When most people give up alcohol, they expect a few things: clearer skin, better sleep, and of course—weight loss. Kelly Ripa thought the same. But what happened next completely surprised her. Instead of slimming down, she gained 12 pounds after cutting out alcohol back in 2017.
Now at 54, Kelly is the picture of health. She’s open about her clean lifestyle and how she maintains it. But during a recent chat on Live with Kelly and Mark, she got real about the unexpected side of quitting alcohol.
“I Thought I’d Lose Weight, But I Gained 12 Pounds”
Kelly was talking about Dry January with her guest host Andy Cohen, who was filling in for her husband Mark Consuelos. Andy shared how he usually drops a bit of weight during the alcohol-free month. Kelly, however, had a totally different experience.
She told him, “I gained 12 pounds when I quit drinking. I don’t understand this magical weight loss that people apply.”
She even said people warned her that she’d get “too skinny” after quitting. But the scale didn’t move the way she expected. In fact, it went up.
As someone who’s worked with people going through lifestyle changes, I’ve seen this happen before. When you cut out one source of sugar (like alcohol), your body often craves another. And many people, just like Kelly, turn to sweets without even realizing it.
The Sugar Switch
Kelly thinks she started eating more sugar after she stopped drinking. And that actually makes sense. Alcohol has a lot of sugar in it. But since it doesn’t taste sweet, people don’t always connect the dots.
She explained, “I think I just took to eating the sugars. Because apparently, alcohol is like a lot of sugar, which you don’t really realize when it goes in.”
That sugar craving can sneak up on you. I’ve experienced this too. When I tried quitting sugar a few years ago, I had the strongest cravings. I wasn’t drinking, but I was used to having something sweet every evening. It was a tough habit to break.
A Lifestyle Shift That Stuck
For Kelly, quitting drinking wasn’t planned. She did it with a group of girlfriends during a sober month. She felt so good afterward that she never looked back.
She shared with People magazine that it wasn’t a huge decision. “It wasn’t even really a thought process,” she said. “I just never went back to it.”
She noticed that her energy improved and the next-day sluggishness disappeared. Even two glasses of wine at a dinner would leave her feeling off the next morning. So giving it up made sense.
As a health writer and certified nutrition coach, I’ve seen this many times. The benefits of quitting alcohol often go far beyond weight. People report better focus, mood stability, and stronger digestion. But the weight piece? That’s not always as simple.
Breaking Up With Sugar Too
Years after ditching alcohol, Kelly made another change—this time with her sugar habits. She worked with Dr. Daryl Gioffre, a health coach and author of Get Off Your Sugar. She even wrote the foreword for the book.
In it, she admitted to having a “candy drawer” at home. It was her go-to when she needed a quick pick-me-up. She didn’t see the harm at first. “I figured that everybody needed to have some kind of vice, right?”
But over time, she realized how addictive sugar really is.
I’ve read Dr. Gioffre’s book myself, and I agree with Kelly’s take. Sugar cravings feel small at first, but they can grow into full-blown habits. And when you replace one vice (like alcohol) with another (like candy), your body might hold on to extra weight.
Quitting Doesn’t Always Mean Losing
What Kelly’s story shows is that quitting alcohol doesn’t guarantee weight loss. Sometimes it brings up other habits that were hiding underneath. The same goes for quitting smoking, which she said was even harder for her than giving up alcohol.
“I’m not comparing cigarettes to alcohol, but for me it was just like, I don’t do that anymore,” she said. That mindset helped her stick to it.
Still, it’s important to be honest. Even healthy changes come with challenges. That’s why her 12-pound weight gain matters. It’s a reminder that every body responds differently—and that’s okay.
What We Can Learn From Kelly
Here are a few takeaways from Kelly Ripa’s experience:
- Giving up alcohol isn’t always about weight. It can improve your health in other powerful ways, like sleep and energy.
- Sugar cravings are real. Alcohol contains hidden sugar, and cutting it out might shift your cravings.
- Your journey is your own. Don’t expect your results to look like someone else’s. Kelly felt great even with the weight gain, and that’s what mattered most.
- Consistency matters. Kelly didn’t go back to alcohol or sugar because she felt better without them. That’s what helped her stick to the change.
