PULLING up to the McDonald’s drive-through, Heather Floda waited for the intercom to crackle before reeling off her order.
She whizzed round to the collection window where she picked up two sausage and egg McMuffins, one sausage burrito, one hash brown and a large caramel frappe. While it might be enough to feed a small family, Heather had no plans to share her feast, binging on her 2060-calorie meal after yet another dating rejection.
Weighing 25 stone at the time, Heather says she was constantly rejected by men on dating apps because of her size.
Heather, 28, says: “It hurt because I know what I bring to the table.
“And I remember almost every date, being told: ‘You’re beautiful, I just don’t date bigger women.’
“I would go through a drive-through and binge; that was my coping mechanism.
“But how can I expect someone to love me if I don’t love myself first?”
It was this motto that saw Heather, from Tampa, Florida, embark on a weight loss journey that has since seen her lose an incredible 12 stone.
The online fitness coach says: “At the start of my weight-loss journey, I felt like I had no other choice.
“I had to learn to find time to cook meals and get my steps in.
“I was a full-time college student and worked full-time, so I always tried to make excuses about why I couldn’t cook a meal at home.
“I found exercise tiring to begin with.
“I remember when I first joined the gym, I didn’t know what I was doing, and people would stare at me.
“I cut out all fast food and started to focus on eating whole foods.”
Heather began drinking more water and portioning her snacks into little bags of trail mix and popcorn for the week ahead.
She says: “At first it was hard to adjust, but it got easier.
“I’ve done it all completely naturally, just changing my diet and focusing on getting 10,000 steps a day.
“I didn’t join a gym until I was five stone down.”
After three and a half years of hard work, Heather had shed 12st 8lbs in total.
She says: “After losing the weight, I had a tremendous amount of self-respect for myself, something I never had before.
“I also had confidence that I didn’t know I had.
“Confidence is truly a muscle that you have to train.
“It was also so satisfying being able to reject the people who were mean to me previously because of my weight – 100%.
“Those men think that I did this for them.
“When in reality I did it because I wanted to see what I was really capable of.”
‘Exes are sliding into my DMs’
And she says some of those same men have even tried to crawl back.
Heather explains: “I’ve had so many exes texting me or sliding into my messages.
“I even had friends I’d cut ties with trying to reconnect.
“It’s really crazy to see how many people want to be in your life when you’re doing really well for yourself.”
Now, Heather says her weight loss has changed her everyday life too.
She adds: “I remember the first time I was on a plane since gaining the weight, and I booked a first-class ticket because I knew the seats were wider.
“The flight attendant came to my seat as soon as I sat down and passed me a seatbelt extender. I didn’t even ask for it – she just gave it to me and assumed I needed it. I did.
“It just felt like I was being judged.
“Now, after losing the weight, I can fit comfortably into an economy seat and everyone is so nice to me.
HEATHER’S DIET BEFORE AND AFTER
DAY OF EATING BEFORE
Breakfast: Eight eggs, full pack of bacon, one bagel, Diet Coke or two sausage and egg McMuffins from McDonald’s, one sausage burrito, one hash brown and a large caramel frappe.
Lunch: Large Big Mac meal from McDonald’s and a Diet Coke.
Dinner: Family size frozen lasagna or takeaway chicken fajitas with extra tortillas with a large cheese dip and salsa.
DAY OF EATING NOW
Breakfast: 150g egg whites, three slices of turkey bacon and a bagel.
Lunch: One serving of grilled chicken bites.
Dinner: Ground turkey or chicken breast, taco bowl or high protein pasta.
“Doors are held open by random strangers, people look at me passing by and tell me ‘, You’re so beautiful.’
“I never got that when I was 355lbs.
“I feel like the world is more accepting now that the weight is gone!”
‘Now I have the family that I always wanted’
Today, Heather is engaged and expecting her first baby.
She says: “I met my fiancé in a bar and I felt very confident on our first date.
“We went to the beach, and I was wearing a red bikini, and I never let the loose skin or the stretch marks get in my head.
“To this day, he makes me feel like I’m the most beautiful girl on this planet.
“He loves me without makeup, with bed head in the morning – he loves me for me, not for how I look.
“I had to choose how I wanted to spend the rest of my life.
I can confidently say if I never lost the weight, I would not be where I am today
Heather Floda
“I knew if I kept gaining weight and eating foods that weren’t good for me, I would have a very short life.
“And I’d never get the life I wanted – which is a family.
“Because I chose to do the hard things and face my fears, I now have the family that I always wanted.”
And to anyone else wanting to follow in her footsteps, Heather shared a message.
She adds: “Just start, and start now.
“There’s no perfect time, and it’s very scary.
“But every day you wait is another day you could have gotten closer to your goals.
“I can confidently say if I had never lost the weight, I would not be where I am today.”
