Dramatic before and after photos that show off Abby Lee Miller's 127lb weight loss - as Dance Moms star turns 61

Dance Moms became a hit when it debuted in 2011, following the lives of several young girls as they journeyed towards stardom under the watchful eyes of their mothers.

Abby stood at the helm of Dance Moms as the girls’ instructor and choreographer, becoming an iconic presence on the show.

After Dance Moms’ major success, Abby expanded into her own spin-off series Abby’s Ultimate Dance Competition which ran between 2012 and 2013. 

The competition had a group of young dancers, from 6 to 13 years old, compete for a $100,000 cash prize and a scholarship to the Joffrey Ballet School in New York.

Abby’s Ultimate Dance Competition wasn’t the only Dance Moms spin-off Abby brought to the screen. In July 2014, she premiered Lifetime series Abby’s Studio Rescue.

The series ran for one season and attempted to save choreographic studios that were on the brink of failure with solid advice and the guidance of dance coach Abby.

Abby has had a noticeable transformation over the years, undergoing a gastric sleeve procedure in April 2017. That same year, she quit Dance Moms in Season 7, citing a lack of creative credits and ill-treatment from producers.

Before that, she dropped from a size 24 to a size 16, a result of being in and out of the hospital during her mother's battle with colon cancer prior to her passing in 2014.

In 2024, Abby appeared with a slimmer build at several red carpet events, including a special screening of Netflix's A Man In Full at the Tudum Theatre.

The year prior, she launched podcast Leave It On the Dance Floor which recaps episodes of Dance Moms with Abby sharing behind-the-scenes secrets from the show.

In 2025, Abby appeared on the red carpet with a walker at the Dancers Against Cancer 2025 Industry Dance Awards.

Abby had undergone her own cancer treatment in 2018, having emergency spinal surgery and chemotherapy to treat Burkitt lymphoma. The procedure left her temporarily paralysed from the neck down. 

Today, she's still busy in the dance industry, sharing stories and reconnecting with alumni on her podcast as well as sharing health updates via her Instagram page.