Celebrities With Fat to Fit Transformations

Weight loss transformation isn’t a new phenomenon but with celebrities and socialites recently shedding excess weight to look trim through various means, including surgery, the weight loss industry in Nigeria has now assumed a new dimension. IVORY UKONU writes about some of these celebrities/socialites who went from pulling around excessive weight to flaunting remarkable transformations

Ifeanyi Ubah

For someone who has lived most of his life on the large side, the new-look of former Young Progressive Party, YPP, governorship candidate in Anambra State, Senator Ifeanyi Ubah, has left many speechless.

Ubah, the founder of petroleum marketing company, Capital Oil Plc, now spots a trim frame and looks almost unrecognisable. Before now, he once boasted to close friends that he owned a well-equipped gym in his Abuja home which he hardly made use of. He also has masseuses on standby in his home to always massage his hands and feet and whenever it is time for meals, Ubah who doesn’t like to eat alone, always has a large spread consisting of a variety of meals for him and any guest (s) present at that moment.

Ubah who recently defected to the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, underwent a gastric bypass surgery, also known as Roux-en-Y, a type of weight-loss surgery that involves creating a small pouch from the stomach and connecting the newly created pouch directly to the small intestine.

After gastric bypass, swallowed food will go into this small pouch of the stomach and then directly into the small intestine, by-passing most of your stomach and the first section of your small intestine. It is one of the most commonly performed types of bariatric surgery when diet and exercise haven’t worked or when one has serious health problems because of one’s weight. Ubah’s weight loss journey, which he had been mulling for a while, began late last year.

Hakeem Olaleye

US-based luxury bridal stylist, Hakeem Olaleye, more popularly known as Segun Gele, stunned many of his clients and fans when he lost weight dramatically. The once beefy guy lost 120lbs and he is currently spotting a trim look. Hakeem revealed that he struggled to shed his weight for 13 years, having lived with it for over 35 years. This caused him to start managing conditions, such as diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure.

He also confessed that in the past before he finally decided to lose weight, he turned deaf ears when loved ones complained about his weight getting out of hand. Today, he is grateful that he eventually took charge of his life and made a great turn around. He attributed it to dedication, handwork, and consistency with self-love.

Kemi Balogun

She is the wife of Bolaji Balogun, the first son of late banking Czar, Subomi Balogun. Kemi, a woman who dedicates her life to the spiritual and emotional growth of other women, used to be quite chubby. Although many admired her looks and didn’t let it define their own perspective of her, she took a conscious decision to shed all that excessive weight and chose to have a slimmer frame while staying healthy with her dietician-approved meals.

An evangelist, intercessor, prayer advocate and teacher of the Word, Kemi runs her own gospel ministry with a vibrant outreach arm that works with the prisons, the homeless, orphanages, the blind, destitute, old people’s homes, abused and women at risk and widows in Nigeria and several other countries.

Adedamola Ladejobi

Adedamola Ladejobi runs a health and wellness company targeted at improving the lives of people by educating them on ways to achieve their desired body goals. She does this through the AskDamz brand, a weight management, health, and wellness company which she started in 2013 which she first started as a hobby. This was inspired by her decision to live a healthy lifestyle.

Ladejobi struggled with Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) and this motivated her to start the wellness journey. A United Kingdom certified personal nutritionist with a diploma in nutrition, she is a Barrister and Solicitor of the Nigerian Supreme Court with an LLB from the University of Exeter and a BL from the Nigerian Law School. The married mother of two children runs Smile Express Empowerment Foundation, a platform built to help small businesses and the less privileged in the society and is a strong believer in women empowerment.

Safia Usman

Skincare expert, Safia Usman more popularly known by her brand name, Fifi Dmoon, now looks nothing like her old self. Besides the fact that she had to lose weight, she also had to reduce the size of her enlarged bum which she surgically acquired twice. There are insinuations that the Akwa Ibom indigene had to lose weight and deflate the Brazilian bum due to a need to feel light, following an alleged illness.

Jumoke Oyeneyin

Popular fabric merchant and socialite, Jumoke Oyeneyin joined the fit and fam gang when she decided to shed some weight a few years ago. The chubby-looking entrepreneur, who deals in high end swiss lace fabrics, simply disappeared from the social radar only to resurface spotting a new look. She looked quite lean and her new look set tongues wagging as to why she shed the excessive weight. All kinds of insinuations were made and it took a while for many to get accustomed to her new look.

Olufunke Abosede Ogunboye

Previously a size 32, comedienne Abosede Ogunboye, aka Lepacious Bose, lost an outstanding 70kg and is currently a size 14. She took the decision to shed some weight after being told that she was acting like somebody that was going to die because of her heavy breathing. She took a reality check and decided to ask herself some questions by taking an inventory of her life. She wrote a list of things that made her happy. She couldn’t find much to write. She tried to write a list of things that made her unhappy and she had so many things to write about. The first 10 things were tied to being fat. So, she decided it was time to make a change.

