How to Improve WordPress Site Load Time Without Overhauling Theme

Hi everyone,

I’ve noticed my WordPress site is running slower than I’d like—especially after adding a few plugins and some custom CSS. Before I completely change the theme, I want to try optimizing what I have.

Some of what I’ve already done:

Minified CSS and JS

Enabled browser caching

Optimized a few large images

Things I’m thinking might help:

Lazy loading images/videos

Using a Content Delivery Network (CDN)

Defer non-critical JS

Enable GZIP compression (if not already)

Has anyone had good results with these steps? Or are there any other tips/tools you’d recommend that help speed up WordPress without a full redesign?

Thanks!