MOST EFFECTIVE DIET shared by an Australian Barbie fan who LOST A STAGGERING 90 KILOS!
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There are endless diet fads, meal plans, and supplements that just never seem to cut it when it comes to helping us progress with our fitness goals.. As we all know, trying to be healthy is NOT easy! So seeing the incredible transformation featured below is all the more impressive.
Growing up as a larger kid, Kayla Lavende struggled with maintaining a healthy weight for herself. She however, lived vicariously through Barbie and didn’t let her size stop her from dressing up as her favourite doll. The now-37-year old Aussie who lives in Las Vegas (formerly Sydney) dropped an astounding total of 92 kilos — equating to up to eleven dress sizes!
Now fitting into a size eight, Kayla still lives vicariously through Barbie
“Growing up as a plus-size kid in the 90s, I had to wear plus-size ladies’ clothes - there were not many fun options so I lived vicariously through Barbie. She inspired me to start getting creative and making my own outfits…” the barbie fan said.
“I love that Barbie says ‘you can be anything’ - so I thought, I can be anything too.”
The love for Barbie developed as her parents gifted her one every week as a reward for dealing with her rapid weight gain. At her heaviest, she tipped the scales at 155 kilos. Her parents left no stone unturned in an effort to help Kayla after noticing her rapid weight gain as a child.
“I was always at the doctors, dietitians, nutritionists... trying to figure out why I was so overweight at such a young age…” she says.
“So as a reward for having to deal with all that, my parents bought me a Barbie every single week because I just loved her and everything about her style.
As an adult, Kayla found herself in an unhealthy cycle of starving throughout the day and making up for it via a late night food binge.
“It wasn’t until late at night when I would get home from work I would be starving and I would indulge in either fast food or pasta and go right to sleep.”
Kayla’s pivotal moment started in 2018. Things finally started to change for her following a gastric sleeve surgery. The surgery involves removing 80 percent of her stomach, in turn decreasing her daily portion intake and resulting in a steady weight loss. Despite the effectiveness of this procedure, she knew she would also had to change her lifestyle on top of her surgery.
“I knew that was not the be-all and end-all. I knew I had to change my whole lifestyle. Obviously, because of the surgery, my portions were a lot smaller, however I learned all about nutrition and what my body needed versus what I wanted.”
She made an effort to fuel her body with healthier food and started working out every day. She no longer succumbs to bingeing or treating herself to ‘guilty pleasures’.
If you find yourself wondering what Kayla eats in a day to support her weight loss, we have compiled an example of it for you here:
Breakfast: Protein shake every morning
Morning snack: Raw unsalted almonds
Lunch: Season ground turkey breast or chicken
Afternoon snack: Nuts or a protein bar
Dinner: Usually the same as lunch
As for her exercise routine, what worked for her best was ‘running for one minute and walking for one minute’.
“Repeat this for 20 to 30 minutes - this definitely gets your heart rate up and moving and you will be sweating in no time. I do this every day and weight training three times a week,” she says.
As with all other great things, they take time. Kayla’s transformation definitely wasn’t an overnight thing. It took her two whole years to lose 92 kilos! Kayla now wears sizes six to eight clothing and has continuously gotten inspiration from her favourite childhood doll when it comes to styling herself.
“I’ve always stayed true to my style - going from a Barbie size 4XL to a size small - while transforming my body…” she tells 7Life.
“Fast forward to when I became an adult, I moved to Las Vegas where I started working as a costume designer. Honestly, I have Barbie to thank for it all.”
When reflecting back at old pictures, Kayla expresses feeling proud of her progress.
“I’m so proud of the girl in the ‘before’ pictures because she is who has got me to where I am today,” she says.
For anyone going through the same struggles that Kayla did, she highly recommends considering weight loss surgery.
“It is not an easy fix - you still have to put the work in…” she says.
“I would also say to anybody on a weight loss journey that consistency is key and don’t focus on a number on the scale, focus on being consistent.”
Though it’s important to maintain a healthy weight, we believe instilling your worth even before the weight loss (or weight gain) is a good mindset to practice too! Your body is beautiful.
If you’re looking for weight loss tips without having to go under the knife, click here.
Want to know more about weight loss surgery and what it involves? Watch this video here.
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