A 22-year-old woman who spent £100 on McDonald's every week was forced to confront her addiction when her parents didn't recognise her.
Cora Henderson, from Sydney, Australia, went to visit her family for the first time in three months - but they could barely comprehend that she was their daughter.
Weighing 14st 9lbs at the beginning of 2020, she had put on weight from regular trips to McDonald's, but didn't notice it in herself at first.
The former flight attendant told news.com.au: "When mum picked me up from the airport, she barely recognised me. She sat me down and asked me if everything was alright."
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Cora, who now works in a call centre after losing her previous job due to Covid, said she'd gorge on fast food during flight breaks as an easy option.
Soon, she started to feel lethargic and rundown - but didn't realise it was due to the lack of nutritious food in her diet.
"When we had long flights all we would do is sit at the back and eat to pass time and once we were off the plane, I’d go straight to the food court and just opt for fast-food," Cora said.
"Even when I’d get home I’d just spend about $30 a day on [McDonald's]."
After sitting down with her mum, Cora realised she was feeling demotivated because of the over-processed foods she was eating every day.
"I didn’t exercise either. It was the last thing on my mind,” she said.
Cora added her mental health also began to suffer because of her poor diet - saying: "it really affected my life and how I was feeling."
She said: "I had suspicions I had gained weight, but I didn’t realise just how much and I was too lazy to do anything about it."
Her energy levels were so low that instead of walking down the road to the shops, she'd have to drive.
But Cora reckons something "clicked" when she sat down and had a chat with her mum.
She signed up to her gym and started doing cardio, before starting weights and resistance training too. She also sorted out her diet to eat more nutritious foods.
"I gave myself a ban on junk food for the first month and only drank water for liquids," Cora said.
"I also started to eat lots and lots of protein and vegetables and completely cut out sugar."
In one year, she shed 4st 10lbs - and her energy levels soared.
Cora said the first few stones "fell off" when she began her new regime, the last few pounds were much tougher to shed - but she remained determined and managed to lose those, too.
“I feel so amazing now. I think the one thing people don’t realise about weight loss is that you change as a person,” Cora explained.
Have you had an incredible body transformation? Email jessica.taylor@reachplc.com
“It’s about finding yourself and while lots of people do it to look good, the main point is making sure you’re happy on the inside and fuelling your body with healthy foods.”
