Before Karen tried the Stillman diet and hit the perfect weight, she had always been a little chubby. She did not want to go back to her childhood chubbiness again. She saw a picture of herself performing at one of their shows, she thought she looked heavy and decided to put a stop to it right away. She hired a trainer, but it didn’t work out.
The trainer helped her lose weight, but the high-carb, low-calorie diet and exercise regiment resulted in her gaining muscle. She wanted to look thin, so she took things into her own hands. She lost 20 pounds in no time and was heading toward the days when her weight would become the concern of everyone around her.
Overshadowed by Her Big Brother
In Karen’s mother’s eyes, Richard was the musical genius. Richard was born to make it big in the music industry. It was all about Richard. Heartbreakingly, Karen did all she could to earn her domineering mother’s praise, but, after all, the family had moved from the East coast to bolster Richard’s musical career.
Even as the Carpenters had become a pop sensation with number one hit songs and a third album that went Platinum, four times, one person barely noticed Karen’s contribution to the duo. And that would be Agnes Carpenter, the siblings’ mom. For some reason, she failed to validate Karen’s achievement. Karen felt unloved.
Always a Tomboy at Heart
As a drummer, Karen was a rarity. Drumming has always been a sort of glass ceiling of the rock ‘n’ roll world for women, but she banged and busted through. She liked to call herself a drummer who sings. As a kid, she loved to play sports. She loved the New York Yankees and she loved playing ball in her old New Haven neighborhood. It was Karen who was into sports while her brother was inside playing the piano or listening to music.
Karen grew up in a very conservative family. President Nixon once referred to the Carpenters as “young America at its best.” And so, she probably took her mother’s view when it came to women’s liberation. Her mom stayed home and cooked for her husband and family, and Karen approved. They had an idyllic childhood, after all.
Food Gradually Became an Obsession
For Karen, eating less food was becoming an obsession.
She cut back whenever she could and then overly rationalized her behavior with comments like this one from 1973: “When you’re on the road it’s hard to eat. Period. On top of that, it’s rough to eat well. We don’t like to eat before a show because I can’t stand singing with a full stomach. . ."
Losing Weight Becomes an Obsession
Karen was slim and trim and looking good. But inside, the obsession about her weight was getting bad. Those around her were beginning to worry.
Her ex-boyfriend’s sister and record executive Carole Curb said, “She weighed 110 pounds or so, and looked amazing.” Adding, “If she’d been able to stop there, then life would have been beautiful."