Following four Grammy nominations, Jelly Roll has become a hot topic in the headlines once again. Now the Tennessee-born rapper turned country superstar has his sights set on a new goal: a cover spot on Men’s Health magazine.
The singer has been open about his weight struggles in the past, revealing that he was over 500 pounds in 2015. By 2016, he had lost around 200 pounds, but gained 60 pounds back within the following two years. In 2025, with a 5k now under his belt, Jelly Roll is taking his health journey to the next level.
How much weight has Jelly Roll lost?
Jelly Roll’s crowning 2024 fitness achievement was a big one: his first 5k.
“I couldn’t walk a mile when I started trying to do this back in January,” Jelly Roll told ET last year. “So the fact that we got 3-point-whatever it was, got it down, I felt really, really good about it.”
The country hit maker dropped 70 pounds leading up to the event, which he said “really motivated” him to get in shape. He even inspired some fresh health journeys along the way.
“I think the coolest thing is how many people stopped to tell us that they were motivated by us, other big guys,” he added. “It was just really cool to see that.”
The results didn’t end there. By the end of 2024, Jelly Roll had dropped 120 pounds — around 22% of his starting weight.
How did Jelly Roll lose weight?
According to Today.com, Jelly Roll’s weight loss journey began with training for the 2 Bears 5K. In April 2024, he told People he was “doing 2 to 3 miles a day, four to six days a week. I’m doing 20 to 30 minutes in the sauna, six minutes in a cold plunge every day. I’m eating healthy right now.”
The singer’s journey has deeper roots still, as he’s been battling food addiction all his life.
“The battle was with the food addiction, changing the way I’ve looked at food for the last 39 years,” he told People in November 2024. “I’ve never had a healthy relationship with food, so that was the hard part. But once you get into that discipline and commitment, it’s like an avalanche. Once that little snowball started rolling, it was on its way.
“Nobody in my house ever had [a healthy relationship with food], so that was the hard part, really fighting that demon at first and getting into that discipline and that commitment.”
Is Jelly Roll going to be on the cover of Men’s Health?
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Jelly Roll has set his sights much higher than a slimmer waistline. Speaking on his wife Bunnie XO’s “Dumb Blonde” podcast, the Tennessee musician revealed his new mission.
“I want to be on the cover of Men’s Health by March 2026,” the singer said. “That’s my new goal. I want to have one of the biggest transformations.”
It’s not just about the transformation, though. It’s also about sending a message.
“I did this publicly for a reason,” he added. “I want to be honest about my struggles with it with people. I wore it for so long. I think that people that become as big as I became, when they lose the weight, they’re kind of ashamed. They’re so ashamed that they go hide and lose the weight, then they come back out and they don’t really know how to interact with the world.”
And the world is very much on his mind.
“I wanted to lose it in front of everybody,” Jelly Roll said. “I want to talk about it. It’s on my daily Roll vlogs. This is constantly what I’m putting in the air, because I want to bring people along with me. What I want the world to know and I want the people to see, Bunnie, is that I didn’t become successful because of my weight. I become successful in spite of it. I somehow managed to be this successful while carrying 550 pounds. That’s insane.”
Find more stories like this one on our Pulse Facebook page.
About the Author
The Latest
Featured
