A Nottinghamshire woman who piled on the pounds due to a rare condition which means she's never full has lost six stone
Ellie Flynn Livingstone, 26, from Mansfield Woodhouse, had grown up eating healthily and noticed her diet going "off the rails’" when she travelled to the USA.
She went to Boston, Los Angeles and Colorado and started working at a nanny in July 2017.
During her two-year stay in the US, Ellie gained four stone after indulging in junk food. She was gorging on super-sized pizzas, burgers, chips, and takeaway Thai food.
Ellie also suffers from Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), a condition that affects how women’s ovaries work.
She believes it contributed to her weight gain as the hormone imbalance left her "never satisfied" after eating.
The food took a toll on her waistline and at her heaviest Ellie tipped the scales at 19st 2lb and was struggling into squeeze into a size 24.
After seeing pictures of herself from her time in the States, Ellie was determined to make a change and turned to a Keto diet when she returned to the UK in July 2019.
The Keto diet is a high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet and Ellie saw the weight drop off, losing six stone in eight months.
She is down to a size 14 and can fit comfortably into a pair of shorts she has kept hold of since she was 18 years old.
Ellie, a full-time Nanny, said: “It was the trip of a lifetime.
“The portions were huge and didn’t hold back.
“I now realise my condition was a big part of my overeating.
“I’m so proud of everything I’ve achieved and I’m never going back to my old ways.
"Now I strut around in my shorts - I'm so pleased I'm finally back in them after all these years."
Ellie grew up eating healthy homemade meals, but noticed the weight starting to creep on as a teenager.
She was diagnosed with PCOS in 2015 when she was 20 years old after experiencing irregular periods.
Ellie believes the hormone imbalance the condition can cause may affect her eating habits.
“I could always eat the most out of my friends and I was never satisfied,” she said.
“Now I realise my sweet tooth was probably from high insulin levels from the condition."
Ellie really noticed the weight start to pile on when she moved to America in July 2017.
She went to work as a full-time Nanny abroad and travelled across three states – Boston, Los Angeles and Colorado.
During her two-year trip away, Ellie gained four stone and was tipping the scales at 19st 2lbs.
She said: "Moving abroad was my first time away from home so it came with a lot of freedom.
“We ate out a lot and loved anything carb like burgers, pizza, sushi and Thai food.
“I had a huge sweet tooth as well so I’d regularly snack on biscuits, sweets and chocolate.”
When Ellie returned to the UK in July 2019 she was at her biggest and struggling to fit into a size 24.
After hating some holiday snaps of herself from her travels, Ellie decided to change her ways.
She also wanted to have children one day and knew being overweight might make it harder to become pregnant while suffering from PCOS.
“I absolutely love kids and want to start a family one day,” Ellie said.
“I knew it (was) the best time to start making a change so I could be ready.”
Ellie completely overhauled her eating habits and started doing a Ketogenic diet in April 2020.
The Keto diet is a low-carb, high fat diet, and she would load up her meals with fresh vegetables and lean fish and chicken.
Ellie said: “I love carbs and I thought there’s no way I could do this.
“But it was much easier than I realised – I don’t miss out on anything.
“I’ll swap carbs for healthier versions like use cauliflower rice and use almond flour to make bread.”
