Obese 24st woman HALVED her size after seeing an unflattering photo of herself as ‘the fat bridesmaid’
Mallory Manning, 29, from Marion, Arkansas, USA would gorge on a whopping 5,000 calories a day
A 24 STONE woman shocked herself into losing weight, after being left mortified by an unflattering photo of herself as ‘the fat bridesmaid’.
Mallory Manning, 29, from Marion, Arkansas, USA was eight-years-old when her battle with the bulge began.
Growing up she played for a softball team that travelled a lot and would feast on McDonalds and other fast food for convenience.
Despite gorging on a whopping 5,000 calories a day, Mallory was in denial about her weight.
But cruel strangers didn't let her forget.
One bully even labelled her "fat pig" while she was at a friend's party.
However, in 2013, when she saw a photo of herself as a bridesmaid, Mallory was so horrified by her size 26 frame that she decided to turn her life around.
Using an online guide, the determined dieter dropped an impressive 11st 2lbs in just two years and now she's so unrecognisable that her friends often have to double take when they see her.
Mallory, an emergency dispatcher, said: "When I was at school, I was on a traveling softball team so we were constantly going to practice or tournaments and always just stopping by the quickest place which was usually McDonald's.
"I didn't really pay much attention to my weight until I was at high school.
"I noticed that many of the girls on my softball and volleyball teams were getting a size small uniform and I was having to go up in size to an XL.
"Boys played a small role in my noticing I was a bit bigger than all the other girls too.
"I remember one time I went to a party with a friend and I was coming down the stairs and some girl I didn't know yelled 'move out of the way, fat pig'."
As Mallory got older her bad habits, when it came to food, continued but and her lifestyle remained sedentary.
She added: "I would sleep most of the day away, not waking up until around one or two in the afternoon.
"I would get up and realise I was behind on eating that day and would go and get Chinese or order pizza if I didn't feel like getting out of the house.
"I was probably eating anywhere from 3,500 to 5,000 calories when you factor in my late lunch and dinner.
"I also love candy. I would go down to a gas station and get some and go back to my room to watch TV or Netflix and enjoy my candy in private, where no one could see what or how much I was eating."
All of the excess weight that Mallory was carrying put a strain on her back - making walking and standing up for long periods difficult.
It also began to take its toll on her mental health.
Mallory said: "I put on a front like I was happy.
"I always had a smile on my face when I was with friends but underneath that smile I was depressed and miserable.
"All I really wanted to do was stay in my room cuddled up in my bed where there were no judgements from people.
"I never told anyone about it because I didn't want anyone to know."
Her tipping point when she received her bridesmaid's photos from a friend's wedding.
She was stunned to see how much bigger she looked when compared to the other girls in the photo and knew she had to get healthy.
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Mallory said: "I got the hard truth from a friend of mine.
"He flat out told me that I was morbidly obese and that I wasn't far from needing help just to get around.
"At first I was in denial. I thought he was wrong and I wasn't that bad.
"December of that year when I saw pictures from a friend's wedding that I was a bridesmaid in.
"I was easily the biggest bridesmaid and I finally saw what my friend saw, I finally saw how big I had let myself get.
"I was in utter shock. I was dumbfounded by just how big I had let myself get. It was devastating.
"I hated being the 'fat bridesmaid' and decided enough was enough.
"I kept the dress as a reminder of how far I have come."
Desperate for change, Mallory found an online guide for calories and meal prep which came with a 12 week work out plan.
Mallory said: "I would wait until everyone went to sleep to start my work out because I didn't want anyone judging me or making fun of me.
"I also joined a running clinic that met up two times a week.
"At this point I was still too scared to join a gym for fear of embarrassment or judgement."
By the end of the first week Mallory had lost 9lbs and six months later another 50lbs had gone.
She said: "I was so excited.
"It gave me that fire to keep going.
"I could notice clothes fitting a little looser and my family members were starting to see a difference.
"People that hadn't seen me for a while didn't recognise me, they would double take."
Having reached her goal weight of 12st 5lbs, Mallory sustains her fit physique with six small meals a day and makes an effort to work out every day of the week.
She added: "One compliment I receive from people that I had never gotten before was 'you look truly happy' and I can finally say without a doubt that I am truly happy.
"I missed out on a lot of experiences due to my weight and low self-esteem
"This new healthy lifestyle gave me the life I've always wanted."