Jelly Roll celebrates 100-pound weight loss while on tour: ‘You won’t recognize me’
Jelly Roll has officially lost 100 pounds.
The country star, whose real name is Jason Bradley DeFord, celebrated the milestone during a mid-tour update video on Instagram this week.
“Next year, when you all see me, you won’t recognize me,” he confidently stated at the beginning of the inspirational video. “I am going to get under a pile of weights in a way that I never have.”
The video also gave insight into Jelly’s eating habits while on the road for his “Beautifully Broken” tour, which kicked off in August at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City.
According to his nutrition coach, Ian Larios, the 39-year-old musician enjoys eating bananas before he hits the stage.
Larios cooked one of Jelly’s favorite post-concert snacks for the video: Nashville hot chicken. However, he made it healthier by air frying it and “taking away the oil and the batter from it.”
He paired the chicken with air-fried French fries, which were boiled in bone broth because it “ups the protein in it, but it also makes it have that nice crunch to it.”
“So it tricks your brain into thinking that this is, like, that nice greasy Nashville deep-fried hot chicken. He’s gonna feel like he’s eating at home,” Larios added.
“It’s healthy. It’s air-fried. It’s full of protein, and it helps him stay on track.”
Larios also revealed Jelly stays super active while on the road by walking around the arenas, playing basketball or boxing.
Jelly has been open about his struggle with obesity for years. In 2018, he revealed he once tipped the scale at 500 pounds.
“I’ve been obese since I was a small child,” he penned alongside a snapshot of him on Instagram at the time.
“All I’ve ever known was being fat , and I’m f—–g miserable. I wanna sky dive , bungee jump, ride a bull, parasail , ride roller coasters, I want to LIVE a normal life and have a normal relationship with food.”
“I fight addictions and alcoholism everyday.”
He also revealed he lost 200 pounds in 2016 but gained some back that year.
Jelly updated fans on his health journey in 2023 with a post on X.
“Just know that I’m doing my part — I’m working out daily… praying and meditating …. Eating better – losing weight,” he assured fans.
“Making sure I bring the best version of me on my new album and this tour… this is what growth and gratitude look like in real time.”
In 2023, Jelly embarked on his Backroad Baptism Tour.
In January of this year, the “Need a Favor” hitmaker announced he was training for his first 5K.
Shortly after, he took a social media break because he was bullied over his size.
However, Jelly persevered and completed his first 5K in May. His wife, Bunnie XO, revealed he lost 50 pounds during his training.
“I couldn’t walk a mile when I started trying to do this back in January,” Jelly told Entertainment Tonight after completing the race.
“So the fact that we got 3-point-whatever it was, got it down, I felt really, really good about it.”
“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.”
