''I Just Wanted To Be Healthy''
6:00AM ET July 20th, 2012
Contributor : Rayna Dean
A Rocky Williform Company

Singer/actress Jordin Sparks is eagerly awaiting her big screen breakthrough in the highly-anticipated film Sparkle, which opens next month. In addition to her star-turn opposite Whitney Houston in the movie, the former "American Idol" contestant has also gotten a lot of attention for her newly-slim physique as of late. The star spoke to SHAPE magazine about slimming down and getting healthy.

“I just wanted to be healthy," she says. "It was just before my 21st birthday. I had walking pneumonia, couldn't breathe and felt totally fatigued. I remember thinking, ‘I’m in my prime. I should be happy and fit.’ That was the moment when I decided that changes needed to be made. I knew I had a long road ahead of me. I was barely working out, and my diet was a mess. I had to address when, what, and how much I was eating.”