scroll past it.”

She credits therapy and advice from others in the public eye for helping her make the change. “A lot of therapy,” Althoff says. “I had a lot of people reach out to me who are celebrities and they were like, ‘You’ve really got to stop reading comments. It’s not healthy.’”

Althoff rose to prominence after launching The Really Good Podcast, where her deadpan humor and intentionally awkward interview style went viral. She has since interviewed guests including Drake, Lil Yachty, Mark Cuban, Rick Glassman and Funny Marco, among others.

As she looks ahead to 2026, Althoff says confidence now means being kinder to herself. “Not looking in the mirror as much and critiquing my appearance,” she says. Ultimately, she adds, it is about perspective. “I wanna touch some grass and realize that I don’t need to sit there and critique every little part of myself.”