Lizzo, the body-positive icon, has always been vocal about her journey toward self-acceptance and overall well-being. Her approach to health is not about achieving a specific body size but about finding balance and feeling good, both physically and mentally. Let's delve into Lizzo's evolving diet plan, her motivations, and the lifestyle changes she's embraced.
From Veganism to a Balanced Diet: An Evolution
Longtime fans know Lizzo embraced veganism for years. However, she revealed to Women's Health that her vegan diet, consisting mostly of bread, soy, cashew cheese, and meat substitutes, left her feeling lightheaded and bloated. "I wasn’t getting the nutrients I needed,” she admitted. This led her to transition to a more traditional, balanced diet with a focus on protein and produce.
Lizzo also got candid about why she shifted away from her vegan diet. After a year of plant-based eating, she realized it wasn't serving her health.
"Someone suggested I try a Japanese diet because it’s one of the healthiest diets in the world, and it has some of my favorite foods,” Lizzo, whose real name is Melissa Jefferson, explained in an Oct. 10 Instagram video. “I aspire to one day be a raw, alkaline vegan,” she explained. “Until then, this is the diet that’s helped me reach my goals and help me feel good in my body.”
A Day of Balanced Eating: Lizzo's Meal Plan
Lizzo shared the breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack that helped her reach her weight loss goal. Her daily meals now include a variety of nutrient-dense foods.
Read also: Exploring Lizzo's Evolving Health Philosophy
Breakfast That Brings the Heat (Without the Heartburn)
Mornings start strong with a plate that hits all the marks: flavor, balance, and gut-friendly fuel. Her go-to breakfast includes two scrambled eggs, chicken sausage, and a cauliflower hash brown. It's rich in protein, low in simple carbs, and easy on digestion, something crucial for Lizzo, who manages gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), a condition that can flare with fatty or acidic foods. Protein keeps her full and energized, while the cauliflower hash brown adds cozy comfort without the carb crash.
Lunch That's Light and Satisfying
When it comes to lunch, Lizzo keeps it light, satisfying, and packed with nutrients. Her go-to options include:
- Shredded Thai Chicken Salad: Lean protein tossed in a flavorful, veggie-loaded mix.
- Lettuce Wraps: Stuffed with tuna or sliced chicken breast.
Dinner That's Wholesome and Cozy
Her wholesome and cozy dinner includes turkey meatloaf, mashed cauliflower potatoes, and green beans. It's classic comfort food with a gut-smart twist, lean turkey over heavy red meat, creamy mashed cauliflower instead of starchy potatoes, and fibrous greens to round things out. "I have GERD, so my body needs time to digest food before I go to sleep, so acid doesn't roll up to my throat," she explained. This is a relatable and smart strategy for anyone struggling with nighttime reflux.
Smart Snacking
If she’s feeling snacky, she’ll have low-sugar Greek yogurt with honey and blueberries or blackberries. She also enthusiastically indulges the occasional craving for a donut or chicken and waffles. “There’s a balance,” she said. “I think that’s what true health is.”
Lizzo's "Weight Release" Journey: More Than Just Physical
In January 2025, Lizzo celebrated a milestone: she hit her personal "weight release goal," revealing she had dropped her body fat by 16% and lowered her BMI by 10.5 points since the start of 2023. But this wasn't about numbers on a scale, it was about feeling better in her body, easing her GERD symptoms, and fueling her onstage stamina. Lizzo has shared that she's been in on "intentional weight release journey" since 2023. She uses the term "weight release" instead of "weight loss" to emphasize that the process is a mindful and slow shift for her body. "I want to be very intentional with the words that come out of my mouth," Lizzo said. "Because there's young people who are watching me and they're experiencing what I'm putting into the world and they're applying to their own experience and their own life like I did when I was a kid."
Read also: Lizzo's Well-being Secrets
She also opened up about her motivation to “release” weight. Firstly, she was dealing with radiating back pain from discs under pressure. She was also on a journey to heal from her anxiety and struggles with binge eating, she explained. “There were times when I would eat so much that my stomach hurt. When I was done, I would be so uncomfortable, I couldn’t breathe and wouldn’t let anyone know. I would hide it,” she said. “I had so much food noise and connected so much emotion to food. If I were sad, anxious, stressed, or working a lot, I would snack and just eat constantly. And then I would wait for everybody to leave, secretly order two separate meals on a food delivery site, then order dessert on a separate one.”
Exercise as a Complement to Diet
Lizzo also exercises five days a week. Lizzo developed a fitness routine that fuels both her body and mind and it has been paying off.
