Ricki Lake rose to fame in 1988’s Hairspray, playing self-proclaimed “pleasantly plump” leading lady Tracy Turnblad.
“Being fat worked, and I think that was what was confusing for me for a long time in my career,” Lake told Good Morning America in December 2010 after she lost 130 pounds. “Through my adolescence and, you know, later teenage years, I got bigger and bigger and bigger. I had the worst, the worst eating habits.”
Lake’s weight has ebbed and flowed through the years. Joining Dancing With the Stars season 13 proved to be a helpful way to shed pounds.
“I’m working so hard. It’s a challenge to really push my body, but it’s so fun,” she exclusively told Us Weekly in October 2011. “I’m using muscles I wouldn’t use in the gym or hiking, which is what I love to do. “Dancing doesn’t feel like working out … even though I’m covered in sweat!”
Lake, who was partnered with pro Derek Hough on the ballroom competition, told Us that she attributed her weight loss to intense rehearsals and Freshology diet delivery meals.
More recently, Lake and husband Ross Burningham lost 30 pounds each after overhauling their diet and fitness regimens in late 2023. “I am so so proud of us. I feel amazing. I feel strong,” she wrote via Instagram in February 2024.
Keep scrolling to revisit Lake’s body transformation:
