A student who weighed 420 pounds managed to lose two-thirds of her weight after discovering she was pre-diabetic at the age of just 24.
26-year-old Erika Olson from Clearfield, Utah, was confronted with dire news after her weight ballooned to 30 stone due to her unhealthy diet consisting of soft drinks, fast food, and pastries.
Besides eating too much and lacking physical exercise, the student wolfed as much as 1.5 gallons of soda on a daily basis.
“When I was bigger I usually skipped breakfast. Lunch and dinner were very similar. Little Caesars was my favorite. I would usually eat a whole large pepperoni pizza to myself. I’d also eat a lot of McDonald’s,” the girl admitted.
“My order was a Big Mac Meal with large fries and a Dr Pepper. Any time I’d get something I would double up on the portion or I’d get the largest size they had with fries and drinks and stuff.
“I’d also always have something sweet with my meals whether it be soda or cookies or cake. I’d drink a lot of soda. I would always drink the largest gas station soda which is 64 ounces. I’d drink two or three of those a day easily.”
Everything changed, however, when Erika was told she’s pre-diabetic at the age of 24. Knowing that her grandparents died from diabetes, the student decided to turn her life around and embark on a major weight loss journey.
Following her gastric bypass surgery in 2018, Erika became dedicated to her new lifestyle, whereas she looks completely unrecognizable just two years later.
Nowadays, after shedding as much as two-thirds of her maximum weight, the 26-year-old sticks to a healthy diet consisting of wholesome foods.
“I eat about 1,800 calories a day. For breakfast, I’ll have coffee and scrambled eggs with some cheese and turkey sausage,” she added.
“I’ll usually have a slice of toast too. Mid-morning I typically have a protein bar. For lunch, I like to have a wrap with lunch meat on a low-carb tortilla with sliced apples and peanut butter. Dinner is usually some sort of meat with veggies and rice. I pretty much eat the same thing every day.”
Though she occasionally treats herself to her favorite foods, Erika remains dedicated to her cause and is determined not to return to her old ways.
As for her future plans, the student now hopes to be able to get skin surgery that would see her excess skin removed and restore her confidence.
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