RHOBH’s New Housewife Teddi Mellencamp Arroyave on the Show, Weight Struggles & Her Famous Dad

The Housewives are back!

It might sound intimidating to join the cast of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills eight seasons in, but newest star Teddi Mellencamp Arroyave wasn’t too fazed.

“I’m straightforward and I tell it like it is,” says the wellness accountability coach, 36. “And I love learning about everybody from different cultures, different lifestyles, whatever it is. How could I turn it down?”

The mother of two (who admits she’s not a fan of shopping!) says she immediately clicked with Dorit Kemsley and Lisa Vanderpump. “They made it super fun and easy and comfortable for me,” says Mellencamp Arroyave. “I’m not one to force a connection. But I have a lot of fun with Kyle [Richards], too. She makes me laugh!”

On the show, viewers will learn about Mellencamp Arroyave’s back story, including a years-long battle with her weight.

“I was a weight fluctuator my whole life,” says the reality star, who says she weighed over 200 pounds when pregnant with her son Cruz, now 3. “I thought it was just going to come off, but it didn’t. I was constantly complaining to my husband and my friends. I was angry a lot of the time.”

Eventually, Mellencamp Arroyave found balance and started LA Workout Junkie, a company in which she acts as a wellness accountability coach to motivate others to get — and stay — healthy.

Now, “I listen to how I feel, and I don’t punish myself,” she says. “There are some days I’m tired and grumpy and I want a tub of ice cream, but then I just have a bite of ice cream and go on a walk.”

When it comes to RHOBH, there is no word on whether her famous father, rocker John Mellencamp, will make an appearance, but Mellencamp Arroyave gushes about her dad’s relationship with her kids: Cruz, 3, and
Slate, 5.

RHOBH premieres Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET on Bravo.