At 70, Oprah Winfrey Leaves Fans At A Loss For Words After Flaunting ‘Thinner’ Body That Makes Her Look ‘Totally Different’

Sep 19, 2024

Oprah Winfrey is one of the world’s most famous business and media moguls, not least due to her name being plastered all over her projects. Winfrey has created a successful empire, bringing her many fans, fame and fortune. She is most known as a celebrated talk show host, as well as an actress, author, producer and philanthropist. She has engaged herself in many projects and organizations over the years, helping build her empire while helping those in need.

With her success in the production side of television, Winfrey took a shot and launched her own channel in January 2011 called OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network. Just a few months later, the series finale of her iconic talk show aired, but Winfrey was far from being done with work.

Oprah’s Book Club, which began in 1996, has consistently turned its selections into bestsellers. The club continues to make an impact on the publishing industry today. It has also grown in such popularity that a show with the same title premiered in November 2019 on OWN. 

Winfrey's love for books isn’t just about reading them; it’s also about writing them. She has co-authored five books, including a memoir and a book about weight loss. Her passion for helping others achieve their weight-loss goals inspired her to partner with Weight Watchers, now known as WW. According to Barron’s, Winfrey has been involved with the company since 2015.

Her involvement in WW eventually led to her own figure slimming down. In 2024, Winfrey looked almost unrecognizable at the peak of her weight loss journey. Keep reading to learn more about how the entertainment icon has managed to do it so successfully. 

At her heaviest, Winfrey weighed around 237 lbs. As a dedicated member of Weight Watchers, she successfully lost more than 40 lbs. Her points-based weight loss program had been instrumental in keeping her figure slim and achieving a healthy lifestyle. 

According to an ad by Weight Watchers shared with People Magazine, Winfrey decided to join the group in 2015. 

"Since I've started Weight Watchers, I've lost over 40 lbs," she revealed in 2016. "I can honestly tell you; I struggle no more. I'm eating everything I love — tacos, pasta. I've never felt deprived." 

The host said the program she had been on was “easier” than any other program she undertook in the past. 

“It’s a lifestyle, a way of eating, and a way of living that’s so freeing. You never feel like you are on a diet, and it works,” she further explained. 

Since embarking on a weight loss journey, Winfrey has been more mindful of what she eats. In an Instagram video in 2022, she cleared out her refrigerator after the holidays and explained that it “brings” everyone to the center and back “on track.”

"It brings a level of awareness to what I'm eating, and that's what helps me close out the holidays, get back in control of how I want to live. So let's do our day one together. Not one day, not tomorrow, not next Monday, not next week. Let today be our day one, OK?" she told her followers in the video. 

As quoted by The Daily Mail from the 2016 issue of O, The Oprah Magazine, the actress explained that she was “fed up” with her “ lose-and-gain again routine” on the “no-carb regimens” that she tried, noting that it “doesn’t make sense” to her.

The pounds continued to drop from Winfrey’s frame, prompting many to speculate that the mogul had turned to weight-loss medication, such as Ozempic. By the end of 2023, Winfrey openly admitted to using weight-loss medications and expressed no shame.

“The fact that there's a medically approved prescription for managing weight and staying healthier, in my lifetime, feels like relief, like redemption, like a gift, and not something to hide behind and once again be ridiculed for. I’m absolutely done with the shaming from other people and particularly myself,” she said without specifying which weight-loss medication she was on.

She said she still maintains a healthy diet that consists of consuming a gallon of water per day and no food after 4pm, as well as regular gym sessions and hiking. She added she had “released my own shame about (taking the) weight-loss medication” and “now use it as I feel I need it, as a tool to manage not yo-yoing.”

In September 2024, Winfrey was spotted on the streets of New York City for an appearance on the “Good Morning America” show. The 70-year-old looked slimmer than ever before while donning a skin-tight purple sweater and belted dark beige, wide-legged cargo pants. The star looked radiant, her trim figure complemented by beach-style wavy hair and dark sunglasses.

Fans were stunned by the transformation, saying Winfrey looked “totally different from what she used to look like.”

“‘Very thin’ is an exaggeration, thinner would be a more accurate description!” another user wrote.

Others criticized her for using weight-loss medication.

“Not everyone can afford to take this. Rich people getting thin,” one user opined, while another said, “Not really a true weight loss if you cheat and make no effort.” 

Others were more empathetic.

“She's done this 'svelte' thing about 5 times over her life. Good luck,” one user remarked, while another said: “Nothing wrong with Ozempic. Only people who can't afford it bash it.”

Do you think Oprah Winfrey looks better? What are your thoughts on her decision to turn to weight-loss medication? Let us know, and pass this on to your family, friends and fellow Winfrey fans!