For pop icon Mariah Carey, becoming a mother has been the greatest journey of her life, but it wasn’t without its pitfalls. Known for her barely there getups and bodacious curves, Carey’s envy-inducing frame swelled as she gained nearly 100 pounds. And though the new mom had her work cut out for her following the birth of her twins, Monroe and Moroccan Scott, she eventually dropped the weight. In recent interviews, Carey explained her difficulty in shedding the pounds and why she’s happy to be the latest spokesmodel for weight-loss giant Jenny (formerly Jenny Craig).
Carey’s husband, Nick Cannon, spoke last month about his wife’s work to lose her baby weight, saying, “She’s getting in shape. She’s so focused right now on every aspect. She’s going to come back and knock out the world,” said Cannon. “Personally I think she’s going to come out looking better — looking like it’s 1990! I think that’s what she’s aiming for, and I think she’ll reach that goal.”
Earlier this week, Carey debuted her slimmed-down body during an appearance on OWN’s “The Rosie Show.” There, the blonde bombshell explained that, during her pregnancy, she suffered severe edema — swelling caused by excess fluid trapped in the body’s tissues — and that she feared she wouldn’t be able to regain her pre-babies body.
“In the beginning, when I first had the babies, I had so much edema … water and swelling,” explained Carey. “Most pregnant woman have that just in their feet. One day I was doing my thank-you notes and I noticed it started rising up the leg, so I had edema … I didn’t think I would ever be the same person …”
Later, Carey also told USA Today that, “My legs looked three times the size of what my legs do right now. I thought I would never be the same person again.”
After Carey gave birth on April 30, through cesarean section at 35 weeks, the new mom was initially unable to begin working off the weight, instead, she spent weeks recovering and breast-feeding her twins. But in July, when she was no longer breast-feeding, Carey began a Jenny meal plan as well as doing aquatic workouts. After six months of dieting and exercise, Carey has now dropped down to a size 4-6.
Besides getting her figure back, Carey has also partnered up with Jenny to become the latest spokesmodel for the company.
Carey explained that several weight-loss companies contacted her about partnering up, but after speaking to executives at Jenny, “all of whom had their own issues with weight,” she felt “a kinship with everybody I spoke with.”
Besides appearing in print advertisements and commercials, Carey’s song, “Make It Happen,” will also be featured in some of her future commercials.
“[The song is] so fitting because a lot of people give up hope when they have had their kids and can’t lose that 20 pounds or 40 pounds, or they have gone through issues with weight their entire lives. It becomes so frustrating and debilitating that you give up.”
“I feel better in every way,” added Carey. “To me, it’s mind, body and soul. I was in a bad place physically during my pregnancy.”
Well, kudos to Carey for not only regaining her shape, but most important, her health. Like Carey, here are five other celebs who have slimmed down tremendously over the years. –nicholas robinson
1. Faith Evans – Back in 1995 when she first hit the music scene, Evans, though praised for velvety powerhouse pipes, was rarely portrayed as a sexy woman, due to her plump size. But beginning in 2001, Evans noticeably began to shed her extra pounds and by 2005, the First Lady of Hip-Hop & R&B had transformed herself into a slender soul singer.
2. Missy Elliott – Though Missy was applauded for her dope rhymes and beats when she hit the hip-hop scene in the mid 1990s, the plus-sized emcee was considered to be one of the hot chicks like her counterparts Lil’ Kim and Foxy Brown. But in the early 2000s, Missy began shedding pounds and by the 2005, the once oversized emcee had dropped a considerable amount of weight and asserted herself as a new type of sex-symbol.
3. Star Jones – It’s no secret that TV celeb Star Jones was at one point the butt of many fat jokes while serving as one of the hosts of The View. But after receiving gastric bypass surgery in August 2003, Jones began a dramatic weight-loss journey, eventually shedding over 160 lbs over the course of three years. Though her denial of her method of weight-loss stirred up controversy, the ultimate result is nothing less than stellar.
4. Aretha Franklin – In recent times, the Queen of Soul has suffered numerous health problems, due to her noticeable weight gain over the years. But after years of obesity,Franklinrecently revealed a new trimmed-down frame, claiming that she’s feeling better than ever.
5. Jennifer Hudson – Aside fromFranklin,Hudson’s dramatic weight-loss journey has been the biggest celebrity slim-down in recent times.Hudsonattributed her weight-loss to the help of Weight Watchers and famously became the company’s spokesmodel in 2010.
