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WHEN COUNTRY-RAP SUPERSTAR Jelly Roll embarked on his fitness journey, he didn’t keep quiet about it. He had an ambitious goal, announcing on his wife’s podcast at the end of 2024 that he would get on a Men’s Health cover. Turns out, he’s not all talk: Jelly Roll debuted on the 2026 Winter issue after dropping an astounding 275 pounds.
How did Jelly Roll, who weighed 540 pounds five years ago, pull it off? In the latest Strong Talk, exercise physiologist and strength coach Dr. Pat Davidson and MH fitness director Ebenezer Samuel, C.S.C.S. discuss how Jelly Roll’s weight loss transformation boiled down to two mental strategies. In the episode, they also talk about Jelly Roll’s wrestling moves, diversity in movement, and how much people should focus on the scale.
The first strategy is one Samuel recommends for anyone on a weight loss journey: Have a goal and make it public. In Jelly Roll’s case, it was to be on the cover of Men’s Health. When you vocalize your goal and a timeline to a massive audience, Samuel says you gain some motivation to bring the dream to fruition.
Davidson adds making a public statement also raises the accountability level. He likens it to athletes trash-talking and how this increases pressure to back up their claims. “I’m going to do whatever it takes to make sure that I don’t look dumb for having said what I said,” Davidson explains.
The second strategy was not focusing on the number on the scale. In the cover story, Jelly Roll discusses how he wasn’t only aiming to lose weight; he was more concerned with training to improve his overall health. Samuel notes that someone going from 540 to 265 pounds will ultimately see their health improve. With that said, maintaining a healthy weight after a bigtime loss can be a challenge if you obsess over the scale.
“If you view it as attaining and focusing on increasing healthy habits then I think it’s just a more sustainable way, ” Samuel says. “You’re building habits, as opposed to just dropping a number on scale.”
Want more deep-dive fitness wisdom from Samuel and other celebs and experts who’ve been on our Strong Talk podcast? Check out all our episodes here.
Jocelyn Solis-Moreira, MS is the associate health & fitness for Men’s Health and has previously written for CNN, Scientific American, Popular Science, and National Geographic before joining the brand. When she’s not working, she’s doing circus arts or working towards the perfect pull-up.
