Wynonna Judd’s 55-Lb Weight Loss: How Easing Stress and Walking Transformed Her Health
Learn why she doesn't keep sweets handy, but still indulges in the occasional treat
Known for her fiery red hair and equally bold personality, country music star Wynonna Judd has risen to fame despite the tough cards she’s been dealt. That includes continuous struggles with her physical and mental health. Over the years, she’s discussed personal tragedy (she lost her mother, Naomi Judd, in 2022 after a long battle with depression) and reaching her happy weight. Ultimately, the “My Strongest Weakness” singer found weight loss success by prioritizing her mental health, shifting her eating habits and walking more. Here, we look into Wynonna Judd’s weight loss journey and reveal how she shed 55 pounds.
A health scare kick-started Wynonna Judd’s weight loss
Judd decided to focus on her physical health after she went through two near-death experiences. “I had some surgery to repair my stomach wall… and I had a major blood clot go through my heart, and the doctor says I should have died,” she said in an interview on the Oprah Show in 2010. “I was in the studio two months later singing with blood clots in my lungs.”
That same summer, she survived a fatal car crash. “[A] guy fell asleep and hit me head-on at 55 miles per hour,” she said in the interview. “They life-flighted him, and I walked away because [the rental company] upgraded me to an SUV because they love my music.”
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She continued, “I’m grateful to be anywhere. I used to wake up and say, ‘Oh, God, it’s morning.’ Now I say, ‘Good morning, God.'” Ultimately, Judd said these events made her feel more committed to a healthier lifestyle.
The secrets behind Wynonna Judd’s 55-lb weight loss
The three most important things that played a role in Judd’s weight loss: focusing on her mental health, adjusting her eating habits and squeezing more movement into every day. Since turning 60, Judd told US Weekly last year that she’s “trying to stay mentally fit and getting out there and giving everything I’ve got and having fun. I’m so tired of being hard on myself. I’m learning how to be content.”
We asked an expert to weigh in on what Judd did to transform her health and why it works:
She changed her relationship with food
For many of us, losing weight is both a physical and mental battle. Judd reportedly prioritized her mental health with a practice known as brain state conditioning. This is “a therapy which involves retraining the brain to respond to triggers in a healthier way, whether through mindfulness, breath work and other techniques,” explains Janet Bayramyan, LCSW, a licensed psychotherapist and certified trauma therapist at Road to Wellness Therapy.
This technique helped Judd rein in emotional eating habits.“My weight was a symptom and not the problem,” Judd told People in 2010. “I used food to soothe and reward, and I don’t do that anymore.”
While it’s unclear what specific kind of conditioning Judd used, Bayramyan suggests trying meditation, breath work, journaling, stretching or slow, mindful movements like yoga to rewire your brain’s response to stress. “It’s important to develop small, consistent habits” to alleviate stress, she says. “Over time, these will signal safety to the nervous system, making it easier to regulate your emotions.”
She made healthy food swaps
If you’re looking for sugary foods or processed snacks, you won’t find them in Judd’s home. “Very seldom will you see donuts in my house because I can eat a box,” the country singer shared in the same interview with People. “It’s like a chip, I can’t eat just one.”
Practicing portion control can be a challenge with too many tempting treats within arm’s reach. Instead, Judd turns to more balanced meals to stay satiated and keep her energy levels up, ensuring protein and vegetables are at the forefront of most meals.
But that doesn’t mean she swears off little indulgences entirely. In her exclusive interview with US Weekly, Judd said, “We sit out on the porch and I eat ice cream with my granddaughter.”
She walked more
In addition to adjusting her eating habits, the “Love is Alive” singer started walking daily. She especially loves to walk around her property in Leipers Fork, Tenn., and was excited because “I can walk up the hill behind my house without puking,” she joked with People.
While discussing her health after her surgery and accident on the Oprah Show, Judd said, “In my darkest hour, I had a choice to make: I can be a victim or a victor. And I just started walking in the wilderness and screaming at God, ‘Why?'” she says. “I just kept walking, and next thing I know, I like to walk. So I call it meditative walking versus ‘I’ve-got-to-be-in-the-Olympics’ or ‘get-back-to-my-original-weight-of-8-pounds-15-ounces’ [walking].”
Not only does regular exercise burn calories and improve your cardiovascular health (key for reducing the risk of future blood clots like Judd suffered), it also spurs the release of feel-good endorphins that lift your mood.
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