GAME CHANGER

NBA Hall of Famer Reveals 50-Pound Weight Loss

The sports commentator weighed 355 pounds at his heaviest.

NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley lost more than 50 pounds with the help of prescription weight-loss drugs.

In an interview published on Oct. 29, the 63-year-old sports commentator told People that his weight began climbing after two hip replacement surgeries, one in 2016 and another in 2018.

“I ended up gaining like 100 pounds when I got my hips because you’re kind of laid up for months and months,” he said.

Barkley weighed 250 pounds throughout his basketball career from 1984 to 2000, but after his surgeries, he peaked at 355 pounds.

“When I was 25 years old, my pregame meal was two fish fillets, a large fry, and I washed it down with a Diet Coke,” he said. “I’m working out every single day, running up and down the court for two hours a night. You can pretty much get away with eating anything. And then Father Time starts knocking on your door.”

Three years ago, Barkley’s doctor warned him about his weight. “I’ll try anything. I wanna be here,” he recalled telling the doctor.

His doctor first prescribed him Mounjaro, a dual GLP-1 and GIP receptor agonist. In 2023, he said he had lost 62 pounds with the help of the shot but stopped using it because of the tirzepatide shortage.

Afterward, he gained some of the weight back. He then switched to Zepbound, a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist that helps suppress appetite.

“Next thing I know, I’m down 50 pounds. But I know I’ve actually lost more than that,” he said. “It’s been not only a game-changer, it’s been a life-changer.”

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RIGHT AS RAIN

Weatherman Shows Off His 55-Pound Weight Loss Transformation

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Since April 2025, he has been a patient ambassador for Ro, a direct-to-consumer telehealth company.

Other Ro ambassadors include Serena Williams, whose husband Alexis Ohanian is an investor and board member.

“The first thing I noticed was my energy level because as a fat person, you get so used to feeling like s---. You’re just tired anytime you do anything,” Barkley said. “Normally, when I was way over 300 pounds, anytime I finished playing golf, I needed a nap. Now, I don’t. I’m not tired. I even go to the gym after I play golf.”

He said he has also made dietary changes and now focuses on eating more fruits and vegetables.

“When I’m doing my TV gig, and they show old photos of me, the difference is night and day,” he said. “I feel better, and I know I look better.”

Barkley hopes his transparency will help reduce the stigma around taking GLP-1 weight loss drugs.

“This is not cheating or some [bulls--t] like that,” he said. “There’s no other drug in the world that would help any disease or physical ailment that people wouldn’t tell you to take.”

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‘FEELING GREAT’

Amy Schumer Reveals Her Weight After 1 Year on Mounjaro

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Roosa RahkonenReporter, The Looker

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