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Sophie Turner’s Weight Loss After Eating Disorder: Paleo, HIIT, And More
Following the episodes of her eating disorder and body image issues, Sophie Turner’s weight loss post-pregnancy was quite an achievement! Read to learn more.
The public eye can be your best admirer and worst critic! In a generation when people like posting pictures of their fitness progress on social media, some celebrities like Turner blame it for messing up their body image and mental well-being. Sophie Turner’s weight loss transformation following her pregnancy can be seen as an impressive achievement on her end, but the dramatic changes in her body before that were a result of her eating disorder called bulimia.
Despite being among the most beautiful, talented, and desirable actresses out there, Turner has long dealt with a health issue that made her feel very underconfident about her appearance. However, as strong as she is, the actress managed to fight those demons and find solace in exercise and healthy eating. The following article has much information about her health journey and fitness routine. But, before we jump into that, let’s recap her career trajectory a bit.
Who Is Sophie Turner?
Born Sophie Belinda Turner in a quaint county in the UK, this English actress was only 13 when she made her debut with the role of Sansa Stark on the fantasy-drama Game of Thrones. This was her first-ever onscreen role, for which she had auditioned during high school during her lunch break. The show spanned eight seasons, which gave the actress much screen time, opening up different prospects for her acting career.
She also became a prominent part of the X-Men film series playing the role of Dr. Jean Grey (Dark Phoenix), which became yet another milestone in her career. Other notable works of Turner include the BBC drama The Thirteenth Tale, the psychological thriller film Another Me (2013), and the action comedy Barely Lethal (2015).
Turner’s marriage to pop singer Joe Jonas got her to make appearances in Jonas Brothers’ popular music videos such as Sucker (2019) and What a Man Gotta Do (2020). However, in 2023, Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner publicly confirmed their divorce, making a statement that they “mutually decided to amicably end” their marriage. More recently, Turner’s crome-drama series Joan made waves in the entertainment industry.
Sophie Turner’s Profile
Age: 28
Profession: Actor
Birth Date: 21st February, 1996
Birth Place: Northampton, England
Children: Willa and Delphine Jonas
Sophie Turner’s Journey with Weight And Her Eating Disorder
Turner began her career at the age of 14 and has been exposed to cameras and media much through her puberty, which involved changes in her body and metabolism. The actress was exposed to the public eye in her most “awkward, uncomfortable, unsure-of-yourself years.” She had to face a lot of public scrutiny and criticism of her appearance, which took a toll on her mental health and body confidence. The actress fell prey to “body dysmorphia.”
As a natural process, her metabolism had “fallen to the depths of the oceans” (as the celeb herself described), which resulted in weight gain. Moreover, the hormonal changes in her body caused her to have a lot of acne, which made her face visibly spotty — and, the media was cruel enough to call it out and loud!
This caused the young actress to become overly conscious of her eating habits and adopt extreme diets in her lifestyle, resulting in an eating disorder called bulimia. According to research, this mental health condition comprises binge eating episodes followed by dangerous compensatory behavior such as laxative abuse, extreme exercise, self-induced vomiting, etc (1).
In a media interview, the actress admitted that she was exposed to so much unhealthy media at such a young age that she would ignore most positive comments about her on social media and hyperfocus on the negative ones, such as “Damn, Sansa gained 10 pounds,” or “Damn, Sansa needs to lose 10 pounds,” or “Sansa got fat.” Some even commented on her not being a good actress!
The actress opened up publicly, saying that the public eye made her hyper-aware of her skin, body, and overall appearance. After all, people were commenting on it! During this phase, calorie counting was all the actress could think about. As a result, she embraced the extremes of diet culture and set unrealistic body standards for herself. On some days, she would eat nothing but nuts to compensate for her “perceived” weight gain. This had adverse effects on her health, as the actress didn’t have her periods for a whole year following that. That’s when she decided to get therapy.
Read More: Tara Reid’s Weight Loss: How She Clapped Back Eating Disorder Rumors
For a long time, Turner shared a roof with a live-in therapist to help her relinquish unhealthy habits associated with her eating disorder. One night, when the actress played an Instagram comment in her mind over and over, she started deeming herself “fat and undesirable.” To this, her companion gave her the best advice the actress had ever admitted to receiving — “You know, no one actually cares. I know you think this, but nobody else is thinking it. You’re not that important…” These words helped the actress feel significantly better!
The actress met her ex-husband Joe Jonas during a phase in her life when she was very depressed and struggled with mental health issues. She gives the Jonas Brothers singer much credit for “saving her life,” and “teaching her to love herself.” Jonas would tell Turner that he could not see her love him more than she would love herself. This way, he was a major part of Turner’s mental health journey.
