Ross Mathews Shows off 80-Pound Weight Loss Transformation

TV host Ross Mathews has lost 80 pounds over the last four years, and he just shared his story in an interview with PEOPLE. The familiar TV personality – currently the co-host of The Drew Barrymore Show – said that it began when his mother died of breast cancer in May of 2020. Since then, he has been on a journey to change his health.

“Cooking was a love language my mother and I shared,” Mathews explained. He said that he had a long history of overeating and poor nutritional choices, and he could have leaned on those vices in his grief. Instead, he said: “I went back to the kitchen because it connected us. And it was in the kitchen where I found my way.”

See photos of Mathews’ transformation here.

Mathews said he sought out education about nutrition and began by trying to tweak his mother’s familiar recipes to make them more healthy and balanced. He said he also started slow with exercise by simply taking regular walks, calling these “all doable things.” He said: “I realized I wanted to be on this planet as long as possible, and the thing I could control is how I wanted to live.”

Mathews, 45, has lost 80 pounds over the last four years, but he said it is not all about how he looks. He said: “I want to be the healthiest person I can be.” For many fans, the slow and steady approach to healthy weight loss is more inspiring than some of the other fast and shocking celebrity physique transformations that make headlines.

Still, Mathews acknowledged that his weight has often impacted his self-image throughout his life. He recalled growing up in a small rural town called Mt. Vernon, Washington, saying: “I was porky, and I was outrageously gay.” He said he was “blissfully unaware” that he was treated differently at the time. His father was a mechanic while his mother handled accounts for the local school, and he said that when money was scarce they relied on cheap but filling foods, which were often unhealthy.

“We were getting by, but if you’re struggling to put food on the table, there’s not a conversation about what kind of food it is. You just eat it,” he said. “My mom would buy 10 packs of ramen noodles for a dollar, and I’d make three as a snack before dinner, thinking, ’30 cents. Great.’”

Mathews has been sharing some of his culinary creations online, calling them “Rossipes.” Fans can find them on social media, YouTube or in his podcast, Straight Talk with Ross Mathews. Fans can also catch Mathews on the “Drew’s News” segment of The Drew Barrymore Show.