A woman who ballooned to almost 350lbs (24st 9lbs) after turning to food in the wake of tragedy has undergone an astonishing transformation.
Ellie Rodriguez, a customer service specialist from Tennessee, first began to gain weight after suffering a shock stroke at the age of just 16.
In 2011, she lost her high school sweetheart in a hurricane, and just four years later, her father tragically passed away.
Devastated Ellie, now 24, sought comfort in carbs and sugary snacks as she dealt with her loss, and her weight quickly climbed until she was a US size 26.
But in April 2016, Ellie resolved to make a change; sticking to a low carb, high protein diet and taking the dramatic step of having vertical sleeve gastrectomy surgery.
She’s since shed 180lbs (13st) to go to 154lbs (11st 1lb) and a size 6 (UK 8 to 10), and looks so different that Ellie says people ask her husband Jose if he’s met another woman when they’re out together.
Ellie Rodriguez piled on the pounds after suffering a stroke aged just 16, before losing her father and childhood sweetheart, has undergone a jaw-dropping transformation in (seen left before her transformation, and right afterwards in 2016)
The 24-year-old customer service specialist from Tennessee decided to have vertical sleeve gastrectomy surgery in 2016
Ellie said: ‘Being a child of divorce, having a stroke at age 16, then losing my high school boyfriend just a year later in a tornado in 2011 and my alcoholic father that passed away four years after that – all contributed to significant weight gain.
‘My health was beginning to decline. I was diagnosed with fatty liver and was told my liver enzymes were so high that if I didn’t lose weight I could possibly have to have a liver transplant later in life,’ she added.
And along with her newfound confidence, her transformation has given her a new lease of life.
Now a slender 154lbs and a US size 6-8, Ellie’s husband, Jose, is often stopped in the street when they are together and is asked if he has remarried a different woman
She has stuck to a low carb, high protein and fat diet ever since shedding an incredible 180lbs
She is now a slender 154lbs (11st 1lb) and a size 6 (UK size 8-10) and feels confident in her skin
‘I have gained a second chance at a life I’ve always dreamed of. I can run without getting out of breath, ride rollercoasters, go horseback riding with my husband, anything I want to do, I can now,’ she revealed.
‘I was addicted to carbs and sugar and completely cut them out. I focused solely on protein and high fat for energy and started out doing 20-30 minutes on the elliptical [trainer]. I have now worked my way up to an hour of exercise,’ Ellie said of her overhaul.
‘I’m finally healthy and that’s the most important thing. I have to remind myself of how much I have truly overcome, because sometimes I can get a bit overwhelmed.’
‘I focused solely on protein and high fat for energy and started out doing 20-30 minutes on the elliptical. I have now worked my way up to an hour of exercise,’ she said
‘I have gained a second chance at a life I’ve always dreamed of. I can run without getting out of breath, ride rollercoasters, go horseback riding with my husband’, she said
‘I’m finally healthy and that’s the most important thing. I have to remind myself of how much I have truly overcome, because sometimes I can get a bit overwhelmed.’
Ellie, who is now looking forward to starting a family with her husband, says the most difficult thing about her journey has been the excess skin left behind after her extreme weight loss.
‘One of the hardest things about losing an excessive amount of weight is the extra skin that comes with it,’ she explained.
‘This can add extra stress and lack of confidence during the losing phase and thereafter – but I would rather have a little loose skin than another stroke or heart attack due to being overweight.
‘A lot of people have a hard time recognising me. When we’re seen out, my husband is often asked if he got remarried to a different woman,’ she said.
‘A lot of people have a hard time recognising me’, she admitted of her incredible weight loss
Ellie is now looking forward to starting a family with her husband but says the most difficult thing about extreme weight loss is the excess skin that is left behind