03 November 2023 , 19:01
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Emmerdale's Lisa Riley, who has been a part of the popular ITV soap for an impressive 28 years, has shared her heartbreaking side effects after losing 12 stone.
The actress, known for her role as Mandy Dingle, won hearts when she first appeared on the show in 1995 and even bagged the "Best Newcomer" award at the National Television Awards in 1996. Over time, Lisa made significant changes to her lifestyle, which led to her dropping from a size 28 to a size 12.
She achieved this incredible weight loss over 18 months by swapping takeaways for gym workouts and healthy meals. However, her journey didn't end with weight loss. Lisa was left feeling like a "saggy mess", dealing with painful folds of skin that eventually led her to undergo four surgical procedures.
The actress is known for her role as Mandy Dingle (Karwai Tang/WireImage)In her 2017 documentary, Lisa Riley's Baggy Body Club, the star confessed that she felt "revolted" by her own appearance after the weight loss. She said: " When I made the decision to lose weight, I never for one second imagined that I would end up looking like that."
She added, "It never occurred to me that the loose skin would be so bad. I thought why on earth have I lost all this weight? I looked worse than I did when I was obese. And it was the pain as well. The skin was flapping about and dragging."
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Lisa, who was initially apprehensive about surgery, underwent four operations in total, including a fleur de lis tummy tuck, surgery to remove loose skin from her thighs, a boob lift, and "bingo wings" removal. It took Lisa several months to recover, but she's now finally happy with her own reflection.
According to Lisa: "I had never been able to wear sexy underwear, before it was all just functional, mumsy bras and big knickers. Now I can wear little sexy sets. On the train from Manchester to London, the old me would have had a coffee, baguette, red wine, crisps, and a cake. Now I plan my meals and order a sparkling water, people can't believe it."
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