Oprah has worked hard to shed almost 20kg. Photo / Getty Images
Oprah has worked hard to shed almost 20kg. Photo / Getty Images
Talk show queen Oprah Winfrey's weight struggles have been well documented ever since she first rose to fame over 30 years ago - but has the TV host and business mogul finally found a regimen that works for her?
Winfrey joined Weight Watchers in 2015, paying US $43 million tobecome a partial owner of the company. Since then, she's stuck to the Weight Watchers program - and lost just under 20kg in the process.
Speaking in the new issue of Weight Watchers magazine, Winfrey said she now had a more relaxed approach to dieting.
Oprah in 1985 and her now. Photos / AP, Getty Images
"A 200lbs (90kgs), I was okay. I have never, ever, ever been at that point. And then at 190lbs (86kgs), I was okay. If I don't lose another pound right now, I'm still okay," she said.
"The fullness of life, the fullness of being, the self-acceptance - I'd never done that before. I'd always beaten myself up because I was tied to a number."
Historically a goal-based dieter, pushing herself to reach a 'magic number' on the scales, Winfrey said that taking a more holistic approach had benefited her.
"Now, I don't have a goal in mind. I get to a certain weight and I'm okay, and say, 'This is where I want to be. Hang in there. I'll get there when I get there.' And my body will tell me when I am exactly where I need to be."
Winfrey's up-and-down weight battles have been well-documented, usually by the TV star herself - in a 1988 episode of her show, she infamously wheeled a carton full of fat on stage to demonstrate just how much weight she'd lost. Winfrey later confessed that she began binge eating and regaining the weight almost immediately.
Oprah on her talk show in 1988, talking showing off her new figure in Chicago after she lost 67 pounds following a liquid diet and exercise. Photo / AP
This time around, Winfrey said she was clear not to lose weight with a specific event or outfit in size - but instead to focus on the health benefits.
"I could lose weight to fit a dress size, or attend an event, or to make other people like me. But I couldn't keep it off for those reasons. I always put the weight back on," she said.
"This time I changed the intention to, 'I want to be the healthiest I can be - physically, emotionally, spiritually.' So the process and purpose of losing shifted for me. It was easier, because my intention was clearer."
Winfrey's weight loss is good news for the company she now owns 10 per cent of - USA Today reports Weight Watchers stocks surged by almost 20% following her announcement.
