Skip to content Along with her acclaimed success as Suzanne Sugarbaker in Designing Women, Delta Burke was a household name in America in the 90s. She won Miss Florida in 1974 and decided to participate in Miss America.
But what went wrong that the beauty suddenly broke from the big screen after the grand success of Designing Women?
Let’s find out how flamboyant Suzanne struggled with her weight and finally succeeded with dramatic weight loss.
Who is Delta Burke?
Born on July 30, 1956, in Orlando, Florida, Delta Burke is an American actress, author, and producer. She remains a leading actress in various television films. In 1972, she won Miss Flame Crown and became State Miss Flame from Orlando Fire Department. She is the youngest Miss Florida title holder in history.
In 1989, she married the actor Gerald McRaney, but the couple had no children from this marriage. Bruce is a strong supporter of gay rights. She is also a manager and designer of her clothing brand Delta Burke Design. She has been nominated twice for Emmy Awards for outstanding lead actress for a comedy series.
Delta was an excellent student as a teenager and was crowned ‘most likely to succeed during her graduation from high school in 1974.
Delta broke the headlines with her incredible weight loss transformation. Let’s check out how this Florida beauty gained weight?
How Delta Burke Gained Weight?
She tried various diets to stay skinny after she won the Mis Florida title. She believes that it could be the compounding effect of all these varied diets that she sticks to remain in shape. She was suffering from hypoglycemia and was warned by the doctors to remain vigilant as she may develop diabetes.
But she followed all the means to control her weight and remain skinny. By the end of the show Designing Women, she reached 215 lbs. According to her, her hard work on the sets of Designing Women and the ignorance of her health made her diabetic. She started gaining weight at the sets of Designing women as her Diabetes Type 2 was triggered.
The growing weight issues made her get into depression. Due to this, she missed an opportunity to play a role in another Designing Women series. But with her sheer determination, proper diet, and workout regime, she managed to lose weight.
To relieve her stress, Burke started a clothing brand for plus-size women. But her health issues escalated again. This time she was diagnosed with diabetes 2 and tipped her weight to 220 lbs.
Delta Burke Weight Loss: How She Managed to Lose Weight?
After being diagnosed with diabetes and excessive weight gain, Delta Burke decided to work harder to lose weight. She made tremendous changes in her diet by cutting off the sluggish dishes, heavily processed food, and sugary stuff from her diet.
As we all know, healthy weight loss starts with a healthy lifestyle. With the help of a workout and doctor’s treatment, Burke lost 20 pounds. But as she was not regular with her workouts, her doctors warned her that she might need insulin assistance if she did not take care of herself.
After hearing this, she didn’t want to repeat her earlier mistake of ignoring her health, which made her diabetic. So she decided to become regular in the gym and steady with her workout regime. With the help of a healthy diet and proper workout, she lost around 65 lbs.
Delta Burke Diet Plan
From Delta’s doctors, it was revealed that she was following a vegan and keto diet to achieve her weight loss success. She included a lot of green smoothies, vegetables, and green tea for her meals, which helped her to lose weight. Her doctor advised her to adopt nutritious and vegan food.
By following a per day 1500 calories low carb meal plan, Delta finally battled obesity, type-2 diabetes, and depression to emerge as a more muscular woman who is happier and healthier than ever.
How Does the Keto Diet Help with Weight Loss?
A ketogenic diet or Ketosis is a metabolic state where your body burns fats instead of carbohydrates for energy production. The main goal of the ketogenic diet is to produce more ketones in the liver, which then enter the bloodstream and use the brain for energy. It helps you burn fat faster and gives you more energy.
The ketogenic diet has many benefits, but one of them is weight loss. Following a ketogenic diet means avoiding carbs like bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, sweets, and sugar. It would help if you also ate plenty of protein and healthy fats.
To stay in Ketosis, you can consume only 80 grams of net carbs daily. Net carbs include both carbs from fiber and sugars. In addition to weight loss, the ketogenic diet has other benefits. It improves blood pressure, cholesterol levels, triglycerides, inflammation, and mood.
The best part about the ketogenic diet is that it doesn’t require any special equipment.
Can Vegan Diet help with Weight Loss?
The vegan diet is trendy among people who want to lose weight fast. It is because of its simplicity and effectiveness. It has been proven that vegans tend to be slimmer than non-vegan individuals.
Vegetarianism is associated with a lower risk of heart disease and cancer. Also, it lowers the risk of developing diabetes and some types of cancers. A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that vegetarians, especially vegans, have lower BMI than meat-eaters.
Vegetables are rich in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fiber. These nutrients keep our bodies fit and healthy. They also help us fight against diseases.
Delta Burke Weight Loss Surgery
After a drastic weight loss, many people undergo surgeries to remove the excess skin. Also, the Gastric Bypass has become a prominent part of many successful weight loss stories. But in the case of Delta Burke, she has not undergone any surgery.
All she did was lend her ear to her doctor’s advice and follow it diligently. She worked hard to achieve sustainable weight loss. Even her husband remained supportive of her during her weight loss. She mentioned, ‘ Gerald has always been a great support that helped me through guiding what to eat and what to avoid on my weight loss journey.’
Is Gastric Bypass Surgery Safe?
Gastric bypass surgery is considered safe if performed under the supervision of an experienced surgeon. However, this procedure requires a lot of patience and dedication from the patient. If you are considering gastric bypass surgery, discuss all aspects of the procedure with your doctor.
Celebrities like Chrissy Metz also underwent Gastric Bypass Surgery to aid their weight loss journey.
Like James Kevin, even Delta Burke undergoes lots of up and down on her weight loss journey. She also gained back weight before losing the weight finally. It can be attributed to the lack of proper diet and inconsistency with workouts.
With her hard work and determination, Delta managed to lose 70 pounds. After touching 220 pounds, today, she doubled her weight to 150 lbs.
About Delta Burke Husband
Gerald McRaney met his wife, Delta Burke when they were both working on two different TV shows. Although they didn’t start dating until years later, it was love at first sight. McRaney knew he wanted to marry Burke because she was gorgeous, funny, intelligent, and kind. McRaney considered himself lucky because he knew that Burke wouldn’t let him get away if he tried to cheat on her.
Delta credits her husband, David, for supporting her throughout her journey. She said that he helps her bounce back after every setback. “He reminds what I should be doing, or not eating,” she explained to People.
Gerald and his wife Delta have no children together. However, he does have an older son from a previous relationship.
What is the Net Worth of Delta Burke?
Delta Burke’s net worth is $8 million. Delta lives in Los Angeles with her parents and her husband. Even Gerald underwent lung cancer surgery. Since then, the couple has adopted a healthy lifestyle. Most of Delta’s earnings account for 60s television shows. Besides Designing Women, she appeared in various shows such as Touched by An Angel, Boston Legal, and Filthy Rich.