Oprah at 71: 'Best Shape of My Life' With Weight-Loss Med

Oprah Winfrey says she's in the best shape of her life at 71, and she's done hiding how she got there.

The media icon revealed she's lost 56 pounds and maintained 155 pounds by using a GLP-1 medication, the same class of drugs that includes Ozempic and Wegovy. She tried quitting after six months to prove she could do it alone, but gained back 20 pounds despite sticking to diet and exercise.

That's when everything clicked. "It's going to be a lifetime thing," Winfrey told People Magazine. "I'm on high blood pressure medication, and if I go off it, my blood pressure goes up. The same thing is true with these medications."

Winfrey had reached 211 pounds, was pre-diabetic, and had high cholesterol. She started the medication in 2023 after knee surgery, though she initially resisted because of the stigma.

"I thought it was cheating, the easy way out," she said on her new podcast. "I've got to prove this one last time I could do it by myself."

For 25 years, Winfrey endured public mockery about her weight. She says she accepted the jokes because she believed the critics were right. Now she knows they were wrong.

"Somehow, in society, we think that how much we weigh is in our control," she explained. "And it's not. Our brain is in control."

Dr. Ania Jastreboff, an endocrinologist at Yale School of Medicine and Winfrey's podcast guest, confirmed that obesity works like other chronic diseases. The medication quiets what doctors call "food noise," the constant impulse to eat that some brains generate more than others.

"I realized that thin people aren't even thinking about food," Winfrey said. "They're only eating when they're hungry, and they're stopping when they're full."

Why This Inspires

Winfrey is using her platform to normalize what millions struggle with in silence. One of her guests, Amy, lost 160 pounds on a GLP-1 but still faces judgment from strangers.

Dr. Jastreboff summed it up perfectly: "You're shamed if you have obesity. You're shamed if you lose weight. You're shamed if you use medicines. There's literally no winning."

By speaking openly about her journey, Winfrey is helping shift that conversation. She combines the medication with daily hiking and resistance training, achieving the same fitness level she had at 40 when running marathons.

Managing weight is healthcare, not a moral test.