Mother is proud to show off her loose skin after shedding 10 stone

A woman who was left with loose skin around her stomach after shedding almost ten stone says she won’t have it removed as it reminds her of her achievements. 

Isabella Hancock, 27, from London lost a total of 9st 7lb and slimmed down from a size 24 over the course of two years and says she loves the stretchmarks and flabby bits on her tummy.

‘I want people to know that my belly button gets infected and my body has stretch marks. Those things are a part of who I am and where I have come from,’ she said. ‘My imperfections are a reminder of my achievements.’

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Isabella Hancock, 27, from London lost a total of 9st 7lb and slimmed down from a size 24 over the course of two years and says she loves the stretchmarks and flabby bits on her tummy

Isabella shares her pictures on Curvalicious Girl blog and Instagram account, and says that losing weight was just part of an overall transition and that’s why she’s not ashamed to show off her body online.

‘Losing weight for me was just a part of an overall transition. That’s why I’m not ashamed to show my loose skin and any saggy bits,’ she explained. 

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‘I am hugely focused on self-love and promoting a healthy body image. So much of my journey has been about changing my mindset – not just my body shape.

‘Of course I still take pretty selfies too and I like looking nice but I want to be real, flaws and all because I have nothing to hide.

Isabella would try and avoid crowded spaces and spent ’90 per cent’ of her time at home with her son Alfie (pictured), aged five, only leaving the house to make essential trips out

Isabella decided to document her weight loss journey online, and started up an Instagram account called Curvalicious Girl – an honest account of how she was feeling and what losing weight actually felt like

‘For now I am not looking to have any of the loose skin around my tummy removed. 

‘There are of course consequences to losing weight, however I wouldn’t change it for the world. 

‘Yes, I have saggy skin and stretch marks but more importantly I have my health and my pride.

‘My blog is for every other woman out there, regardless of size, to recognise we all have our own insecurities and it’s about time we realise that we are all beautiful.’ 

Before losing weight, Isabella hated leaving the house and found that just getting on a bus was enough for her to break out in a sweat.

Isabella Hancock (pictured here after losing 10 stone), 27, struggled to move about freely and often felt frumpy, hot and out of breath

The mother-of-one said she had never been big as a teenager, but after she had Alfie her weight ballooned

She struggled to move about freely and often felt frumpy, hot and out of breath.

It meant she would try and avoid crowded spaces and spent ’90 per cent’ of her time at home with her son Alfie, aged five, only leaving the house to make essential trips out. 

The mother-of-one said she had never been big as a teenager, but after she had Alfie her weight ballooned. 

She said: ‘Throughout my pregnancy I ate without thinking. I had that “eating for two” excuse and I embraced it.

‘I put on a huge amount of weight just mindlessly scoffing crisps and ordering takeaway pizzas and burgers in the evenings.’

In December 2012, Isabella became depressed about her weight (left) and decided that the only way out of it was a total life overhaul. She had surgery and started dieting but was left with stretch marks on her stomach (right)

In December 2012, Isabella, from Crouch Hill, North London, became depressed and decided that the only way out of it was a total life overhaul.

‘I hated shopping and being in a crowd,’ she said. ‘I’d go into a high street store and feel like I didn’t belong there. 

‘To me it felt like everyone was staring at me, judging me.

‘I wasn’t even quick enough to grab Alfie if he ran off.

‘Everything always came back to my size. I was utterly miserable and felt so trapped.’ 

Isabella underwent a gastric sleeve – a surgery that permanently removes a large chunk of your stomach from the bottom, leaving the organ looking more banana than kidney-shaped. The operation left her with a tiny appetite and quickly the pounds started to fall away

Isabella says her blog is for ‘every other woman out there, regardless of size’

Isabella sought help from her mum and from her GP.

She said: ‘I went to the doctors and just cried. I’ve had the same GP all my life, so thankfully he knew that I had been struggling with my weight and it was getting me down. 

‘The day my world changed. The relief was immense. I took anti-depressants, saw a counsellor got referred for weight loss surgery.

‘I also started Weight Watchers and decided to change my mindset.’

After the operation she lost more weight and started to exercise in the house. Soon after that she took up running for the first time

Isabella lost a total of 9st 7lb over the course of two and a half years but she says she is ‘not ashamed’ to show her ‘lose skin and any saggy bits’

Isabella underwent a gastric sleeve – a surgery that permanently removes a large chunk of your stomach from the bottom, leaving the organ looking more banana than kidney-shaped.

The operation left her with a tiny appetite and quickly the pounds started to fall away.

She said: ‘Before the operation I lost two stone on Weight Watchers.

‘For me that was a huge confidence boost – I was proud of myself for doing it alone.

‘I cut out greasy takeaways and calorie laden crisps and started to snack on fruit and veg.

‘Before I never ate breakfast but I started to eat in the mornings too, usually healthy smoked salmon with an egg or a small chicken salad.

‘After the op I lost more weight and started to exercise in the house, and as I started to feel better about myself I took up running too. 

‘I also decided to document my weight loss journey online and started up an Instagram account called Curvalicious Girl, an honest account of how I was feeling and what losing weight actually felt and looked like.’

She added: ‘Now I can shop in regular sizes and walk confidently down the street without feeling sweaty and self-conscious.