Trisha Paytas Lost 26 Lbs. in 6 Weeks with a GLP-1 After Struggling with ‘Food Noise’: ‘Miraculous’ (Exclusive)

NEED TO KNOW

• Trisha Paytas started taking a GLP-1 medication after struggling with overeating and weight gain

• She says the treatment has improved her energy and allowed her to be more active with her three children

• Paytas has lost 26 lbs. so far and plans to continue the GLP-1, hoping to inspire others by being transparent about her weight-loss journey

Trisha Paytas is opening up about the “miraculous” success she’s had in her weight-loss journey.

The internet personality, 38, revealed exclusively to PEOPLE that she recently started taking a GLP-1 medication and has since lost 26 lbs. in less than two months. As a dancer, Paytas says she’s always been very active, but her weight and health issues stemmed from her diet.

“I grew up on fast food and processed foods. I’ve just always eaten out and always overate. Like I’ve never felt full in my life,” says Paytas, who is widely recognized for her viral Mukbang eating videos on YouTube. “I’ve talked about this for so long online. After I eat one meal, I already think of the next.”

But it wasn’t until becoming a mom of three that her eating habits and weight became an issue. After gaining 80 lbs. from her back-to-back pregnancies, Paytas decided to seriously begin her weight-loss journey.

“I’ve always tried to do it the natural way,” she tells PEOPLE, sharing that she gave herself six months to lose the weight on her own.

However, frustration set in when she wasn’t seeing any results from her efforts.

“I was starving myself, killing myself in the gym, like eating grapefruit for dinner and I just was not losing it,” she recalls. “And I’ve tried everything else in my life, like all the fad diets, so I was like, okay, I should just try a GLP-1 if it’s working for so many people.”

Paytas decided to turn to Ro — a direct-to-patient healthcare company, which also sponsors her Just Trish podcast — for additional support with a GLP-1 treatment. GLP-1 is short for glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists, which work in the brain to impact satiety. Popular brands include Ozempic and Mounjaro.

The social media star started taking weekly injections of Zepbound on May 11 and quickly realized how life-changing it could be.

“It truly is nothing short of miraculous for me because now I can eat the foods that I like and just eat less,” she says, explaining that it quiets the “food noise.” “It’s just a wild thing to feel that because I’ve never felt that sensation of being full. It was a miracle. It’s really meant for people like me.”

“It’s been like six weeks now and I went from 243 lbs. to 217 lbs.,” she adds.

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Paytas, who has addressed body-shaming comments in the past, stresses that this weight-loss journey isn’t about her looks or how the public views her, boasting that she’s always been “very confident.” It’s about having the ability to do the things she loves more easily.

“I’ve always heard weight comments. That’s always been tough. I was like five months postpartum and people were like, ‘Oh, she’s still pregnant.’ It does kind of weigh on you. But for me, it was never about how I looked. It really was just my performance and my lack of energy on stage,” the Beetlejuice Broadway performer says.

“So when people were pointing out these photos to mock my weight, what I was seeing was like my knees hurting, me not being able to stand. That’s what motivated me,” she explains. “I don’t really care what weight I am, it was more about how I felt. And I could tell by looking at those photos I did not feel my best.”

After taking Zepbound, Paytas says she finally feels good.

She’s more active with her children — daughters Malibu Barbie, 3, Elvis, 2, and son Aquaman, 11 months. During their latest trip to the park, she was able to run around and push them on the swings for the first time, teasing that she used to be a “park bench mom.”

“I’ve never ran before and I’m just starting to run for the first time. It really has given me more energy, which is crazy,” she says. “It’s just given me such a great tool to become my healthiest fittest self, which is really freeing.”

Paytas says that although the GLP-1 has been a great tool, she’s still accompanying it with healthy lifestyle habits so she can reach her goals.

“I went from exercising like twice a week to now I exercise every day. I do at least an hour of cardio every day and Pilates,” she shares. “I haven’t been under 200 lbs. in a decade, so that’s the numbers goal. But overall, I just want to feel even better. Ultimate goal would be to do a marathon or something next year. That would be amazing.”

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Now down 26 lbs., Paytas says she doesn’t see herself quitting the medication.

“I think a GLP-1’s like a life thing for me. I haven’t been on that long, but I think I can see myself doing it for the rest of my life,” she says. “I eat a normal amount, I don’t overthink food. So because I’ve lived 38 years of my life obsessing about food, it would be nice to live the next 38 just thinking about food a normal amount.”

Paytas, who is now a Ro Body ambassador, tells PEOPLE that as she continues her weight-loss journey, it was important for her to go public about it.

“I’ve always been really open about my struggle with weight, slowly gaining weight over time and my issues with food. I mean, we’ve seen my issues with food with all the Mukbangs where I used to eat like five pizzas in one sitting,” she says with a laugh. “So it just feels like another major life change that I wanna be really open about.”

“I also don’t think enough people are open about their GLP-1 use,” she continues. “We see so many people losing weight and kind of denying being on a GLP-1, but I just wanna be as transparent as possible so people know why and then other people who have the same issues with food can feel if it’s right for them.”

Read the original article on People