Al Roker Says He's Feeling 'Strong' as He Updates 'Today' on His Health in Virtual Visit

Theo Wargo/Getty Al Roker

Al Roker virtually returned to the Today show on Monday, to update colleagues on his ongoing recovery.

The weather anchor, 68, made a virtual appearance on the NBC morning show, calling into the program from his kitchen after returning to the hospital, where he spent 4 weeks being treated for blood clots in his legs and lungs.

"It's been a tough slog, I'm not going to deny this," Roker told Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb, Craig Melvin and Dylan Dreyer. "This has been the hardest one yet — and you know, I've had my fair share of surgeries. But it gives you a profound sense of gratitude for this outpouring of prayers and thanks. I'm a very fortunate person."

"I feel good, I feel strong. And every day, I feel al little bit better," he added, noting that he made dinner Sunday night.

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That doesn't mean Roker will be back on TV anytime soon. Asked when he would be returning to work, Roker explained he needed a little more time to recover.

"You lose a certain amount of muscle mass for every week you're in the hospital, and I was in the hospital for 4 weeks. So it's just a certain amount of weakness," Roker said, adding he's doing physical and occupational therapy every day. "I've got to just get my strength back. And in the meantime, I was thinking in January of getting my knee replaced, so I've got to push that back. So I've got a number of issues."

"I just feel like, it's going to be a little bit of a slog but a lot of people have to deal with a lot more with a lot fewer resources," Roker said. "I'm very fortune, very blessed to be able to have these resources."

Elsewhere in his update, Roker thanked his Today family for coming to visit him in the hospital. "You guys have been terrific," he said, teasing Kotb specifically. "Hoda was actually named an honorary doctor! She would literally show up. She did a Houdini; she'd just be there. 'Pay no attention, I'm not a member of the staff.' "

He went on to thank his medial team at New York Presbyterian Hospital, including his doctor and "all the wonderful nurses."

"I have a lot of things and people to be thankful for, not least of all you, our today show family," he said.

RELATED: Al Roker's Daughter Praises 'Wonderful' Support as Dad Remains in Hospital: 'We Appreciate It'

At home, Roker has been surrounded by his family, including his wife Deborah Roberts, 62, and his daughters Courtney, 35, and Leila, 24. Son Nick, 20, "is going to be home from college very soon," Roker said, while the TV personality's brother and sister in wife have been home too.

Roberts has been particularly helpful, Roker noted, the longtime journalist grilling doctors on her husband's condition. "They say, 'You have any questions?' And she whips out a list of about 20 questions,' " Roker said. "And the doctor says, 'You?' And I say, 'No!' "

Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty

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Roker has been a staple on Today as the program's premiere weather anchor since 1996, and previously made appearances as a substitute weathercaster from 1990 to 1995, filling in for the late Willard Scott before his semiretirement.

He has been absent from Today for several weeks, last appearing on the Nov. 4 broadcast. The weatherman was first hospitalized for blood clots in his leg and lungs, released weeks later and then returned to the facility after Thanksgiving.

Roker's health caused him to miss the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade — his first in 27 years — and Wednesay's annual Christmas Tree Lighting at Rockefeller Center. But on Dec. 8, he shared via Instagram that he was out of the hospital once again.

"Home!" he wrote on Instagram, captioning a series of photos of him and his family. "So incredibly grateful to family, friends, medical folks, @todayshow family and all your thoughts and prayers."

His Today colleagues celebrated his return on the Dec. 9 broadcast, introducing the segment with the theme song the 1983 show The A-Team — a tune that once again played on Monday before Roker's virtual visit.

"He loves [this song]," Guthrie explained last week. "Every morning we hear it coming from his office. So we're playing it for you, Al this morning."

The Today team then noted how "everybody has been asking about" Roker, including many of the viewers who line up outside 30 Rockefeller Plaza to watch the show each morning. "We have so many signs, like, 'We miss you Al,' 'We love you Al' " noted Guthrie. "We feel the same and he'll be back soon. We want him to take his time and feel good, which he will. But we love him and he'll be back soon."

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While he's been absent from viewers' screens, Today has been providing frequent updates on his condition. They even included a sweet shout-out to him in their 2022 digital holiday card.

"Al and his family want everybody to know how grateful they are for all the love, the support and the well wishes," Kotb said on air earlier this month, Melvin telling Roker, "We'll see you back here soon, my friend."

Today airs weekdays (beginning at 7 a.m. ET) on NBC.