Oprah Winfrey is opening up about her weight loss journey like never before. On top of her lifestyle change, she is sharing that she has also been using weight loss medication.
In a conversation with PEOPLE, Winfrey shared that she has no shame in taking the supplements.
“I now use it as I feel I need it, as a tool to manage not yo-yoing,” she said. “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.”
Although she did not share the name of the supplement, it is considered to be over-the-counter drug, Ozempic. It is a medicine that helps people slim down and is prescribed to those with Type 2 diabetes.
Winfrey also shared the lifestyle changes she made to get to a weight that was comfortable for her.
“After knee surgery, I started hiking and setting new distance goals each week,” she explained. “I could eventually hike three to five miles every day and a 10-mile straight-up hike on weekends. I felt stronger, more fit and more alive than I’d felt in years.”
“I eat my last meal at 4 o’clock, drink a gallon of water a day, and use the WeightWatchers principles of counting points,” she continued. “I had an awareness of [weight-loss] medications, but felt I had to prove I had the willpower to do it. I now no longer feel that way.”