The Real Housewives of New Jersey star Dolores Catania has never felt better since kickstarting her weight loss journey.
“Actually, this is high school weight for me,” Catania, 53, exclusively told Us Weekly on Thursday, May 2, while discussing RHONJ season 14. “It’s not the same, of course.”
Catania noted that she currently weighs 130 pounds, calling it her “heavy high school weight.”
“But, I’ll take it,” she exclaimed to Us, noting she is “still” using semaglutide Mounjaro. “But, I [also] work out a lot [and] I stopped going to McDonald’s three times a week.”
Catania also stopped indulging in sweets and her “thing” of Doritos chips.
“That [snacking] stopped because [the medication] makes you sick when you’re on it,” she explained. “You have to, actually, take Zofran, which is a little nausea pill.”
Catania’s boyfriend, Paulie Connell, has joined her in getting healthy.
“I think, [he’s lost] 40 pounds,” she revealed. “I started first and I made him do it [because of] his levels. He was on blood pressure medication. He doesn’t have to take that anymore. All his blood work is so much better than it used to be.”
Catania is thrilled with the couple’s progress and doesn’t want to go back to their unhealthy habits.
Dolores, who was previously married to Frank Catania, started dating Connell in 2021 and told Us on Thursday that “things are going great.” But as their relationship continues to heat up, she’s not in a rush to walk down the aisle again.
“Isn’t that, like, a societal thing? It’s got to stop.” Dolores told Us. “Why doesn’t everybody just ask, ‘What’s our next trip? What’s your next plan?’ Does it have to be marriage? Does it have to be engagement? Happiness is the goal. Peace in our lives is the goal. We’ve had that.”
Amid their blossoming relationship, Dolores started using weight loss medication Mounjaro in April 2023. (The controversial drug is primarily prescribed to diabetic patients.)
“I wasn’t going to come to the [season 13] reunion looking any bigger than anyone else, so I got on the bandwagon,” the Bravo star previously said during an appearance on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen before revealing her side effects. “[I’m] just not hungry.”
Three months later, Dolores had already dropped 20 pounds and revealed that her “realistic” goal was to “be in the low 130s.”
RHONJ season 14 premieres on Bravo Sunday, May 5 at 8 p.m. ET.
With reporting by Christina Garibaldi
