325lb woman sheds 130lbs after being told she ‘didn’t fit’ on the Harry Potter ride

A 325-pound woman has shed nearly 130 pounds and completely transformed her body after being turned away from an amusement park ride because she was too heavy.   

Alexis Green, a 28-year-old catering services manager from Chino, California, struggled with her weight after leaving high school. Years of partying and working in the hospitality industry, where food was abundant, led her to balloon to a size 26. 

‘I used to always be the “bigger” girl growing up, but I gained most of my weight after high school and going into college,’ she said. ‘I was constantly partying and eating anything and everything. It didn’t help that I worked at a restaurant with not the healthiest food either.’  

Alexis never exercised, and on a typical day, she would eat upwards of 3,000 calories. Her diet almost entirely consisted of fast food, sugary drinks, and snacks.  

Between 2014 and 2016, she gained over 100 pounds, and she felt like she had no control over the person she was becoming. 

‘I was the girl who used humor and b***hiness to cover up the fact that I was hurting inside and didn’t know how to get out of my own body,’ she explained. 

‘If I did not like you as a person or if I ever felt someone didn’t like me, I would go straight to being rude and b****y to that person for no reason as a defense mechanism. I would not even have proof that they didn’t like me. I would just assume.’

Alexis said people would constantly come up to her and say ‘but you’re so pretty.’  

‘Okay, yes, someone can be pretty, but that has nothing to do with their weight,’ she said. ‘Whenever I heard that, I would just smile and say thank you but then it would stick with me internally.’ 

The turning point for Alexis came while on a trip with friends to Universal Studios in Hollywood in the summer of 2016. 

After waiting in line for the Harry Potter ride for over an hour, a ride steward pulled her aside and made her sit in a test seat to check that she would fit. 

With her friends standing in front of her to avoid onlookers staring, Alexis was told she was too big for the ride. Completely embarrassed and upset that her weight had spoiled the day for not only her but her friends, too, she knew that she had to lose the weight. 

‘My two best friends were p****d at the ride and didn’t want to go on anymore because of me,’ she recalled. ‘This is where I realized my size was a burden and causing others not to enjoy themselves because I physically couldn’t. I knew I had to change, and I did.’ 

Hating how she looked in dresses and being fed up with having good-intentioned friends tell her she looked pretty regardless of her weight, Alexis explored the options for weight loss surgery.

She ultimately decided to undergo a vertical sleeve gastrectomy, a procedure in which a large part of the stomach is removed in order to reduce the patient’s appetite, 

Alexis was put on a grueling pre-surgery plan that included a six-month medically watched diet, frequent nutrition classes, and a visit with a psychologist to ensure she was mentally prepared for the changes to her body before the surgery was approved.

In March 2018, she went under the knife, and within a year, she shrunk to just 196 pounds. She now fits into a slim size 10. 

Since the surgery, Alexis has learned to love herself again. She can now cross her legs, stand up with ease, and ride rollercoasters with her friends.  

She has cut her calorie intake to 1,200 calories per day and chooses healthy options over fast food and snacks.  

‘The hardest thing is going from a normal stomach to only being able to consume about four or five ounces at a time, and it changes everything,’ she said.

‘In order to maintain your weight loss after surgery, you have to have a strict workout regimen. So between the gym and some group training classes, I have been able to stay on top of this.’

For breakfast, she will have a protein shake with eggs, fruit, or yogurt, while lunch is usually a salad. She ends the day with either chicken or seafood paired with vegetables for dinner.     

After proving that she could keep the weight off, she had two more surgeries last month as part of her transformation. 

Alexis had a tummy tuck with micro liposuction and a breast lift in order to remove the excess skin that hung from her body following her dramatic weight loss. 

‘When most people see the before and after pictures, they cannot even believe it was me before,’ she explained. ‘People saying, “I can’t even believe that was you,” are my favorite compliments because it shows how hard I have worked to become who I am today.

‘I still have that old Alexis in me, but now just new and improved with a much more positive outlook on life,’ she added. 

‘Don’t get it twisted, I still have my cheat meals of fast food every once in a while, but it’s all about balance.

‘Before I hated me and the way I looked, but going through this process has taught me that I can do anything that anybody else can.’