By Elmira Tanatarova For Mailonline
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A woman with type 2 diabetes – who was told to lose weight or face an early grave – lost 14 stone naturally and is now celebrating feeling more healthy, energetic and confident in her skin.
Jade Davis, 24, from Nottingham, who was previously a dress size 30 and weighing more than 27 stone, was ‘sick of being in her own body’ – and admits that she sought comfort eating as a coping mechanism for pain.
Now at 13 stone, she is full of optimism for the future and is even considering becoming a fitness coach.
The young woman was spurred into action at the start of January 2021, initially beginning the health kick as a New Year’s Resolution.
Jade completely overhauled her lifestyle by adopting a healthy diet and regular exercise led her to drop a staggering nine dress sizes.
The health care service activity coordinator is now happier than ever in size 12 dresses and – despite disliking her loose skin – is ‘proud’ of it.
The fitness enthusiast revealed that she was one of the biggest kids in school, and was targeted by bullies who said they’d ‘never want to be with her’.
‘When I was at my biggest I was depressed the majority of the time,’ she said.
Jade Davis (pictured in July 2022) was ‘sick’ of being in her own body – previously a dress size 30 and weighing more than 27 stone – and admitted that she sought comfort eating as a coping mechanism for pain
A woman with type 2 diabetes – who was told to lose weight or face an early grave – lost 14 stone naturally and is now celebrating feeling more healthy, energetic and confident in her skin. Pictured left in December 2019, and right, three years later
The gym fan continued: ‘I used to be the one that had a lot of people bully me.
‘Obviously now, the way I get treated has completely changed – there’s a lot that’s changed just because of my size.
‘Food was a coping thing for me, there was an emotional side to it at the beginning as because I was always so upset [due to bullying], I used to eat.’
The ‘little digs’ continued to erode her self-esteem at university – with some cruel people even telling Jade to ‘end her life’ – and after she left her eating spun ‘out of control’.
At one point she’d grab a calorific takeaway of mixed kebab, chips and garlic mayo from on her way home from work every day for nearly three months, which cost her around £360.
Jade (pictured after her transformation) also admits that she ‘doesn’t really like’ her loose skin, and often feels self-conscious about it
Jade, pictured after her incredible weight loss, revealed that she struggles to feel confident about her loose skin but is proud of what it represents
During this time her physical health took a turn for the worst as she’d constantly feel fatigued and her diabetes became more severe.
At her largest, Jade couldn’t fit on fairground rides, had to ask for an extender belt on airplanes and would dodge mirrors.
‘Quite a lot of the time I never used to go out because of what I looked like and wanted to stay at home, which made me eat even more,’ she revealed. ‘When I was at uni I went out a bit but I wasn’t completely comfortable going out that much because I was scared of everyone else picking on me and stuff.’
The fitness fan recalled a holiday to Benidorm where she asked for seat belt extender, which made her ‘really nervous’.
Jade, pictured after her transformation, decided to take fate into her own hands after a grounding doctor’s appointment
Now the 24-year-old from Nottingham, Nottinghamshire (pictured after the weight loss) is full of optimism for the future and is even considering becoming a fitness coach
‘There was nothing I could physically do because I couldn’t walk anywhere,’ Jade continued. ‘I had to stay by the pool and felt very restricted.
‘Not being able to fit on rides was embarrassing. She just said “love you can’t come on here, you’re too big”. I was a bit upset and ashamed.’
She decided to take fate into her own hands after a grounding doctor’s appointment.
‘Because of my diabetes [type two] the doctor basically said “you need to lose weight or you’re going to die”,’ she added. ‘That was probably the turning point to starting my weight loss.
At her largest, Jade (pictured in April 2020) couldn’t fit on fairground rides, had to ask for an extender belt on airplanes and would dodge mirrors
When she returned to Benidorm last May (right), Jade could do everything that her heart desired compared to when she was restricted by her weight last time she visited in 2018 (left)
‘It scared me at first. After that appointment I went back to work and started crying because of all the medication they’d given me and everything I needed to be able to survive.
