My 600-Lb Life Couples Who Broke Up After Their Weight Loss Journey

The TLC show "My 600-Lb. Life" was launched in 2012 and follows various people and their struggles with drastic weight loss. The participants are all roughly 600 lbs at the beginning of their journey, and they must meet exercise and diet goals set by Dr. Now — Younan Nowzaradan — a bariatric surgeon. Each person is followed for a year or more in the hopes they will qualify for bariatric surgery and see massive results. 

Most people on the show are partnered when their journey begins, as they tend to require a great amount of help to even complete daily care tasks. The majority of people would assume that weight loss and improved health would be a boon to a relationship, but that is not always the case. In fact, relationship troubles are so prevalent after drastic weight loss there is a term for it: Bariatric Divorce. According to a 2022 study, surgery recipients are twice as likely to get divorced.

Therapist Shyamala Kiru explains to the Toronto Star, "Weight loss isn't just physical. So much of it is mental, the boost in self-esteem and confidence. When you feel different about yourself, you make different choices." The study results seem to align with the outcomes of the relationships on "My 600-Lb. Life." Many of the relationships that seemed strong in the beginning, don't survive the weight loss process. The following ten show participants found their relationships weren't able to make it in the long run.

Lacey Buckingham was 36 when she was featured in Season 10 of "My 600-Lb. Life." She had serious health concerns and weighed 593 lbs. Buckingham was struggling with a traumatic childhood and turned to eating to cope. Her food addiction kept her from hitting the goals set by Dr. Now, and during her time on the show, she was denied bypass surgery. 

As Buckingham was unable to do most of her daily care, she relied heavily on her boyfriend Ricky. They had not been together very long at the start of the episode, but he was helping her bathe and deal with personal matters. While the pair seemed to be happy and even got engaged, Ricky's sister Sharon was not on board with the relationship. She felt that her brother was being used, and she worried about his own health problems. Ricky suffers from seizures due to epilepsy. Buckingham and Sharon had a huge fight which led to the newly engaged couple breaking up. As of this writing, there is a new love for Buckingham on the horizon, but she has not yet disclosed the new partner's identity.

Christina Phillips was bedridden when she started her weight loss journey with "My 600-Lb. Life" and weighed in at over 700 lbs. At 23 years old, she was completely reliant on her husband Zach for her care and was eating up to 7,000 calories per day. However, she was able to meet her goals created by Dr. Now and qualify for surgery. Phillips is one of the show's biggest successes, dropping down to 172 lbs and even completing a couple of 5k walk/run events.

While Zach was okay with taking care of Phillips in her bedridden state, he apparently couldn't handle an independent wife. The pair divorced, and Phillips went on to continue to improve her life. She is now a mother of two children, Ethan and Ezra, whom she shares pictures of often on her Instagram. In her 2016 "My 600-Lb. Life: Where Are They Now?" appearance, she was living with Shane, a long-time friend-turned-romantic partner. As of this writing, there is no update on their relationship status. 

Laura Perez had quite the transformation during her time on the show, losing more than 50% of her peak weight. Perez started her journey at 594 lbs and lost over 200 pounds. When her episode started, she was struggling with severe diabetes, was on oxygen, and required a wheelchair. Her health was one of the main reasons Perez wanted to lose weight. As she explained on air, "I know if I don't do something, I'm going to die soon." By the time Perez came back for a "My 600-Lb. Life Where Are They Now?" airing, she was down to 182 pounds. 

 While fans were cheering her on, her husband Joey didn't like that she no longer needed him to take care of her. InTouch reported on their marital troubles: "I feel like I'm on the sidelines. She don't need me as often and I feel a little scared I'm going to lose her with all the changes we're going through," Joey said. At the time, Perez had no plans to leave her marriage, but the pair did eventually split. 

Since then, Perez has moved on with her life and found a new romantic partner named Eric Juarez. According to Starcasm, the pair may have gotten married and had children, but social media postings since that article was published indicate she is single. 

Amber Rachdi was just 23 when they appeared on the show in Season 3. They weighed 657 lbs at that time and suffered from anxiety which caused them to overeat. At the beginning of their weight loss journey, they lived at home with their parents and had a boyfriend named Rowdy. Rachdi admitted to feeling guilt over their eating habits, the burden they were placing on their parents, and their inability to have an intimate relationship with their partner. 

Rachdi worked hard on the weight loss plan. They changed their eating habits, lost 17 pounds, and qualified for surgery. Rachdi would go on to attend therapy and continue to progress — eventually moving out of their parent's house and regaining some independence. They would lose roughly 400 pounds in total. 

The relationship with Rowdy did not make it the entire journey, however, the pair are still friends. According to Rachdi, he is still very supportive. In a since-deleted tweet, Rachdi defended their former partner (after the internet came for him) saying, "In defense of Rowdy, my ex who was on the show: who do y'all think is taking pictures of me at the gym? He IS a good, supportive friend" (via PopSugar). Rachdi got engaged and married according to their social media posts, however, they like to keep their life private and have not revealed their spouse. 

Rena Kriser and her boyfriend Lee appeared on Season 6 of the show together. She weighed 549 pounds, and he weighed 714 pounds. The pair met 11 years before their appearance on "My 600-lb Life" at a weight loss center where Lee was being treated. Rena was there supporting her brother, but when she and Lee started dating, they had to leave the rehab as it was against the rules. While they took care of each other through the years, by the time they appeared on the show, they were unable to completely care for themselves.

She took her journey seriously and ended up losing a substantial amount of weight. She stuck with the diet and completed her fitness goals. She lost 271 pounds without the help of surgery. Lee also made great strides on his journey as well. He was able to get down to 411 pounds with a modified diet and exercise routine. 

As for the relationship, fans witnessed a whirlwind on social media — name-calling and status changes. The pair were both posting about being single for a while, and Lee shared photos of another woman.  Rena kicked off the drama with a now-deleted post (via Distractify) that said, "Wow Once A Cheater Always A Cheater." However, the pair seemed to be reconciled as they both changed their statuses back to "In a Relationship" in 2019 and Lee shared a pic of them together. Neither is very active on social media, and no further relationship updates have been posted.