An obese mum who was told she would die before her daughter grew up has shed half her body weight in a jaw-dropping transformation — despite not being able to work out. Video/Caters
A morbidly obese mum who was told she would die before her daughter grew up has shed half her body weight in a jaw-dropping transformation — despite not being able to work out for years due to a condition.
Mum-of-one Ali Richards, 34, began piling on the pounds during her pregnancy with Kirsten, now 14, and continued to gain weight over the years — until she reached 125kg in 2006.
But after swapping her 4000-calorie-a-day takeaway addiction for healthy salads, the slimmed-down mum dropped six dress sizes and went from a size 22 to a size 8-10, flattering her new 65kg frame.
Merchandiser Ali, from Auckland, New Zealand, "half-heartedly" managed to shed 27kg over six years after first deciding she wanted to lose weight in 2006.
But in 2013, she still tipped the scales at 98kg and was told by doctors she was suffering from lethally high cholesterol levels which could cause a fatal heart attack at any moment.
During a routine check-up, the young mum was delivered a bone-chilling ultimatum — lose weight or die before your daughter grows up — and the death sentence saw her turn her life around.
Ali and her daughter Kirsten as a baby. Photo / Caters
Amazingly, Ali has now shed a total of 60kg despite having to give up prolonged vigorous exercise in 2017 after being diagnosed with endometriosis.
She said: "My doctor told me if I didn't lose weight, I wouldn't be around to see my kid grow up.
"I was in complete shock and I instantly went cold all over. I didn't realise how obese I was and that I was facing an early grave.
"To me, that was absolutely horrific. I felt faint when I heard those words coming out of her mouth. It was like I was being stabbed right through the heart.
"But it was definitely the reality check that I needed at the time.
"I knew I had to be around to support my daughter throughout her life.
"From that day, I've never looked back. I joined a gym a week later and slowly began changing my diet. Before I knew it, the weight was dropping off."
Ali's weight loss journey was fraught with different hardships that made it even more difficult for her to slim down.
In 2005, she began noticing a dull ache in her lower abdomen that slowly worsened over the years.
Ali after her transformation. Photo / Caters
She had undiagnosed endometriosis, a disorder which causes inflammation and chronic pain, and her attempts at exercise were actually exacerbating the condition.
The mum eventually saw a doctor when the pain became so severe that it felt like "someone tearing out" her uterus "with their bare hands".
Ali's doctor suggested she could have endometriosis in July 2016 but needed to wait until March 2017 for surgery to explore her condition further.
Keyhole surgery in 2017 confirmed that Ali was suffering from the condition, which can also make losing weight more difficult due to hormone imbalances.
Ali, who is facing a hysterectomy later this year, had to focus on her eating habits to ensure she could still lose weight after doctors banned her from prolonged vigorous exercise and told her it could make her condition worse.
She dropped the weight by switching takeaways and huge portion sizes for healthy protein and quitting sugar and carbs.
"When I was big, I used to eat so much fried food and greasy takeaways," she recalls.
"I'd have fish and chips three nights a week. I'd have a large Big Mac meal for lunch. I'd devour those large springs rolls from the local takeaway shop and eat loads of hot chips nearly every day.
Ali Richards, before she overhauled her diet. Photo / Caters
"Then I'd treat myself with a cream doughnut or custard pie from the bakery.
"Dinner would be a huge hunk of meat with potatoes and some vegetables. I had a real problem with portion control. That's all changed now. I use a side plate for all my meals and I still feel satisfied.
"I'll have a protein shake for breakfast. Lunch will be a salad, and dinner is usually a good protein like chicken with some vegetables.
"I feel so much healthier and alive. It's incredible how the foods you eat can make such a huge difference."
Ali said that her good eating habits have even rubbed off on her teenage daughter Kirsten, who now regularly asks for salads and vegetables instead of takeaways, which the mum said never happened before.
The mother-daughter duo now enjoy cooking healthy meals and getting fit together.
Ali also said that her fiance Peter, 56, has been a source of "love and support" throughout her weight loss journey.
She said: "They've always been there for me throughout this entire thing.
"Their support means the world to me and I never could have done it without them. I'm such a happier mum and partner now. My life has completely changed for the better."
Ali Richards was told by doctors that her weight would kill her before her daughter grew up. Photo / Caters
ALI'S DIET BEFORE LOSING WEIGHT
Breakfast: Coffee with a cream doughnut or custard pie (550 calories)
Mid-morning snack: Packet of chips (300 calories)
Lunch: A large Big Mac meal or 3 egg salad sandwiches (1350 calories)
Afternoon snack: Spring rolls with hot chips (600 calories)
