A 19-year-old who says she was repeatedly dumped by boyfriends because they said she was too ‘fat’ is proudly flaunting her new-found confidence – and enviable figure – after losing more than 110lbs in a matter of months.
Office assistant Annie Stallings, from Florida, had been overweight ever since she was just eight years old, having used food as a source of comfort throughout much of her life – particularly when her grandfather passed away in 2019.
During school, she says she was constantly bullied for her size and was known as the ‘fat’ friend – facing judgment from even her closest pals, who made passive aggressive comments about her weight.
This criticism carried over into her romantic life, too, with Annie facing brutal feedback from former partners, who branded her ‘too fat’ any time they wanted to end a relationship with her.
Dealing with this constant bullying drove Annie to binge-eat unhealthy foods as a means of comforting herself, and the vicious cycle of weight gain continued – with the 5’6′ teenager tipping the scales at 252lbs by the time she reached the age of 18.
Changes: 19-year-old office assistant Annie Stallings has revealed how she shed 112lbs in a matter of months after struggling with her weight from the age of eight
Struggle: The 5’6″ Florida native spent years being bullied because of her weight – which reached 252lbs by the time she was 18 – and she was even dumped for being ‘too fat’
Transformation: In August 2020, Annie put her measurements into a BMI calculator and was stunned to learn that she was in the third stage of obesity, which carries the highest health risk
In August 2020, realizing that her weight had gotten out of control, Annie decided to put her measurements into an online BMI calculator – and was stunned when it informed her that she was considered in the third stage of obesity, which is an incredibly high-risk category.
The website told her that her weight could cause a myriad of health issues, including heart attacks, strokes, and even an early death.
Annie was horrified to learn about the health risks related to her weight and decided to take drastic action, placing herself on a calorie deficit diet that saw her burning off more calories than she was consuming on a daily basis.
She also took up cardio and high intensity workouts that included running on the treadmill, jumping jacks and jump roping. Once she started her diet, she began losing at least three pounds a week and soon, she had lost 100lbs in total, which made her feel empowered.
Despite feeling disheartened in the beginning when the weight didn’t immediately drop off, Annie came to realize that this isn’t how dieting works and that through trial and error, she would eventually get past this mind set and reach her goal.
Annie has since gone from a size 20 to a size two and has lost 112lbs in total over the past 10 months.
From a personal standpoint, she believes that losing weight has changed her life as she now meets the requirements for a position in law enforcement, which is her dream career.
She began posting her weight loss journey online as she wanted people to hold her accountable if she defaulted on her progress – and she says the positive comments from her followers have helped to motivate her and realize that she’s changed her life for the better.
‘I had been overweight my whole life, and I used food as a form of comfort for a really long time,’ said Annie.
Taking action: Concerned about the health risks that she faced – including heart attacks, strokes, and even early death – Annie decided the time had come to change her lifestyle
Before: Prior to her BMI shock, Annie had used food for comfort – particularly after her grandfather died in 2019 – and was eating an average of 2,500 calories every day
After: In the summer of 2020, she put herself on a calorie deficit diet, cut her daily calorie intake to 1,500 and began hitting the gym, where she focused on high-cardio workouts
‘I remember when my grandfather passed away, that I dealt with the loss by eating whatever I craved and I didn’t like my body at times or the limitations that came with it.
‘Despite this, I have always loved myself and had high confidence – but I wanted to lose weight for my future career goals more than any other reason.
‘I was bullied from grade school onwards. I was the “fat” friend in any situation and the boys and girls in school made sure I knew that. I remember once having the women’s tennis team photos taken for the yearbook and I was placed at the beginning of the line due to me being captain of the team.
‘As the photos got released, people kept commenting that the girls were actually lined up from fat to skinny, which really upset me.
‘Anytime a relationship of mine ended, the first thing that would be mentioned was how ‘fat’ I was and whenever I wanted to borrow some clothes from a friend, they would go through their parents’ closet rather than their own.
‘I dealt with this by eating comfort food regularly and other times, I would try various diets and exercises but I would eventually give up
‘My weight was brought up by family and friends for as long as I can remember. Some would comfort me and say I was just “thick” whereas others would ask, “Do you really need to eat that?” each time I ate.
‘Medical professionals had mentioned my weight before, but in most cases it was just something they could place the blame on for whatever other issues I had – but I learned that some of the health issues I had experienced were not weight related at all.’
