A woman who spent the COVID-19 pandemic losing a whopping 140lbs in just eight months is convinced that her stunning weight loss helped her recover when she caught the virus.
Angelina Toppi, 24, from Harper County, Maryland, had gone from a massive 320lbs to 180lbs before she tested positive for coronavirus in October.
‘If I was as big as I had been, I think my symptoms and the length of them would have been far worse,’ she said.
Then and now: Angelina Toppi, 24, from Harper County, Maryland, went from 320lbs to 180lbs in eight months during the coronavirus pandemic
New woman: Angelina caught COVID-19 in October but was able to recover at home. She believes her symptoms would have been ‘far worse’ if she hadn’t had lost the weight
Luckily, Angelina did not have to go to the hospital and recovered at home.
‘My symptoms weren’t that severe and I think it was because I am healthy and not obese anymore,’ she explained.
‘I lost my sense of smell, I had headaches, and I was really tired but it only lasted three or four days.
‘I think if I was as heavy as I had been before, I would have had issues with my breathing.’
Changes: Angelina started every morning with four Dunkin’ Donuts egg and cheese wraps, but now she follows a high-carb, low-fat keto diet
Angelina, who works in accounting at a car dealership, started losing weight in February — just three weeks before the US went into lockdown — after the breakdown of a relationship.
‘I went through a bad breakup and I realized how heavy and unhealthy I was,’ she said. ‘The best way to get back at someone is to make yourself look better.
‘Most people are gaining weight during COVID, but I’m losing it.’
She turned to the high-fat, low-carb keto diet beloved by celebrities, including Kourtney Kardashian and Katie Couric.
‘I have about 20g of carbs a day,’ she explained. ‘I have no sugar, no bread, and no pasta. I just eat meat, salad, and vegetables.’
Angelina used to begin each day with four Dunkin’ Donuts egg and cheese wraps washed down with a large coffee with extra cream and caramel before gorging on chips, candy, and garlic bread throughout the day.
But she swapped the fast food for lean salads or cooked vegetables with grilled tuna or chicken and she now snacks on whole almonds.
‘At first it was very difficult, but after about two months, it really just became a lifestyle,’ she said. ‘I could know how many carbs were in something just by looking at it. It became second nature.
‘I did miss pasta,’ she admitted. ‘I’m Italian so my family eats a lot of spaghetti.’
Lockdown did make it more difficult for her to work out, but she is now back in the gym five days a week.
Exciting: Angelina added that she is thrilled with her weight loss and has swapped her massive size 20 clothes for a trim size 8
Confidence: Angelina, who started losing weight in February after a bad breakup, said she feels ‘so much better’ about herself
‘When I first started my diet, I was working out every day for three weeks,’ she said. ‘But then the shutdown happened so I started doing other things like intermittent fasting. And, obviously, when I got COVID, I couldn’t go to the gym.’
Angelina added that she is thrilled with her weight loss and has swapped her massive size 20 clothes for a trim size 8.
But she said she still wants to shed more pounds, revealing her goal weight is 140lbs — the same amount that she has already lost.
After she reaches her goal weight, she plans on slowly incorporating healthy carbs such as fruit and potatoes into her diet again.
‘I feel so much better about myself,’ she said. ‘I find walking easier and I don’t hear myself breathing all the time.
‘I can fit into clothes at regular stores now, I’m not going to plus size stores all the time.’