American vocalist and percussionist Karen Anne Carpenter, together with her older brother Richard, made up half of the musical duet the Carpenters (March 2, 1950 – February 4, 1983).
Her three-octave contralto range made her stand out among her contemporaries, who lauded her vocal prowess. Carpenter’s years-long battle with anorexia and eventual death from heart failure, as a result, would eventually increase awareness of eating disorders and body dysmorphia and their potential causes.
How did Karen Carpenter lose weight?
She started the Stillman diet, following a doctor’s instructions to consume lean foods, drink eight glasses of water every day, and stay away from fatty foods.
She lost weight, weighing in at 120 pounds (54 kg), and maintained that weight roughly until the Carpenters’ fame peaked around 1973.
Carpenter moved with her family to Downey, California in 1963 after leaving her birthplace of New Haven, Connecticut. After graduating from high school, she joined the Long Beach State choir and started learning the drums.
