After reaching a size 20 just six months ago, Chanelle Hayes is now on track to be a size 10 by the end of the year – but she admits getting her dream body has taken an emotional toll
After years of battling with her weight over the years, Chanelle Hayes revealed she’d never felt more confident after slimming from a size 18-20 to a slender size 12 in just six months.
Posting the results on her Instagram, the 5ft 3 star admitted she’d paid the price for such a dramatic transformation, explaining it’s taken “perseverance, hard work, consistency and dedication”. She added that she could be “smaller” and “lighter”, but wants to keep her muscle mass.
Last month, Closer reported how Chanelle, 31, had lost over 2st after following a strict 1,200 calorie-a-day diet and working out with a personal trainer a few times a week. But sources say that she’s now eager to reach a size 10 by the end of the year.
A source explains, “Chanelle is thrilled with her initial weight loss, and has worked really hard. She’s reduced her carbs and banned herself from having cheat days. She’s definitely gone to extremes this time around, and sometimes she feels teary and like she could give up. But seeing her body change is all the motivation she needs.
“Breakfast is usually bacon and poached eggs; lunch is a salad or soup and for dinner. She sticks to protein, grilled veggies and fresh salads. If she gets peckish, she’ll snack on a small bag of trail mix nuts.
“She’s recently been hitting the gym three times a week with her trainer, and will also try to squeeze in mini workouts when she’s at home with the kids, doing a mix of circuit-training and exercise DVDs.”
Check out Big Brother series two - where are they now?
Big Brother series two - where are they now
1 of 22Brian Dowling
Former flight attendant, Brian won the hearts of the nation and was crowned the series two winner.
2 of 22Brian Dowling
Brian rose to fame after his win, earning him a host of presenting jobs. He now has the perhaps unenviable job of hosting the Real Housewives of Cheshire's end of season fight / finale.
3 of 22Helen Adams
Helen Adams was most known for her saying, "I love blinking, I do." She gave us a juicy on-screen romance with Paul Clarke despite having a boyfriend on the outside.
4 of 22Helen Adams
Much to the BB fans delight, the pair later got together but split five years later. Helen now works as a hairdresser in Bristol.
5 of 22Paul Clark
Paul Clarke originally locked lips with Penny Ellis. But after she was evicted it didn't take long for his eyes to wander to Helen.
6 of 22Paul Clark
After his split with Helen in 2006, Paul returned to the career he had before the show and is now a car designer.
7 of 22Penny Ellis
Bumbling Penny Ellis was known for being the English teacher who went wild and stripped off.
8 of 22Penny Ellis
After she bared all, the school decided to let Penny go. After making it into panto in Porthcawl, she went back to teaching.
9 of 22Amma Antwi-Agyei
Coming in seventh place was Amma Antwi-Agyei, she took Big Brother as an opportunity to reveal to her deeply-religious mother that she was a £1,000 a night bisexual lap dancer.
10 of 22Amma Antwi-Agyei
Amma went on play Yasmin Shawcross on one series of Sky One's Dream Team. Now, she's rumoured to have returned to her stripping work.
11 of 22Dean O’Laughlin
Dear old Dean finished in third place and walked away with a broken record for building the highest sugar cube tower.
12 of 22Dean O’Laughlin
After the show, the Brummie music enthusiast teamed up with fellow housemate, Stuart to sell tea-bag bins.
13 of 22Elizabeth Woodcock
Elizabeth Woodcock entered the house as a website designer from Cumbria. She was a quiet soul who made it to fourth place.
14 of 22Elizabeth Woodcock
She left the house to discover that naked pictures of herself had been sold by her boyfriend to the Daily Star. She later split from him and made a documentary on motorbiking.
15 of 22Josh Rafter
Josh was the first ever BB contestant to be voted into the house through the Diary Room door after the series had already started. The fitness fanatic like to show off his buff bod, but it wasn't enough to keep him in the house as he came in sixth place in week eight.
16 of 22Josh Rafter
Josh is now a property developer who bought the company he worked for.
17 of 22Narinder Kauer
Narinder was best buds with Brian but she did NOT get on well with Helen. Narinder missed her wedding anniversary in the house but she was evicted on day 29.
18 of 22Narinder Kaur
Since leaving the house, Narinder has written a book about her time in the house and had two children with her husband. She still pops up on the telly.
19 of 22Paul 'Bubble' Ferguson
Bubble is perhaps best remembered for his collection of hats, which Brian once stole before starting a ridiculous argument (they loved a play fight). Bubble was the only person in the house who didn't drink, so we're not sure how he managed to survive when everyone else was sloshed.
20 of 22Paul 'Bubble' Ferguson
Bubble and Dean released the song Standing Tall which charted at 99 in the UK charts. He's also starred in pantomimes, an episode of The Office and in Dead Set.
21 of 22Stuart Hosking
Stuart Hosking was the oldest contestant in the house. He got a reputation for being a bit sly, and became known for winking when he was being dishonest. He was the second housemate to be evicted.
22 of 22Stuart Hosking
Firstly: Stuart is RIPPED. Now that's out of the way, we can also tell you that he runs a bin bag business with fellow housemate Dean and has had four children. He also put on a Big Brother pantomime.
The reality TV star – who was known for being a Victoria Beckham lookalike following her stint in 2007’s Big Brother – has been honest about her weight struggles after yo-yo-ing between a size 6 and size 20.
Opening up to Closer in 2016, the 31-year old confessed that she’d reached a size 18 and was on the cusp of developing diabetes due to her obsession with food and her inability to exercise because of back pain.
She revealed, “I’ll order so much food that it’s like I’m having a buffet! I’m barely eating any fruit and vegetables, which is terrible.
“I can’t sit still or stand up for longer than 30 minutes without getting shooting pains up my back. Being my weight is making it so much worse, as it’s putting a lot of pressure on my joints, and my muscles can’t support my back. I’m basically in pain all down my body every day.”
After falling pregnant with second son Frankie in 2017, Chanelle – who is a mum to Blakely, eight, with ex, footballer Matthew Bates – spent the first few months bedbound, suffering from hyperemesis gravidarum, a condition that is more likely to occur in overweight women, and saw her vomiting up to 40 times a day. She also faced numerous tests for diabetes, which can put the baby at serious risk of a premature birth.
Speaking to Closer in 2017, she insisted the ordeal had been a big “wake-up call” – adding, “My health issues during this pregnancy make me feel really guilty. My own irresponsibility that may have caused health impacts on the baby. I can tell everyone I’m happy with my weight gain until I’m blue in the face – but if I’m really unhealthy and am putting my baby’s life at risk because of it, something has to change.”
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Later that year, the mother-of-two vowed to get a “revenge body” when her partner, PE teacher Ryan Oates, left her just weeks after she’d given birth to their son Frankie. But, by the summer of 2018, she had yo-yoed back to a size 18. Despite a bitter split, Chanelle and Ryan have since formed a close friendship as co-parents – even sparking speculation they had rekindled their romance when they were pictured looking close at a recent event.
But despite her love life remaining a question mark, insiders say Chanelle has insisted her weight-loss mission is for the sake of her sons – not a man.
Our source adds, “Chanelle looks back at her past weight fluctuation is more determined than ever. She’s doing it for her kids. Her goal weight for the end of the year is 9st 9lbs, and to be a size 10. It’d be lovely to attract the attention of men, but that’s not her goal.
Read even more celebrity news in this week's Closer magazine - out now.