"More than anything, for me, it's about the health of it all,” the 'Real Housewives of Atlanta' star tells PEOPLE
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():format(jpeg)/Cynthia-Bailey3-2026-052526-9c834ef1ee6a447ab354b3df4fb85955.jpg "Cynthia Bailey attends Real Housewives Of Atlanta Season 17 Private Premiere Party on April 5, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia.")
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NEED TO KNOW
- Cynthia Bailey opened up about struggling with menopausal weight gain and its impact on her confidence and mental health
- She turned to Weight Watchers and a GLP-1 medication to lose over 40 lbs. and develop sustainable habits
- Bailey emphasizes prioritizing health over being skinny and embracing her body as she ages
Cynthia Bailey is down 40 lbs. and getting her confidence back.
The Real Housewives of Atlanta star, 59, recently spoke to PEOPLE about navigating the way her body has changed as she's gotten older and how she's approaching her health.
Bailey says she never had problems with her weight and was always “skinny” after starting her career as a model early on. She also prides herself on being able to “get things done” and accomplish the things she works for, including staying on top of her health.
So, when she reached her 50s and started dealing with menopausal weight gain, she was caught off guard.
“I tried to diet, I had a trainer, I was working out. I was definitely making the effort. But when I got to this one particular crossroad after menopause, I just could not fix it,” she tells PEOPLE. “And that was really frustrating for me as someone who is a little bit of a control freak.”
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Bailey admits that her fluctuating weight started to take a toll on her mentally, and she became a lot more self-conscious.
“My fans, they've been with me since I was modeling. So they've seen Cynthia the model, Cynthia the reality star, Cynthia the actress. And the comments on social media are like, ‘Oh wow, she needs to lose weight. She looks a mess. She really let herself go. What happened to her?' I read all those things and, you know, it's hurtful,” she says. “I'm still human. And I found myself agreeing with some of the comments.”
“As someone who lives their life in the spotlight, I was actually starting to lose confidence,” she continues. “I was finding myself not wanting to do the red carpets anymore. I just kind of wanted to be more in the background, trying to hide the weight. Even watching myself back on TV being 30 to 40 pounds heavier, it was hard.”
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In early 2025, the mom of one decided to turn to Weight Watchers, which she says “felt like a safe space” to begin her weight-loss journey. She started with a program to change her relationship with food and create healthy lifestyle habits that she could maintain. She then got prescribed a GLP-1 medication to assist.
“I just wanted to feel good again and I wanted to look good again. And I'm not afraid to say that,” she says. “I feel like when you look better, you feel better.”
“I knew I needed to first get on a program because for me, it was about being able to maintain a certain weight once I got there as opposed to losing weight quickly,” she adds.
Bailey says she almost entirely removed bread from her diet and she limits herself to one alcoholic drink per outing. She also focuses on healthy alternatives to her typical meals so she can still enjoy her favorite foods.
“I think that's why I've had so much success because now it's just my life,” she says.
Bailey — one of the cover stars for Weight Watchers' The Mother Issue — says she's lost more than 40 lbs. since starting the program a year ago.
“I went from 206 lbs. to yesterday I weighed in at 165 lbs. And in my mind, I was like, ‘Man, if I could get back to just 160, that would be the perfect healthy weight for me.' I'm almost there.”
Credit: Weight Watchers
Despite the progress, the reality star stresses that she has no desire to be “skinny” again, embracing how her body has changed as she's aged.
“It's not about being skinny. I've been skinny my whole life. I just want to be my healthy weight and my healthy weight actually is not skinny. I just look good,” she boasts. “I look the weight that I am comfortable looking and I can fit my clothes the way I wanna fit my clothes. More than anything, for me, it's about the health of it all.”
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As she continues her journey, Bailey tells PEOPLE that she's learned not to be too hard on herself and that being transparent has been really beneficial for her progress.
“Although I come from an industry where aesthetics do matter, I give myself grace by just being authentic about my journey and sharing it,” she explains. “I'm not alone. I'm not the only person getting older. I'm not the only person that went through menopause. So I don't wanna beat myself up about it.”
“I'm at a healthy weight and I feel so good,” she says. “It just feels so good to be able to get dressed, look at yourself in the mirror and like what you see inside and out.”
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