Mama June's Covid weight gain excuse echoes "My 600-lb Life" obesity myths

In this blog, I explore how I lost 100 pounds. I also look at celebrity weight loss particularly on reality TV shows like "My 600-lb Life" and "Mama June: From Not to Hot." June Shannon, the "Toddlers and Tiaras" mum of pageant star Honey Boo Boo debuted her 300-lb weight loss, after gastric bypass, a few years ago. I've always had my doubts about Mama June Shannon's weight loss. Here's why. 

So many lies: June Shannon struggled with (actually I should say celebrated) morbid obesity, through "Toddlers and Tiaras or "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo." Then a new reality TV show "Mama June: From Not to Hot" promised a big makeover. Shannon falsely claimed to lose weight on her own, without gastric bypass or plastic surgery. And though she achieved undeniable weight loss, her claim to lose 300 pounds and get down to size 4 and 134 pounds was a bit much to believe. So she fudged numbers? She's still a lot less overweight, no big deal, right?  Unfortunately, it demonstrates some very "My 600-lb Life" type behavior.  

Obesity mindset (or what I call "fattitude.") Gastric bypass patients on "My 600-lb Life" exhibit Al-Anon pattern "stinkin thinkin" (blaming others, making excuses, lying about following the 1200 calorie diet, denying how overweight they are). Fattitude makes and keeps us overweight. Stinkin thinkin blames everyone else for obesity. It lies and says that we don't need to practice calorie restricting with gastric bypass. To lose weight and keep it off, we have to clean up stinkin thinkin and eating habits. Mama June never did. Now Honey Boo Boo is following suit. 

Minimizing and more lies. After a 300-lb weight loss, Mama June said in June (see FB photo above) that she gained "a tiny little" back, "only" 60 pounds. That's on top of some regained (she said 20, doctor said 50) shortly after surgery. So a little after big weight loss is normal. I lost 100 pounds by calorie restricting. I gained back 12 pounds and got right back on the 1200 calorie diet. "Mama June: Road to Redemption" and even back on "From Not to Hot" showed her eating junk food and not calorie restricting. 

Weird weight gain excuse. What really blew my mind was June Shannon's reason for gaining 60 lbs. She said it was "healthy Covid 19 weight gain" (!) My husband and I had Covid 19 and we lost weight! I dropped 10 pounds in a week and he lost 17. And while Covid 19 weight loss may not be healthy, gaining, if I'm already overweight, surely isn't. This sounds a lot like "My 600-lb Life" excuse that obesity is just "water weight." 😲😣

Getting out of denial, taking a reality check and quitting excuse-making were as important to how I lost 100 pounds as the 1200 calorie diet. 

What Mama June and Honey Boo Boo taught me about weight loss

Mama June Shannon and Honey Boo Boo (Alana Thompson) have had their ups and downs. But I've learned a lot from the "From Not to Hot" reality TV stars, especially about weight loss. You could say that their examples are part of how I lost 100 pounds. Yes, I know that will need a lot of explaining. 

After "Toddlers and Tiaras" and "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo" a very overweight Mama June was able to lose weight and drop to size 4 after gastric bypass weight loss surgery. Reality TV star Alana meanwhile continued to down the road to morbid obesity. 

Fast forward to 2021 and the trailer for "Mama June: Road to Redemption" shows June Shannon back to obesity despite gastric bypass and Honey Boo Boo looks even more overweight. Drug addiction and dysfunctional relationships have not been kind to the family. The TLC show "My 600-lb Life" shows similar patterns and how they lead to obesity. 

So what did I learn from Mama June on weight loss? Bariatric surgery isn't foolproof. As "My 600-lb Life" shows, you can't expect a gastric bypass alone to lose weight for you. You've got to keep up with diet. Immediately after Mama June's makeover debuted, she was shown on "From Not to Hot" still overeating, eating the wrong things and ignoring diet.

Also, it's important that in the quest to go "From Not to Hot" not to forget family and the example you set them. I was disturbed to read that HBB once said she wanted to have bariatric surgery when old enough. She clearly didn't see mom making healthy choices. It seems all  Mama June taught Alana about weight loss was that you can overeat all you want and surgery will fix it. 

I'm not perfect. But my kids have seen me lose weight and keep it off with diet alone. They've seen me say no to indulging. They know that the road to how I lost 100 pounds was paved with hard work. I appreciate shows like "My 600-lb Life" that reflect the reality of weight loss. What I learned from Mama June is that diet that is "more honour'd in the breach than the observance" leads back to obesity.