She stayed away from ‘eba’ for three years and missed eating good food. It wasn’t a decision that she really liked; it took a lot of hard work, discipline and commitment. She tried to avoid consuming junk food and soft drinks while commuting during the day. Sometimes she attends parties and won’t eat anything. And she hasn’t looked back since.

Teniola Apata

Known for her plus-size fashion style, the chubby singer decided to tackle her obesity after she started fearing for her life. She started to adopt better choices for herself when she realised that she needed to be alive to enjoy the fame and money she had acquired. She took the courage to shed 75 pounds (34 kg). She simply disappeared from the radar and surfaced, spotting a transformed look. She however revealed that she shed the excessive fat without going under the knife. Teni explained how challenging it was to restrain herself from consuming her favourite foods and drinks in her bid to seek better health.

Ibironke Ojo-Anthony

When Nollywood actress, Ibironke Ojo-Anthony aka Ronke Oshodi Oke decided to shed her excessive weight, many naturally assumed she was nursing an ailment and this was because of how shocking and drastic her weight loss was. Well, they were not wrong. The divorced mother of two known for her buxomy figure had challenges battling a kidney ailment which she has now been healed of. She revealed that since 2021 she had been going through a weight loss programme, which helped her shed weight from 110kg to her current size which is between 86 – 87kg. Today, she is happier because of it.

Eniola Badmus

Nollywood actress, Eniola Badmus took the bull by its horns when she decided to shed her excess weight. She wowed many after pictures of her new look surfaced online in 2021. Eniola revealed that she had so far lost a total of 33kg in a few months by sticking to healthier habits, while adding that she had received more compliments and made more friends after then.

At some point, she said, she could not control what she ate anymore as she ate anything as long as it was edible. So she decided to do something about it. She stayed glued to her diet routine after consulting a dietician and therapist. She started abstaining from carbohydrates and beef and began to eat lots of salad and vegetables. Although she did not explicitly spell out the other procedures that resulted in the weight loss, from her explanations it appeared as if the actress went under the knife for a gastric bypass surgery. The 40-year-old actress said that she made the decision to lose weight because of the social stigma that her previous size attracted and pressure from her family and friends.

Elvina Ibru

Nollywood actress, Elvina Ibru and billionaire daughter of late Chief Michael Ibru, went from 260 pounds and shocked the general public when she slimmed down to less than 70 pounds. Her decision to undergo weight loss came after she started feeling sluggish and suddenly trapped in her own body. She got encouraged by her sister, Gloria, to reduce her weight. Also, her body was just not responding to certain things she loved doing despite not battling ailments, such as diabetes, high cholesterol, or hypertension, except a mild back-ache, but she also didn’t want a situation where she would become unhealthy.

Anita Asuoha

Popular comedienne, Anita Asuoha, aka Real Warri Pikin, shocked her almost 4 million followers when she debuted a slimmer frame. The mother of two revealed that her husband persuaded her to undergo surgery because he was worried about her health. Anita said that she had been struggling with her weight for many years. She tried dieting and exercising, but she was unable to lose weight consistently. She also said that she was experiencing health problems due to her weight, including difficulty in breathing, pain in her knee, high cholesterol and chest pain. Anita said that the surgery was the best decision she ever made. She has since lost over 60 kg and currently feels much healthier. She is also more confident and comfortable in her own skin.

Ngozi Ezeonu

About 10 years ago, when she lost weight drastically, many fans of plus-sized Nollywood actress, Ngozi Ezeonu, concluded that her weight loss was health related. All manner of ailments were diagnosed, forcing the actress to cry out to set the records straight. She insisted that she only shed her excess weight in order to feel young and cautioned many to end their insinuation that she was ill. Today, the actress spots a healthy and trim stature.

Uche Ogbodo

Nollywood actress, Uche Ogbodo, began her weight loss journey in 2018 after gaining weight through childbirth. The actress decided to hit the gym to shed a few pounds. The married actress who recently welcomed her third child revealed that her then boyfriend encouraged her to lose the excess weight in order to regain her self-confidence. Expectedly many didn’t believe the weight loss was achieved by merely exercising. They wanted to know the secret of her weight loss. Not minding cynics and with eyes on the ball, she has continued to flaunt her very trim figure.

Destiny Amaka

Onair Personality, Destiny Amaka, joined the trim look gang when she decided to shed her excess weight. She shed over 23kg of flesh within 12 months and she said she has been happier and healthier as the medical challenges attached to her former weight have since been a thing of the past. Her previous weight affected her emotionally. She had a knee operation, her left knee to be specific and her right knee carried the bulk of her weight as a result and she soon began to feel pain there. She couldn’t wear high-heeled shoes for much longer and her lower back had issues. She also had a lot of personal health issues that her weight was not helping her to get over.

She however insists that she lost all that weight naturally without resorting to weight loss pills or surgery. Amaka now looks much slimmer after shedding 66kg from her previous 89kg. With a smaller waistline, she says, she feels lighter and healthier.