On the other side of her body image struggles, Turner disclosed that she has now acquired the “tools” to work through her bouts of depression or anxiety, whenever they arise. We cannot be anything but happy for her!
Sophie Turner’s Weight Loss Diet
Turner’s diet consists of a balance of lean proteins, healthy fats, and healthy carbohydrates. Eating right and staying hydrated is her mantra for maintaining good health and physique. When the actress was getting toned up for the role of Jean Grey in X-Men: Apocalypse, her trainer James Farmer made healthy alterations to her diet even before starting the workout plan.
In an interview, Farmer said that Turner was guilty of skipping breakfast, which he considers to be a common mistake people make with their lifestyle. Research, too, deems skipping breakfast as an irregular lifestyle habit, associating its negative effects with the risk of heart disease (2). There’s also a direct correlation between not having breakfast, an unregulated body fat profile, and obesity (3). Hence, this isn’t the ideal strategy to lose weight, and Farmer supports this fact.
Moreover, he observed that Turner wasn’t consuming enough of the right foods before the diet. So, Farmer encouraged her to incorporate more healthy fats and proteins in her diet, in addition to a lot of fibrous vegetables like spinach and cauliflower. This ensured that her meals made her feel fuller and more satisfied.
The Dark Phoenix star adopted a Paleo diet, also known as the Stone Age diet, which involves very less carbohydrates, with a focus on lean meats, fruits, vegetables, seeds, nuts, dried fruits, and healthy fats like coconut, olive, and avocado oils.
Speaking of proteins, Turner is conscious about consuming only grass-fed and free-range chicken, turkey, or eggs, or opts for seafood rich in omega fatty acids. Plus, she steered clear of too much dairy, legumes, refined cereals, or anything processed or sugary.
The meal plan worked exceptionally well for Tuner, as she admitted to feeling “a lot better and more energetic” after switching to it. The following are some specific details about the foods she would consume:
1. Protein Shake:
Usually in combination with her workouts, Turner would consume a hearty protein shake made with the blend of a scoop of Vega Vanilla protein powder, a tablespoon of macadamia nut butter, half a banana, and a splash of unsweetened almond milk. This delicious beverage would make her feel satiated, packing a punch of protein, healthy fats, and dietary fiber. Moreover, it would perfectly support the nutritional requirements of her rigorous workouts (more on that below).
2. Cereal with Fruit Juice:
The GoT star would occasionally consume a bowl of cereal with fruit juice, especially on days when she had less time and had to head to her shoots. While we have little information about the kind of cereal as well as juice she would prefer, health experts suggest that these foods are not as healthy as they’re typically marketed.
Depending on the degree and method of processing, packaged breakfast cereals may contain high levels of sugar alongside contaminants such as mycotoxins, acrylamide, etc. which can have negative health effects (4). However, if oat-, barley-, or psyllium-based cereals are underprocessed, and devoid of excessive sugar and sodium, they can be exceptionally healthy to have for breakfast (5).
Speaking of fruit juices, while the freshly extracted nectar can have numerous health benefits, processed and packaged fruit juices can be very bad for health (6). This is often because of the high levels of sugar, sodium, and preservatives added to them.
Read More: Jennifer Love Hewitt’s Weight Loss: Slamming Body-shaming Trolls
3. Pasta, Chicken, And a Salad:
For lunch, Turner often likes to consume a healthy meal of pasta coupled with some chicken for lean protein and tons of vegetables in her salad. Now, eating pasta almost every day can be an incredibly healthy meal choice if it is made with whole grains. Moreover, combining this meal with loads of salad and some grilled chicken is an is excellent to add a much-needed punch of nutrition to the meal.
4. Yogurt And Almonds:
When Turner gets snacky during the day, usually between meals, she likes savoring a healthy snack of yogurt and almonds. Yogurt replenishes the gut with healthy probiotics that aid in digestion, while also nourishing the body with calcium, phosphorous, potassium, and vitamins A and B. Research associates it with weight loss and a lower BMI (7).
Further, almonds are an excellent source of protein, healthy fats, and micronutrients, and help regulate body weight (8).
5. Fish And Veggies:
For dinner, Turner ensures that carbs are off the table at all costs. Instead, she chomps on a high-protein and high-fiber meal of fish and vegetables. Sometimes, she swaps or combines the veggies on her plate with fruits, too, such as avocado, lemons and limes, watermelon, etc.
Let’s take an overview of Sophie Turner’s exercise regimen as well.
