Ricarda Lang: Weight loss for health reasons

The former Green Party leader Ricarda Lang has recently lost a lot of weight – as she herself says, primarily for health reasons.

“I have a job that is incredibly draining and I want to do it for a few more years,” Lang told “Zeit Magazin” according to a statement on Wednesday. “I should pay a little more attention to myself.”

For the first time, Lang spoke in detail about why she lost so much weight. She said that neither her announcement of resignation as party leader in September 2024 nor hate messages on the Internet were the trigger. “Losing weight was planned and worked hard for since last spring.”

The negative comments in particular actually discouraged them from dealing with topics such as nutrition, sport or health. “These were frightening topics for me,” said the Green politician. “Sometimes there was also defiance that made me think, no, I’m not going to let you push me into this.”

Lang said she lost weight primarily through exercise and a healthier diet.

Now she is also questioning herself as a symbol of the body positivity movement, said Lang. Her presence was certainly important for many women. “Now I sometimes think: Oh God, am I betraying these women now? Am I now the person who makes people feel like they only made it if they lost weight?”

Ricarda Lang and co-party leader Omid Nouripour, like the rest of the Green Party’s federal executive committee, resigned in September after a series of poor election results. Franziska Brantner and Felix Banaszak were elected as the new chairmen of the Green Party in November.

Lang continues to be a member of the Bundestag for the Backnang-Schwäbisch Gmünd constituency in Baden-Württemberg. Land is in second place behind Brantner on the state list for the February election.