How Did Ricki Lake Lose Weight?

‍How Did Ricki Lake Lose Weight?

Ricki Lake has been known in Hollywood for her infectious smile, her quick wit, and her size. Having been cast for years as a larger woman in movies such as Hairspray, Cry Baby, and Serial Mom, she was used to getting those types of roles.

She is also known for her successful talk show, The Ricki Lake Show, which aired from 1993 to 2004 and earned her an Emmy Award in 1994.

Lake says that her weight is something she has struggled with her whole life. Even as a child, she was heavy and has yo-yo dieted for most of her adult life.

Let’s explore what she’s done that has brought her the most weight loss success and helped her keep the pounds off.

1. She Joined a Dancing Show

Ricki Lake competed on Dancing With the Stars during their 13th season. She has been known to say she went on the show because of her weight struggles and she was influenced by other stars who had lost weight on the show, like Kirstie Alley. (Kirstie Alley had her own tremendous weight loss success while on Dancing With the Stars as well.)

Lake was teamed up with professional dancer Derek Hough, who had won several times before.

Though she inevitably didn’t win, Lake reportedly lost a little over 20 pounds while filming the season and has publicly discussed how Dancing With the Stars made a big difference in her life, allowing her to lose that weight, thanks to the five-hour-a-day rehearsals and long filming sessions.

What is it about dancing that would allow Lake to burn so many calories…and, just as importantly – could it work for you?

Dancing has long been seen as an activity that ranks high as a high-intensity calorie burner. It is aerobic in nature, which is known to be a way to burn calories.

Any of us who are working toward weight loss know the role that aerobic exercise plays in helping move the scale. Aerobic exercise gets our heart rate up, increases our metabolism, and allows for calories to keep burning long after the activity is over. One of the best (and most fun!) ways to engage in aerobic exercise is dancing.

Dancing also allows you to work large and small muscle groups, which will increase your muscle mass. Muscles are known to burn calories faster than fat.

2. She Committed to Consistent and Regular Exercise

Along with dancing the pounds away, Ricki Lake has spoken openly about her commitment to incorporate more consistent and regular exercise into her daily schedule.

For years, Lake was a yo-yo dieter and didn’t see exercise as part of her weight loss journey. She – like many of us – thought she could just deny herself food and she would shed the pounds.

Finally, she realized that – no matter how much she starved herself, cut calories, or followed a certain diet plan – the weight was going to come back if she didn’t figure out a way to move her body that felt good to her and that she would be able to stick with for the long term.

Now that Dancing With the Stars is over, Lake is a big fan of hiking, walking with her dog, and taking spinning classes. Each of these activities is considered aerobic activity and can burn between 400 to 600 calories an hour, depending on the intensity at which you engage in them.

3. She Decided to Join Freshology

Finally, though Dancing With the Stars kicked off Lake’s weight loss transformation, and exercise has helped her maintain it, she has one other specific trick up her sleeve.

Lake decided to subscribe to a home-delivery meal service, Freshology. These types of home-delivery meal plans have made a huge impact for many people in recent years, whether they are trying to lose weight, or just want a simple way to eat healthy.

Home-delivered meals are great for busy people who don’t want to spend hours shopping and preparing food, while also trying to figure out the calories and nutrients in every meal. They come in all kinds of shapes and sizes, from companies that send you the ingredients and you put together the meal yourself, to ones that literally have the full meal show up at your door.

Though they may be more expensive than grocery shopping and preparing yourself, many advocates like them because there is no food waste. Nor is there time spent driving to the store, waiting in long lines, then having to cook it yourself.

Freshology is one of the plans where the meals are prepared for you. All you have to do is go to their website, choose what plan you’re interested in, and place your order.

How to Lose Weight Like Ricki Lake

Trying to lose weight is something many of us list as a goal every year. Trying to lose weight and keep it off becomes even more of a challenge.

Here are some tips to help you succeed in your weight loss journey and maintain a healthy weight like Ricki Lake.

Be A Joiner

Perhaps going and auditioning for Dancing With the Stars is not in your cards. But that’s okay – there are plenty of other activities you can join that will help you shed some unwanted pounds and have fun while you’re doing it!

Whether you are interested in joining a fitness class or a football team, being part of something bigger than yourself may be what you need to accomplish your weight loss goals.

By joining up with others, you may find it easier to stay accountable to your goals. It also gives you a chance to find others who may be in the same situation as you are and give you the needed support to forge forward when losing weight gets hard.

The key, though, is finding something you like. Part of the fun of joining something is supposed to be exactly that – fun!

Be Consistent

Whatever it is you decide to do, whether it’s joining a group fitness program or going it alone, make sure you can be consistent at it.

Studies have shown that the number one reason people succeed at weight loss is because they’ve made changes to their lifestyle that they have been able to continue.

We hear stories every day of the person who dropped tons of weight, only to gain it all back. It’s discouraging, yes, but most experts will tell you that the reason that person couldn’t keep the weight off, is that they hadn’t been able to keep up with the changes they made for the long haul.

Remember that weight loss and a healthy lifestyle are a marathon, not a sprint. Set yourself up for success by finding a plan that works for you not just today, but for years to come.

You Really Are What You Eat

Finding consistency in your food is also going to set you up for a lifetime of weight loss success.

Instead of eating foods that you don’t like, or end up making you still feel hungry, strive to find foods that are easy to prepare, that you enjoy eating and that will help you keep the weight off once you’ve hit your target goal.

Like with exercise, think about the long term when managing your meal plan. Learn which foods are appealing to you, not just because you’re trying to lose weight, but because you actually like them. Then, plan on incorporating those foods into your diet no matter where your weight falls on the scale.