Oprah talks struggle in new Weight Watchers ad: 'It's not just about the weight'

Dec. 29, 2015, 2:15 PM UTC / Source: TODAY

Oprah Winfrey has shared her ups and downs on the scale with her fans over the years.

Now, in a new campaign for Weight Watchers, she's inviting them to join her in her latest effort to shed the pounds.

In the campaign's first two spots, the former talk show titan opens up about the struggle that unites her with so many others.

“Inside every overweight woman is a woman she knows she can be," Winfrey says in a clip that flashes back to different moments in her past. "Many times you look in the mirror and you don’t even recognize your own self because you got lost, buried in the weight that you carry.

"Nothing you’ve ever been through is wasted. So every time I tried and failed, every time I tried again, and every time I tried again, has brought me to this most powerful moment to say, ‘If not now, when?’

"I feel that way, and I know millions of other people feel that way. Are you ready? Let’s do this together.”

In another version, Winfrey explains that the battle is about more than just numbers on a scale.

"Anybody who struggles with their weight — and I'm at the head of that class — knows it's not just about the weight; it's about something bigger," she says. "You've been fighting with the wrong tools, you've been looking at the wrong direction.

The ads began airing in the UK last week and were set to debut in the US in January.

In October, Winfrey signed a five-year, $43 million deal with Weight Watchers that left her with a 10 percent stake in the company and a spot on the board of directors.

The company's share price doubled after the deal.

According to media analyst Steve Adubato, the company has even more to gain as Winfrey loses weight and leads others to do the same.

"She can help rebuild, rebrand Weight Watchers the way no other celebrity could," Adubato told TODAY.

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