S'pore woman goes from 140kg to 80kg as tribute to aunt who died

S'pore woman goes from 140kg to 80kg as tribute to aunt who died

Corporate sales executive Lim Yiping, 28, has pretty much been big her entire life -- that is until she managed to lose a whopping 60kg over a period of three years.

Stomp sat down with the born-again fitness buff to find out more about her amazing weight-loss journey.

As she stood at a towering 1.81 metres, our interviewer had to swap the conventional armchair for a gymball to match her eyeline.

During our chat, Yiping shared with us that she literally has been larger-than-life since young.

When she was in primary school, she already weighed 80kg. The figures surpassed the three-digit mark when she moved on to Secondary school.

Like most overweight individuals, Yiping's biggest adversary was food.

She used to eat six meals a day, which included heavy tea-time snacks and supper. Chocolate, potato chips and fast food were some of her favourites that she maintained a love-hate relationship with.

When Yiping was preparing to sit for her 'O' Levels at 16, her father passed away.

She started consuming more than the already copious amounts of food that she was eating in response to the setback.

With the unholy combination of binge-eating and not exercising, Yiping reached her heaviest in 2014, weighing in at 140kg.

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That year, her family was hit with another tragedy. Her aunt passed away due to weight-related complications.

Yiping was very close to her aunty, and took her death very hard. A silver-lining however, emerged out of the dark clouds over her life.

Yiping elaborated: "Throughout my life, my aunty has struggled with weight-loss. I struggled with her, and both of us would go on fad diets and meal replacements together. From time to time, she would check on me.

"When she passed on, it triggered me to do something with my life. I'm sure she won't want me to remain unhealthy."

Thereafter, Yiping set out on her journey to lose weight. She started small, purchasing a second-hand exercise bike and using it for around 30 minutes per day.

Within a month, she lost 10kg.

As she gradually started reducing her excess biological baggage, she moved on to other activities like swimming and eventually running. Her routine also consisted of high-intensity workouts that she did at home.

Yiping continued:"I try my best to exercise four times a week. It can be very hard, but if you see how far you have come, I'm sure you don't want to waste your effort.

"Usually I encourage myself by looking at my photos from the past. I looked horrible. Then I look at myself now, and I will continue. I want to keep going."

And keep going she did.

Slowly but surely, Yiping lost an impressive 60kg in three years. Her weight fluctuates between the high 70s to low 80s nowadays, down from 140kg.

The 28-year-old's ideal weight is 75kg, a target she'll probably hit in the not-too-distant future.

Other than exercise, Yiping's diet also underwent an overhaul. She has cut down on unhealthy food and turned to more nutritious alternatives.

That is not to say however, that she eats very differently from the average Singaporean.

Other than meals with meat and vegetables she prepares on her own, Yiping consumes food from coffeeshops and regular eateries, albeit with limited carbohydrates.

She has also gone on ketogenic diets, which in layman terms, are meals characterised by high-fat, adequate-protein and low-carbohydrates. These meals cause the body to burn fats instead of carbohydrates.

The huge drop in weight however, also brought new concerns for Yiping.

She admitted that she has been a victim of loose skin after her drastic transformation. In an attempt to prevent loose skin and stretch marks, she has been religiously using organic scrubs.

She now runs an online store called Hey Remedy that offers coffee and green tea scrubs to those looking to improve their skin.

Yiping also maintains a tumblr page and an Instagram account to provide updates as well as address questions about her exercise regimes and diet.

She hopes to use the social networking platforms to inform and inspire those who are seeking to lose weight.

In a video interview, Yiping gives us a more in-depth explanation of how she went from 140kg to 80kg. She also shared her experience with fad diets, and gave some advice on how to find motivation to get in shape.

Listen to what she had to say in the video below.

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