Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond Details Weight Loss Journey

If you follow "Pioneer Woman" Ree Drummond on social media, you probably know all about her ever-interesting life on her Oklahoma ranch. The long-time blogger and Food Network star shares fun anecdotes about her growing family, her adorable but sometimes mischievous dogs, and delicious recipes – among other musings. Little did we know, the last few months we were also getting sneak peeks of Drummond's weight loss journey.

In a June post on Instagram, Drummond first claimed not to be a weight loss or fitness influencer. Instead, she wanted to share what diet had worked for her after approaching weight loss numerous ways to no avail. "The biggest takeaway is that dang, I feel so much better," Drummond wrote. However, she's still a self-described "lover of food and avoider of exercise." She confirmed, "I still love cake, I just eat a Rhode Island sized piece instead of a Texas sized piece."

In a post on her site, Drummond said she wanted to address her weight loss and note that "skinny" was not her primary goal. Instead, Drummond was hoping to boost her energy and feel better overall while slimming down ahead of her daughter's wedding.

After detailing what she didn't do — no crash diets, fancy diet foods, fasting, or personal trainers (unless you count her cowboy husband, Ladd) — Drummond broke down what she did into digestible tidbits. Consuming fewer calories, weighing her food for sensible portion sizes, eating more lean protein and less sugary foods, as well as eliminating alcohol were among the biggest habits she implemented in order to lose 43 pounds (via Pioneer Woman). And even though she claimed to not love exercising, that was a big part of her weight loss. After making a shift in her mindset to make time for exercise, walking her dogs and using her rowing machine, along with building muscle thanks to squat and lunge lessons from her husband, became her new norm.

Drummond also opted for a standing desk to force herself to take more breaks and walk around. She also used an app called Happy Scale to track her weight loss rate and how it will trend over time to complete her goal. But Drummond also kept it real, calling her journey a work in progress and reminding us that she recognizes she will have ups and downs in her weight. She says she still cooks the same food, but she now has the tools needed to get back (and stay) on track.