A woman known for her overweight size has shocked family and friends when she achieved a seemingly impossible feat and changed the entirety of her look.
Angela Crickmore before and after her weight loss
An overweight woman who was inspired to lose five stone has revealed how her healthy new lifestyle led her to a new found joy as well as to the breakdown of her marriage.
According to Daily Mail, the woman, Angela Crickmore, 36, from London, who weighed 13 stone at her heaviest, told how she felt tired and struggled to walk long distances.
Despite being naturally slim during her school days, the 5ft 1in mother-of-one piled on the pounds during her twenties - and she was so desperate to lose weight that she even considered having a gastric bypass.
The former property manager believes her ballooning figure was the result of a sedentary lifestyle - going to work, cooking and sitting in front of the TV. However despite friends encouraging her to do something about her weight gain, Angela insists she was happy.
She said: 'I felt beautiful. My husband thought I was beautiful. But the outside pressure from friends and family made me very self-conscious.'
Angela confesses she didn't feel like doing much and her husband enjoyed relaxing at home after work. On weekends they would usually just go to his parents' house for a few drinks and a chat.
It was only in December 2011, when Angela's friend Karla walked through the door almost one-and-a-half stone lighter, that she felt inspired to lose weight.
She recalled: 'I thought "If she can do it, I can do it".'
Angela searched the internet for the latest diets and found an article on losing weight by eating every three hours. She said: 'I was suspicious at first about eating more food to lose weight, but I had to do something because nothing had worked for me before.'
Angela was really overweight
Her food portions became smaller and healthier despite her eating more frequently - with plenty of lean meat, sweet potato, avocados and nuts. The weight started to drop off and Angela soon felt motivated enough to exercise.
Although she says she still felt 'too heavy and ashamed' to go to the gym, she dug out a pair of old trainers and began walking in her local park.
Her husband would drive her there and wait for her in the car.
Angela said: 'I wanted to jog, but because I was so fat I had to walk first. I walked every, day rain or shine, for an hour, and then jog as I became lighter.'
Angela then (left) and now (right)
Eight months later, she finally felt confident enough to join the gym. Her new eating habits required a whole new cooking routine and a totally different way of looking at food.
She said: 'Being able to eat anything without gaining a pound, my husband and son Luy didn't want to share my new eating habits, foods or even join the walks.'
Angela told them both they would have to take care of their own meals and stopped cooking for them. She described it as a 'self-protection mechanism' to prevent her from throwing all her hard work down the drain.
Angela's journey to weight loss
She said: 'The new me felt great, active and wanting more out of life. I wanted to hike, camp, travel, meet people. I became so active that I even stopped watching TV.'
She was losing an average of 9lbs a month - eventually slimming from a size 18 to a trim size. Her friends were shocked and amused at the way she was changing.
However before long the cracks in her relationship started to show. Angela believes her new healthy lifestyle drove a wedge between her and her husband as they both had different priorities.
They made the difficult decision to separate after nine years of marriage and Angela is now single. However she has no regrets about overhauling her life to become the person she is today.
Angela
After becoming interested in bodybuilding, Angela took a degree in sports nutrition. She has now graduated and hopes to turn her weight loss into a career by becoming a fitness coach.
She said: 'I want to help people,' she said. 'It makes me feel good.'