Oprah Blames Weight Gain on Abusing Food

Having already expressed how angry and embarrassed she feels after tipping the scales at 200 pounds, Oprah Winfrey is now doing something about it.

With her TV show launching Best Life Week on Monday, the media mogul, 54, says, according to a transcript posted on her official Web site, that when it came to her 40-lb. weight gain, "It's not about the food.

"It's about using food – abusing food. Too much work. Not enough play. Not enough time to come down. Not enough time to really relax."

She adds: "I am hungry for balance. I'm hungry to do something other than work."

Practically speaking, that means Winfrey – who has been diagnosed with hypothyroidism (a hormonal imbalance) – is devoting more time from her 14-hour workday schedule to her own well-being, including exercise. It also means she is finished making excuses for herself.

Winfrey says that last year she was forced to mask her figure every month for her cover shot on her O magazine.
"I've been hiding my body because I didn't want you to see it," she says. "Here I am, one of the most visible people in the world, trying not to be seen on the cover of my own magazine."

This year, she's stopped making excuses – and stopped hiding. For O's January issue, Winfrey poses next to a picture of her former svelte self, from 2005 – when she weighed 160 pounds.


"This is the year of hopefulness," she says, revealing her new attitude. "My goal is to be the weight that my body can hold and be healthy and strong and fit and be itself.

"One of the things I had to learn to do is to embrace this body that I have and be grateful for what this body has given me," she says. "God blessed me and this body. I mean, I could weep right now thinking about the love and appreciation I have for this body. For that, I am truly grateful."
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