You Won't Recognize 'Mike & Molly' Star Billy Gardell After His Incredible Weight Loss Transformation

For years, Billy Gardell made the same promise to himself that millions of people make every January. He'd look in the mirror, acknowledge that something needed to change, and commit to starting fresh...on Monday...or the first day of the month...or after the holidays.

Sometimes those promises lasted a few weeks. Other times, they fizzled out almost immediately. The cycle repeated itself year after year, and while he managed occasional success, nothing ever stuck long enough to create lasting change.

Then came a moment when his existing health problems suddenly became impossible to ignore. The Mike & Molly star found himself facing a serious wake-up call: overweight, type 2 diabetes, sleep apnea, asthma, and a smoker.

Doctors had been warning him for years, but this time, it felt different. The stakes weren't abstract anymore; they were immediate and potentially fatal.

Gardell recently sat down with People Magazine to discuss his transformation, revealing how he lost 170 pounds and completely overhauled his relationship with food and health.

The 56-year-old actor and comedian didn't sugarcoat the journey or pretend it was easy. Instead, he talked honestly about the emotional weight he'd been carrying alongside the physical pounds. He also spoke about how finally addressing both saved his life in ways that went beyond just the number on a scale.

Mike and Molly star Billy Gardell has opened up on his weight loss journey

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Looking back on years of failed attempts, Gardell described an all-too-familiar pattern: "Every year. I'd say I'd start on Monday. Or the first of the month. Or New Year's Eve. That was always my routine."

He'd occasionally manage to diet and exercise for stretches, but maintaining momentum proved nearly impossible. The weight always came back.

A new look for the actor

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His turning point arrived when his weight reached between 370 and 380 pounds, and he'd been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Medical warnings about his health risks became impossible to dismiss.

Gardell said, "When the first wave hit, and they punched up that list of high-risk conditions, I had all of them. Overweight, sleep apnea, smoker, type 2 diabetes, asthma... It was really the perfect storm. Between my blood numbers not coming back good, my blood pressure going up, type 2 diabetes, and COVID - it was enough stuff to scare me to say, 'Come hell or high water, I've got to make a change.'"

Bariatric surgery became his starting point, but the real work involved completely reimagining his relationship with eating.

Gardell explained: "It really came down to a shift in everything I think about food. Food is fuel. It's not a reward, it's not soothing, it's not medication. I had to get beyond my emotional relationship with food."

He starred alongside Melissa McCarthy on the show for six seasons

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The transformation delivered results that went beyond aesthetics. After losing 170 pounds, Gardell now maintains a weight between 210 and 215 pounds, a range he describes as comfortable.

More importantly, his diabetes disappeared, and he told the publication he 'feels strong, has energy' and essentially, losing weight 'saved his life'.

Understanding why he'd struggled with weight required looking back to his teenage years. His childhood became complicated after his parents split up.

"I had a lot of responsibility heaped on me at 14 to help provide for the family, and the second stepfather that we had in the house was not a kind person," he recalled. "I think I put on this extra weight as some kind of safety armour."

Leaving home at 17 to chase his dream of becoming a stand-up comedian should have been liberating, but instead, the weight kept climbing.

Gardell recalled: "I was medicating my emotions and my fears with food, and I was also celebrating my victories with food. You're eating to deflect your feelings when they're bad or enhance them when they're good, and both of those things are poison pills."

Gardell's honesty about using food as both comfort and celebration resonates with anyone who's struggled with similar patterns. The health scare may have forced his hand, but what he's done with that second chance is entirely his own accomplishment.