‘I was sick of being in the body that I was in and scared of what the future was going to bring because I was so big.
‘The words “you will die” kept me going quite a lot. I’ve had massive encouragement from my family and those online have given me a lot of support.’
Jade has amassed more than 37,700 followers on TikTok (@jadeslildiscovery) by sharing her weight loss journey and is keen to show that it can be done without forking out thousands on surgery.
When she started her journey in January 2021, she ate in a calorie deficit by sticking to meal plans and became more active through walking at least 10,000 steps a day.
Breakfast: Two pieces of toast, Frosties
Snack: Chocolate and sweets
Lunch: Footlong chicken tikka Subway, bag of crisps and big bar of chocolate.
Dinner: Big portion of fish and chips or takeaway kebab with chips and salad.
Dessert: Whole tub of ice cream or cake (two to three times a week)
Breakfast: Cereal like Weetabix or Bran flakes with fruit and almond milk
Lunch: Protein with veg and some form of carbs like potato or rice.
Dinner: Five Guys-inspired burgers and Nando’s fakeaway.
Dessert: Low calorie ice cream or protein pudding
Jade started gyming that October and now goes four times a week.
The new fitness junkie reached her lowest weight of 11 stone 12lbs last October and is now a dress size 12-14.
She claims she’s since been weaning herself off her diabetes medication and nearly managed to reverse the condition.
When she returned to Benidorm last May, Jade could do everything that her heart desired compared to when she was restricted by her weight last time she visited in 2018.
This included walking around with ease, exploring the area, as well as sitting in chairs without feeling self-conscious.
‘I feel great now and can go and do stuff without my weight holding me back,’ Jade gushed. ‘I’m just generally happier and trying to look towards the future.’
She can now go on rides – including a recent winter wonderland outing in her town – which felt ‘amazing and emotional’.
‘It made me kind of cry a bit,’ she admitted. ‘Because I could actually get on them.’
Jade also admits that she ‘doesn’t really like’ her loose skin, and often feels self-conscious about it.
‘But then I feel proud in the sense that I’d rather have it over fat,’ she added. ‘And I’ve worked hard to get it. In the future, I’m hoping to get rid of it.’
The health fan says people have remarked on her incredible transformation, claiming that she looks healthier and happier – which is ‘definitely true’.
Some people from her town don’t even recognise her.
She can now go on rides – including a recent winter wonderland outing in her town – which felt ‘amazing and emotional’
The health fan says people have remarked on her incredible transformation, claiming that she looks healthier and happier – which is ‘definitely true’
She advises anyone wanting to embark on a weight loss journey to do ‘a lot of research’. Pictured in June 2020
Jade says that anyone wanting to lose weight doesn’t have to spend lots of money to achieve results
‘I’ve had quite a few [male bullies from school] message me saying “you’ve changed a lot” and wanting to talk to me,’ she said. ‘It was a bit of a shock at first but in the end I was happy not to message them back because they didn’t acknowledge me when I was bigger, and I’m not going to acknowledge them now because I’m smaller.’
Jade says that anyone wanting to lose weight doesn’t have to spend lots of money to achieve results.
‘You don’t have to go through thousands of pounds worth of procedures to do it,’ she added. ‘Don’t go straight into the gym and exercise at the beginning. I think quite a lot of the time you firstly need to get your head around calorie counting because if you do it all together, you’ll find that some people do get overwhelmed and give up.’
She also advises anyone wanting to embark on a weight loss journey to do ‘a lot of research’.
‘It took me a lot of time to do it but it’s definitely something to work on because in the end, the end result will be something that you’ll be proud of.’
You can donate to Jade’s fundraising page, where she is raising money for surgery to get rid of her loose skin, here: https://gofund.me/09001646.
Published by Associated Newspapers Ltd
Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group