Here’s a bluegrass riddle for you: We’ll be seeing a lot more of veteran singer and mandolinist Tina Adair this year; but we’ll be seeing substantially less of her as well. How can that be?
Well, she’s got a new band announcement coming with plans to be doing a lot more touring in 2026, and has lost a remarkable amount of weight over the past year. We offer our sincere congratulations to Tina, as should anyone who has tried to shed more than a few pounds, as she has succeeded way beyond that measure.
But let’s have her tell the story.
What made you decide you wanted to lose weight?
“I knew something had to change. Honestly, my story goes back much further than 2024. I’ve never really shared this publicly, but in January 2021 I was hospitalized at Vanderbilt with COVID pneumonia in both lungs. I spent a week fighting to get better and eventually came home—on an oxygen tank. During that time, I also learned I had type 2 diabetes, largely due to the high doses of steroids I was on, resulting in six shots of insulin a day.
Within three months, I was off insulin and managing diabetes with a pill. Fast forward to 2024: my doctor wanted me to try a GLP‑1 medication. I tried two different ones but quit both within weeks because the side effects were awful.
Then in January 2025, I got COVID again. I saw the number on the scale at the doctor’s office and felt a moment of absolute clarity. Something had to change, or I wasn’t going to live long! My diabetes doctor begged me to try a GLP‑1 one more time, and this time I approached it differently—not as a crutch, but as a tool. There’s a BIG difference.
Within six months, my A1C diabetic number/level was in the normal range. I completely changed my lifestyle. Since starting this journey on January 20, 2025, I’ve lost 150 pounds—basically an entire adult! My goal is to hit 200 pounds down by the end of the year, and when I do, I’m taking myself to NYC to see the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree!” 😁
Had your weight caused any problems with touring?
“It’s complicated. There are a lot of reasons I haven’t toured as much, and some of them I can’t talk about. My weight didn’t stop me from touring, but it definitely made it harder.
Extra weight impacts everything—getting dressed, walking, standing for a full show. My back pain was so bad I struggled to stand for more than 10 minutes at a time, much less for 45 minutes to an hour during a show. Every movement hurt. But I kept pushing because I thought that’s what I was supposed to do.
In reality, I needed to step back and get healthy. Once I did that, everything else began falling back into place.”
Did you follow a particular diet?
“Not a diet—a full lifestyle change. You can have all the tools in the world, but nothing works until you decide to change how you live. I cleaned up my eating, increased my movement, focused on protein, and lowered my calories. Consistency has been the biggest key.
In the beginning, I couldn’t move much because of back pain. I have a wonderful, prayerful mama, and I truly believe God heard her. Slowly, I started being able to walk—first around stores, then around my neighborhood. I set obtainable goals, starting with just 2,000–2,500 steps a day. That was realistic and sustainable. I have since increased my movement and workouts, but starting slow with something that was realistic, was key for me.
This isn’t a temporary diet—it’s how I’ll live for the rest of my life. Finding what’s sustainable for you is everything.”
Do you feel differently now?
“Absolutely—100%. It’s hard to look at yourself honestly sometimes, but I needed to change, not only physically but mentally. I had to let go of some emotional weight too—letting go of people and situations that no longer belonged in my life.
It’s so easy to get stuck in your own head, and start believing you’re not worth it. But I reached a point where I had to look myself in the mirror and say, ‘I love you enough to change. I love you enough to get healthy.’ And there’s real freedom in that.
This is a new day and a new me. I have a brand‑new single coming out called Don’t Stay a Stranger, written by the incredible Sarah Siskind. It’s a song about forgiveness and love. Funny enough, she told me God dropped that song on her, and she wrote it in 30 minutes the very day she picked songs to send me. That gave me chills because this is the first song I picked from the batch she sent to me.
I’ll also be announcing a brand‑new band within the next month—so stay tuned!
To everyone who has supported me…I love you. This has been the hardest journey of my life, but also the most necessary. I can’t wait to share more music, more progress, and more life with you.”
Well done, Tina Adair!
We hope that her story has an influence on others who have believed that such a feat was impossible. You can do it, and she’s the proof.
Here’s the pre-save link for Don’t Stay A Stranger.
