Kym Whitley is a ray of sunshine who makes people laugh and feel seen. Beyond her acting and popular podcast, she’s gearing up for the new Varnell Hill spin-off, and she has been open about her weight-loss journey and the physical, mental, and medical steps that helped her succeed.
We sat down with Kym to find out how she turned intention into lasting results.
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The Price of Weight Stigma
Kym is blunt about the professional cost of weight bias.
“I was losing roles to smaller actresses, actresses, you know, due to the weight stigma and the bias,” Kym shared.
“People say things like, Oh, you dress good. You dress really nice for a big girl. I’m like, that is not a compliment.”
A Medical Wake-Up Call
Kym explained how the turning point came in a doctor’s office. A frank medical diagnosis gave her a concrete path forward.
“Ah, well, you know, I have suffered from obesity my entire adult life, you know, the yo-yo going back and forth, and I just kept feeling stuck,” said Kym
Realizing that she had an obesity diagnosis helped to change how she understood her health. The actress remembers the moment she asked for help. “I went to my doctor, and I was like, I can’t take it.”She pressed for practical answers about treatment and how it would fit into her life.
Getting The Support She Needed
For Kym, Zepbound offered her a path forward, a way for her to lose weight and sustain it, finally breaking free from the cycle of losing and gaining it back.
Kym shared about the moment her doctor reframed everything for her. She says he opened her eyes to the fact that obesity is a disease, something she had never understood before. That shift changed how she saw her own struggle. Instead of treating her weight as a personal failing, she began to see it the way someone might view another chronic condition, like diabetes, where a person recognizes they are managing a real medical issue and not a character flaw.
She went on to explain the complexities of the questions she had when she first heard about the medicine; she even wondered what people would think of her using this tool.
“Sometimes, you know, doctors, they ain’t got but ten minutes in the office, but to understand what I’m taking, I went to zepbound.lilly.com, and I read about it,” said Kym.
Kym described Zepbound as a tool, and that having this tool made the difference this time, and she believes it can improve the lives of others.
Kym partnered with Lilly because she found something that helped her, and she wanted to share it openly. She uses her voice and her comedy to bring obesity out of the shadows and make the conversation feel normal. As she kept talking about her experience, she even turned her message into a playful little jingle:
“Zepbound with diet and exercise, Zepbound with diet and exercise,” she said.
What is Zepbound?
According to Eli Lilly and Company, Zepbound is a once weekly injectable prescription medicine that contains tirzepatide, and it may help adults with obesity and some adults with overweight who have weight-related medical problems lose excess body weight when it is used with a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity.
Consult a physician before starting Zepbound or any GLP-1 receptor activator medicine. A clinician can explain how the medicine works, review medical history, discuss possible side effects, and determine whether the treatment is appropriate.
Centering Herself
Kym talked about the constant balancing act of motherhood, work, and caring for her own body. She explained that pouring into herself is what allows her to show up for the people she loves. It’s something she had to learn over time.
“When we say we put ourselves first, it’s not about being selfish, because when you put yourself first, it is for everyone else that I am going to show up for.”
“I’m going to be there. I will be there for my fans because I’m taking care of myself,” she said.
Kym has shown what it looks like to invest in herself, both mentally and physically, as she’s done the work to improve her health and gathered practical strategies to sustain her progress. If you or someone you know is navigating weight loss, know that support exists, and options are available.
What is Varnell Hill?
Varnell Hill is one of Kym’s newer projects, and she’s excited about the dynamics viewers can expect. The series blends workplace comedy with a talk show format, bringing in real guests and live energy.
“Varnell Hill is a spin-off, if we can say so, of the Martin Lawrence show… It’s a sitcom with a talk show built in,” she explained.”What surprised me was how we all got along, how we really just folded in and shot these shows,” said Kym.
That chemistry made the job easier and helped her keep the routines that sustain her. Kym’s new outlook on her health came with her to set “I might do 15 minutes, you know, I might do 10, but I have to do something [on the elliptical],” Kym shared.
Those short bursts of movement and simple daily choices kept her energy steady through rehearsals, tapings, and all the demands of her craft.
There was no confirmed premiere date yet, but Kym is already checking schedules and teased, “This summer, this summer.”
Resources:
Zepbound® (tirzepatide) Injection for Adults with Obesity or OSA
