Kelly Ripa has been riding the sober train for eight years now, and let’s just say, it’s been an interesting journey. No tequila, no wine, not even a cheeky mimosa on a Sunday—just pure, unfiltered Kelly. But apparently, the whole “quit drinking and lose weight” myth turned out to be as reliable as a weather forecast in the middle of a hurricane.
On a recent episode of Live with Kelly and Mark, Andy Cohen stepped in as co-host while Kelly’s hubby, Mark Consuelos, was off doing whatever ridiculously attractive people do in their free time. Andy, who’s also taking on the Herculean task of Dry January, wasted no time venting about his own betrayal by the no-booze gods. He thought ditching alcohol would magically shave off a few pounds, but nope—his scale has refused to cooperate.
Kelly chimed in with her own tale of woe, recalling the time she too had high hopes for a post-wine weight drop. “When I quit drinking, I thought I’d wake up one morning looking like a Victoria’s Secret Angel who accidentally fell into a vat of kale smoothies,” she joked (okay, maybe she didn’t say exactly that, but she should have). Instead, she gained 12 pounds. Yep, twelve. A whole dozen. Enough to fill a solid carton of eggs.
And what’s to blame for this cruel twist of fate? According to Kelly, it’s sugar. Lots and lots of sugar. “Apparently, when you’re not sipping on margaritas, your body decides, ‘Hey, let’s replace those empty calories with candy bars and cupcakes instead!’” she quipped, shaking her head at the irony.
Kelly Ripa, queen of fitness and eternal youth, gained 12 pounds when she gave up booze. If that’s not proof the universe has a sense of humor, I don’t know what is. Moral of the story? Cutting out alcohol might not make you thinner, but it will definitely make you funnier when you’re sharing your sobering truths with the world. Cheers (with water, of course)!