Jenny has transformed her health and lifestyle after shedding an impressive four and a half stone – she has shared her weight loss journey and how she maintains it
Dublin woman Jenny Russell
A Dublin native has shared her journey to lose four and a half stone and feel happier and healthier in her body. Jenny Russell had struggled with her weight for some time before undergoing bariatric surgery in 2021 and now, five years on, she’s still feeling better than ever.
Here, Jenny tells RSVP about how her health has been transformed and how she has maintained a balanced lifestyle in the years since her surgery.
Jenny’s size wasn’t something that had been on the forefront of her mind, but she knew she had to make a change for her health. In the end, going under the knife was the best option for her and the experience went smoothly.
“I became diabetic with type two diabetes,” she tells us. “I actually went on Ozempic but I still gained weight while on it. I didn’t like the injection so I decided to get off it. When I look back at photographs, I didn’t realise how big I had gotten.
“I went deep diving and a friend of mine had weight loss surgery done in the BaltiClinic and she was looking amazing. I reached out to the clinic, had a consultation and chatted with them, and then went over and had my surgery in Lithuania. They were absolutely amazing. I went over in January 2021 during Covid and it went great.”
Jenny made the decision to be completely open about her experience and the fact she had gotten bariatric surgery. Now, she is an outspoken advocate of ensuring people have all the information they need to recover healthily from weight loss surgery.
“I didn’t want to get too thin,” she explains. “When you have your surgery, they bring you in and you sit down with a dietitian who will talk you through the different stages of eating afterward. You need to prioritise protein because you don’t want muscle loss. I didn’t skip the protein, I went to the gym and did all my workouts.”
Since her surgery, Jenny, who lives in Meath, has dropped four and a half stone and also got a tummy tuck surgery. After initially undergoing the procedure out of concern for her health, her diabetes has since gone into remission.
“I feel great,” she gushes. “My diabetes went into remission within six weeks of having surgery. I didn’t have to take any medication again.
“I’m totally into going to the gym and feeling fit and feeling healthy.”
Jenny before her weight loss
However, despite losing weight, she found her confidence took a hit.
“I was always very confident. I found the hardest thing when I lost the weight was that my confidence diminished a little bit, because I knew people were looking at me. I found that anywhere I was going, I knew people were going to be looking so I had to be perfect. They knew I lost weight and were waiting to see what I looked like.”
Jenny is quick to remind those considering any weight loss procedure that it is not an “easy” thing that can solve your problems.
“It’s not a quick fix,” she says. “It’s very mind blowing. It’s very hard; your body changes, your mind changes, your gut changes. I think people think when they get surgery done, that’s it; you’ve lost the weight and you’re going to keep the weight off. That’s not true. It’s actually much easier to eat a bar of chocolate than have a plate of chicken and potatoes. So you need to make sure not only that you’re eating enough, but eating proper food. It’s a lifestyle change, it’s a mentality change and you just have to be aware of what you’re doing.”
Jenny also warned that for anyone addicted to food, deal with the problem before going under the knife as that addiction can present elsewhere.
“If you have an addictive personality, you need to be very open about that. Losing the weight is not going to solve all of your problems.”
She added: “If you want to get it done, do your research. Look into the clinics that you’re dealing with.”
You can follow Jenny on IG at @jennyrus007
Read the full story in July’s issue of RSVP Magazine, on shelves now
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