They started with the same problem, the same cameras, and the same family cheering them on. But Tammy Slaton and Amy Slaton did not take the same road — not even close. One waited years for surgery and then lost more than half a ton. The other qualified first, became a mom, and is still fighting for her final surgery.
The Starting Line: Over 1,000 Pounds, Two Very Different Clocks
When 1000-LB Sisters premiered in January 2020, the title was literal: the sisters weighed more than 1,000 pounds combined. Amy started at 406 pounds, according to PEOPLE. Tammy was over 600 pounds at the premiere and later peaked at a reported 725 pounds. Amy would be approved for bariatric surgery by the end of Season 1. Tammy would wait more than two more years.
Tammy’s Journey: The Longest Climb — and the Biggest Drop
Tammy’s road was the hardest to watch. After health scares that left her family fearing the worst, she spent 14 months in a weight-loss rehab facility and finally underwent bariatric surgery in July 2022. From there, the drop was staggering: she announced a 500-pound loss in 2024, then told viewers in the Season 8 premiere in January 2026 that she had lost about 560 pounds, putting her at roughly 180 pounds, according to Parade’s report of the episode. Reports vary by date, but all point the same way: down, by hundreds of pounds.
The scale was only half the battle. In January 2025, Tammy underwent an eight-hour skin-removal procedure in Pittsburgh that removed more than 15 pounds of loose skin, she told PEOPLE. She later described it as losing “three whole versions” of herself. This season, viewers saw the payoff: Tammy in a swimsuit, at the lake with her family, proud instead of hiding.
Amy’s Journey: First to Surgery, First to Motherhood
Amy’s journey was faster out of the gate — and measured in milestones that have nothing to do with a scale. She qualified for bariatric surgery in 2019 and dropped 100 pounds early on. Three years after surgery, PEOPLE reported, she had lost 176 pounds. More recent reports, including TV Season & Spoilers in October 2026, put her total loss at nearly 200 pounds.
But Amy’s real finish line was never a number. She had always wanted to be a mom, and weight had stood in the way. After surgery, she welcomed son Gage in November 2020 and son Glenn in July 2022. Pregnancies, a divorce in 2023, and a focus on mental health all slowed the scale — while giving her the family she had fought for.
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Here is where their timelines split again. Tammy has already been through skin removal. Amy is still waiting. In Season 9, Amy consulted surgeon Dr. Kate Kottwitz and received conditional approval, according to reports — with a to-do list: lose more than 20 pounds first, and quit smoking. The sister who got surgery first may be the last one to finish the journey.
So, Whose Journey Was Harder?
By the numbers alone, Tammy’s loss is bigger: roughly 560 pounds reported, against Amy’s nearly 200. Tammy waited longest and risked most. But Amy’s journey asked something different — to lose weight, carry two pregnancies, rebuild after divorce, and keep going while the world watched her mental health as closely as her waistline. One sister lost more weight. The other gained a whole life.
So this one will split the room: whose journey impresses you more — Team Tammy, the greatest comeback in the show’s history, or Team Amy, who got there first and never stopped fighting? Drop your team in the comments.