Sophie Turner’s Workout Routine
The Dark Phoenix star’s weight loss and tone-up can’t be solely attributed to her diet. Much of her fitness is linked to her energetic workouts. She started working out with celebrity trainer James Farmer while shooting X-Men: Apocalypse, which shaped her approach to fitness immensely.
With Farmer’s guidance, Turner started working out for one hour, six days a week for the film even though she consistently had 13-hour-long work days, which is commendable about her!
More than exercising in solitude, Turner has always been interested in explosive, high-intensity group workouts. She loves cardio and anything that gets her sweaty, which underlines how the Joan star is far from being a couch potato.
The following are some insights from her fitness routine.
1. Cardio And Functional Exercises:
Turner’s workout regime comprises a lot of cardio exercises, which are also very functional, boosting her strength, agility, and body coordination. She focuses a lot on running, burpees, and resistance band exercises to keep herself active and rejuvenate her body. Further, she also likes exercises that are equipment-free and require using the body weight.
2. Full-body Strength Training:
More than exercises that focus only on a specific muscle group, Turner likes full-body strength exercises that involve lifting weights. Many of her preferred workouts comprise equipment like kettlebells, which help ground her body and stabilize her posture. Such exercises make her feel more body-positive, less self-conscious, stronger, and liberated.
3. Outdoor Activities:
Activities like hill sprints, bicycling, and playing tennis are some outdoor activities that help Turner feel energized and exhilarated in her fitness routine. These outdoor activities prevent things from getting too boring.
4. Boxing:
Among all the other high-intensity cardio workouts, boxing is Turner’s favorite! To practice that, she would go to fitness studios such as Rumble in N.Y.C. and Unbreakable in L.A. Research suggests that HIIT activities such as boxing have a therapeutic effect on weight loss and rejuvenate one’s cardiovascular health (9).
5. Goat Yoga:
Turner loved goat yoga from the day she tried it for the first time. Referring to that, she mentioned in an interview that she experienced “pure ecstasy” when she saw those adorable goats walk. She deems the day to be one of the best days of her life, as the activity got her excited more than anything else.
6. Ballet:
The Joan star has grown up practicing ballet, which is also a great form of exercise, from a very young age. In fact, she was on track to become a prima ballerina but turned down an opportunity at London's Royal Ballet School to pursue acting. Like other forms of dance, ballet, too, is good for physical fitness, balance, and range of motion.
Rumors About Sophie Turner’s Slimming Face
Sophie Turner’s face has gotten a lot slimmer since the time she was featured in Game Of Thrones. Several fans and critics have attributed this to her getting an aesthetic surgery that changed the natural contours of her face.
To this, Turner had publicly responded saying that the face of a bulimic person often gets bloated, which happened in her case. So, in her 20s, when she finally got better, her face naturally went back to normal. This was wrongly interpreted as her getting a buccal fat removal procedure on her face. Considering how the harsh criticism and tattle never seem to leave her, the actress had disappointedly stated, “You can never win.”
Sophie Turner’s Before And After Weight Loss Photos
Before:
(Image Source: Getty Images)
After:
The most important prerequisite to getting fitter is loving your body first. After all, we’ll only take care of our body if we love it. Hence, Sophie Turner’s post-pregnancy weight loss is quite impressive as she has come a long way in embracing her body for the way it is. While bouts of her eating disorder still flare up at times when she’s under great stress, staying healthy and active is a conscious decision that Sophie makes every single day, despite the odds, to boost her mood and enhance her strength and physical range of motion.
Sources:
1. Bulimia Nervosa - StatPearls - NCBI Bookshelf
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK562178/
2. Effect of skipping breakfast on cardiovascular risk factors: a grade-assessed systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials and prospective cohort studies - PMC
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10715426/
3. Skipping Breakfast and the Risk of Cardiovascular Disease and Death: A Systematic Review of Prospective Cohort Studies in Primary Prevention Settings
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6787634/
4. Risk-Benefit Assessment of Cereal-Based Foods Consumed by Portuguese Children Aged 6 to 36 Months—A Case Study under the RiskBenefit4EU Project - PMC
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8467172/
5. The Benefits of Breakfast Cereal Consumption: A Systematic Review of the Evidence Base - ScienceDirect
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2161831322008973
6. Fruit Juices: Are They Helpful or Harmful? An Evidence Review - PMC
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8228760/
7. Beneficial Effects of Yoghurts and Probiotic Fermented Milks and Their Functional Food Potential - PMC
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9455928/
8. Almonds (Prunus Dulcis Mill. D. A. Webb): A Source of Nutrients and Health-Promoting Compounds - PMC
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7146189/
9. The feasibility and effectiveness of high-intensity boxing training versus moderate-intensity brisk walking in adults with abdominal obesity: a pilot study - PMC
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