When Annie put her measurements into the BMI calculator, she says the realization that she was classified as being in the third stage of obesity served as the wake-up call she need to turn her life around.
‘I had lost 50lbs in the past, but had gained it all back within a few months and I wanted this to be the last time I failed whilst on a weight loss journey,’ Annie said.
‘I had tried dieting in the past. I used to eat more salads and less burgers, as well as the keto diet where I cut out carbohydrates – but I gained the weight back almost immediately after stopping.
‘I started losing weight relatively quickly once I changed my diet and began exercising. At the size I was it was easy to lose around three pounds a week without any issue.’
Annie used to intake over 2,500 calories per day, where she would have a bagel or pizza for breakfast and would eat either pasta or fries and a burger for her lunch and dinner.
Throwback: Annie, pictured left in both images, said that she had tried dieting in the past, but always ended up piling the weight back on, no matter how hard she worked
Focus: It wasn’t until she realized her health was at serious risk that she got the motivation she needed to commit to a regimented diet and workout routine – helping her to lose 112lbs
Now, she consumes up to 1,500 calories per day and will instead have a smoothie for breakfast, some fruit and an egg white omelet for lunch and a grilled chicken salad for her dinner.
‘I’m still on my weight loss journey, but once I hit the one-hundred-pound lost mark, I felt really empowered and as if I had conquered one of my biggest challenges throughout life,’ said Annie.
‘In a calorie deficit diet, there are no specific foods to stay away from, but rather portion control on all food. I noticed that I ate more vegetables than before, as these would work to keep me full and hold less calories than crisps.
‘I was tempted to binge eat sweet foods, as this was my biggest form of comfort, but I learned that a small Hershey’s kiss was as pleasurable than an entire chocolate bar and I was able to prevent myself from giving in by allowing myself the food I was craving, but in moderation.
‘I did workouts that I found on YouTube and walked at an incline on the treadmill for an hour each day, as well as making sure to hit my ten-thousand steps per day.
‘I would do as many jumping jacks as I could and also began jump roping. For high intensity workouts, I did whatever I found on YouTube that looked fun for me – but as long as I felt comfortable doing what I was doing, I enjoyed myself.
‘I think losing weight has changed my life, but from a more personal standpoint. Now, I meet the requirements for various law enforcement positions which is very important to me as it’s my career goal.
‘I’m treated kinder by strangers and more people seem to notice me – I don’t feel invisible anymore which is very strange, as I’ve never had this before.
‘I’m able to be more active with less exhaustion, so I can live a happier and more inclusive lifestyle than before, but I still feel the same towards myself and my self-confidence hasn’t changed.
‘I am proud of myself and my determination to reach my goals and this journey has definitely taught me how well I can persevere through challenges.’
For Annie, the hardest part about losing weight was that it wasn’t an automatic process and that it would take time to reach her weight goal.
‘The more weight I lost, the less quickly I lost more and people in general prefer immediate gratification, which is what I was looking for,’ Annie said.
‘It took me a long time to realize that this isn’t how weight loss worked, nor did the scale not moving change the fact that I was bettering my lifestyle.
‘Sometimes, my weight didn’t want to change no matter how much I did – but I realized through trial and error, that as long as I didn’t give up, I could eventually reach my goals.
‘I decided to post my weight loss journey online after I had lost around fifty pounds as I wanted to have people know that I was trying to lose weight in the hopes that they would hold me accountable to stay on track with my journey.
‘I have received all forms of comments, but the majority are congratulatory and tell me how much of an amazing job I’m doing. However, some comments are unintentionally hurtful such as, ‘Keep going!’ and ‘Wow, I didn’t even realize how big you were before’ which isn’t beneficial as it just seems like I’m still overweight in their eyes and that I have more to lose.
‘However, the best comment I have received was someone telling me that I have been an inspiration for them whilst starting their own journey.
‘I know for me, watching people do what I thought was impossible made me feel more prepared for the challenge and if I can be that for someone else, I couldn’t imagine anything better.
‘Just try to be active whenever you can; whether that’s moving your car to a further parking spot or walking to the post office rather than driving – it’s important to just be active.
‘Everyone starts somewhere and you don’t want to make exercise a chore, so do whatever feels comfortable.
‘As long as you keep trying and you keep seeing progress, that’s all that matters – but I’m not a trained professional, just someone who has decided to live a healthier lifestyle and I couldn’t be happier.’