A Focus on Strength and Cardio
Lizzo doesn’t skimp out on her strength training routine. In recent years, she’s shared several videos of herself killing her workouts at the gym. From weight lifting to rope exercises and everything in between, the singer is seriously strong as hell. In June 2024, Lizzo shared a video with some highlights of her circuit training workout, which consists of a series of exercises, including squats and weight lifting. “I do circuits. So I do three rounds of three to four different exercises about 12-15 times,” she explained. Lizzo's workout also incorporated moves with an exercise ball and a kettlebell.
When it comes to cardio, Lizzo enjoys walking outdoors or on the treadmill but doesn't go overboard. "So because my Pilates regimen is pretty intense, I don't go crazy on the treadmill. I just walk and I would actually prefer to walk outside, but you know. Jump rope workouts are a great way to sneak in some cardio wherever you are and can help build motor skills/agility while helping you lose fat and build muscle strength. In other words, it's no wonder Lizzo is a fan of the fun exercise method. In 2020, the singer shared a video of herself doing a jump rope workout outside while her personal trainer cheered her on. “I’m taking the time every day to put some love into my body,” she said. “There is never a day when I regret taking a walk or doing some Pilates.”
Addressing the Ozempic Rumors
Lizzo clapped back at the rumors she's gotten assistance from drugs amid her recent weight loss. She denied taking weight loss drug Ozempic during her journey, though she contemplated weight loss surgery and cosmetic procedures like a tummy tuck. While she chose not to go that route, she doesn’t condemn it.
Read also: The Hoxsey Diet
In an Instagram post on Sept. 20, the singer singled out a particular follower who suggested that she may be one of the celebrities taking Ozempic as an explanation for her weight loss. Instead, she clarified that for the past five months, she's been focusing on "weight training and calorie deficit."
Body Positivity and Self-Acceptance: The Core of Lizzo's Message
As an entertainer who is credited for trailblazing the body positivity movement, Lizzo has received pushback for her “weight release” journey, as she calls it. She’s not obligated to explain them, but she did tell Women’s Health that she had her reasons.
Lizzo makes it clear that just because she is a new size does not mean that anyone is unworthy of the spotlight. “Body positivity has nothing to do with staying the same,” she said. “Body positivity is the radical act of daring to exist loudly and proudly in a society that told you you shouldn’t exist.”
Throughout her health journey, her fans seemed to notice her weight loss more than she did. “I don’t really see it because if anyone who’s on a natural weight-loss journey knows, losing weight is actually the slowest thing in the world and you don’t really notice it until you notice it,” Lizzo said in March 2024. “Also the scale’s not really moving. But anyway, that doesn’t matter. I’m super proud of my current lifestyle.”
She's still not perfect, she added, she still makes mistakes and she's not immune to diet culture and its toxicity, but "I just swat it away like a fly," she said. She only gets one body and she's going to enjoy it.
In a September 2025, Instagram post, Lizzo wrote: "Somebody told me “thank you for giving me a safe space to celebrate my health journey wins” 🥲 all I wanna do is inspire people to enjoy their bodies no matter what."
Confidence and Authenticity: Lizzo's Guiding Principles
In May 2025, Lizzo shared a series of posts modeling swimwear form her brand Yitty. In one video, Lizza dons a bikini, a one-piece with cutouts and swimsuits with more coverage. No matter what she had on, her attitude never wavered as she celebrated styles that cater to various body types and fashion styles.
When it comes to working out, being thin isn't Lizzo's end goal. In response, Lizzo shared her own video and agreed with that sentiment wholeheartedly. “Heavy on the not trying to escape fatness,” she said. The singer then explained that she simply wants to live a healthy lifestyle and focus on her mental health. “I think a lot of people see a fat person that way and immediately just assume everything they’re doing is to be thin,” she said. “I’m not trying to be thin. I don’t ever want to be thin. Will my body fluctuate from this size? Will I get a little smaller depending on some of the choices I make or a little bigger, depending on some of the choices I make in my life. Yes, I’m used to fluctuating."
Lizzo has always eschewed beauty norms. “Hey. So I’ve been working out consistently for the last five years, and it may come as a surprise for some of y’all that I’m not working out to have your ideal body type. I’m working out to have my ideal body type,” she said in the video. “And you know what type that is? None of your f------ business.”
Prioritizing Health: A Holistic Approach
Lizzo isn't obsessing over the number on the scale and she knows she can never win over her haters. After all, she's been criticized for gaining and losing weight over the years. But these days, she's mostly focused on staying healthy.
"I lead a very healthy lifestyle-mentally, spiritually, I try to keep everything I put in my body super clean," she told Vanity Fair. "Health is something I prioritize, wherever that leads me physically.