In a recent promo video for 1000-Lb. Sisters Season 9, Amy Slaton can be seen watching her two sons splash around in the summer sun while standing at the lake’s edge, with her sister Tammy in the background. On the surface, it appears to be just another typical family outing. However, nothing about it is typical, at least not for those who recall the beginnings of these two women.
When Amy Slaton’s life was first captured on camera in 2020, she weighed 406 pounds. The show’s title wasn’t a metaphor, and she and Tammy weighed more than 1,000 pounds together. Back then, reaching a lake—really, leaving the house—was a different kind of accomplishment. Since her gastric bypass surgery in 2019, Amy has lost nearly 200 pounds, and as of 2026, she weighs about 215 pounds. Surgery to remove her skin has been approved. She got married again. And she’s standing by a lake with her children as if it were the simplest thing in the world.
It wasn’t easy to get here. Instead of giving someone a finish line, bariatric surgery gives them a new beginning. Small, high-protein meals, meticulous routines, and emotional work that runs parallel to the physical were all part of the slow, unglamorous discipline needed in the years after her procedure, which doesn’t always make for great television. Amy has also discussed her mental health, including a diagnosis of bipolar disorder that made an already difficult recovery more difficult. Losing weight doesn’t happen in a vacuum, particularly on this scale.
Nevertheless, there’s a sense that Amy’s transformation has always been messier and more human than the kind you see in before-and-after infomercials when you watch her story develop over several seasons. She was never a perfect fit for the triumphant arc. At times, she put on a little weight again. Michael Halterman, the father of her two boys, was her first husband, whom she divorced. She got married again. Some viewers were uncomfortable with her candor, while others felt truly seen.
In a sense, the approval for skin removal is the chapter that closes the surgery narrative and begins a new one. Sitting at home with her husband Brian Lovvorn, Amy participates in a video call with Los Angeles-based plastic surgeon Dr. Linda Li in an exclusive clip released by PEOPLE. After reviewing Amy’s progress, the doctor tells her straight out, “I know I can make such a transformative difference.” Amy asks out loud if her “outer duckling” will eventually match her “inner swan.” Her response is so typical of Amy that it’s almost comical. Alternatively, she says with her usual self-consciousness, it might just fit her “ugly inside.” People have probably followed her for almost ten years because of that kind of humor—a little tender, a little dark.
She also acknowledges that she has practical anxiety because the surgery will require her to spend two weeks recovering in Los Angeles, away from her sons Gage and Glenn. For a mother who made having children her primary motivation for seeking surgery, that is a big deal. She desired the ability to chase after them. She desired to be there. She is not trying to hide the fact that she is torn between pursuing her own physical well-being and spending time with her children.
As always, Tammy’s story follows hers. After losing 500 pounds, which is still nearly impossible to say aloud, Tammy Slaton underwent skin removal surgery and lost an additional 10 pounds. Now sitting in swimsuits at a lake are the two sisters who started this whole thing together and, at their worst, couldn’t always handle everyday life. Tammy has an engagement. Amy is juggling a new marriage and an upcoming surgery.
It’s possible that neither of them has yet realized how amazing their stories are. Perhaps they do, and they’ve simply grown accustomed to residing within them. In any case, the typical, sunny, somewhat boisterous lake trip with the kids seems like the kind of detail that counts more than any weigh-in figure.
FAQs
1. How much weight has Amy Slaton lost in total?
She has lost nearly 200 lbs since her 2019 gastric bypass surgery.
2. What surgery has Amy Slaton been recently approved for?
A Los Angeles plastic surgeon approved her for skin removal surgery.
3. What was Amy Slaton’s starting weight on 1000-Lb. Sisters?
She weighed 406 pounds when the show first premiered in 2020.
4. Why did Amy Slaton originally decide to lose weight?
She wanted to become a mother and be present for her children.
5. How much weight did Tammy Slaton lose compared to Amy?
Tammy lost 500 pounds, significantly more than Amy’s nearly 200 lbs.
