How ‘Pioneer Woman’ Ree Drummond Lost 43 Pounds in 5 Months

The Pioneer Woman star Ree Drummond is sharing the secrets behind her surprising weight loss in her latest blog post. The Food Network star clarifies that she’s not gloating or patting herself on the back with the post. Instead, her goal is to inspire.

As she writes, her method worked for her and shouldn’t be considered a one-stop method. “Don’t take it as gospel,” Drummond writes. “[Definitely] talk to your doctor before starting anything new. You know your bod and yourself better than anyone.” Drummond also makes it clear that her primary goal wasn’t to get “skinny,” using her daughter’s wedding as motivation. But in the end, feeling better and living healthier was her top goal.

“In January, just before I bit the bullet and took the leap, I was tired, puffy, and desperate,” Drummond continued. “I knew I shouldn’t be feeling that way. So while the eighties child in me does not necessarily bristle if someone occasionally says an encouraging ‘You look thinner!’ or ‘You’ve lost weight!’ I mostly just think about how much better I feel every day and feel grateful that I’ve made it over the hump.”

The Pioneer Woman also makes it very clear what she didn’t do to maintain her weight loss. There are no fads in her daily routine, opting for more simple approaches. She didn’t use any Keto dieting or intermittent fasting. Drummond didn’t buy diet food or join any weight loss programs. She also didn’t have a personal trainer, but hints that husband Ladd may have filled the position from time to time.

Instead, Drummond kept it simple. She lowered her calorie intake and weighed her food when preparing her meals. She then added in some simple exercises, including walking up to 3 miles, using a rowing machine or Pilates. On top of that she focused on building muscle, especially after husband Ladd injured his neck. He helped give her the tips needed to build the muscle she was seeking after hitting the weight loss wall.

“If you really want to build more muscle in order to burn calories, you need to build them in your legs and your butt—since those muscles are much bigger than your arm muscles,” Ladd told the Food Network star. She also cut sugars, alcohol and added more protein to her diet. The only health app she used was Happy Scale, tracking her calories and weight loss. Drummond also switched to a standing desk, noting it tooker her 52 years to figure it out but it is never too late.

As of now, she’s lost 43 pounds and isn’t stopping anytime soon. But for her, it is more about how she feels over keeping track of a number. “Feeling good is really all that matters, and because of that, the weigh-ins are becoming less and less important to me. I’ll keep weighing in every day to have all the information I need going forward, but the number isn’t what I’m paying attention to now,” she wrote.