‘I was a triple size zero but now I’m going to run the London Marathon...’
A FORMER anorexia sufferer who was so thin people offered her free food is now preparing to run the London Marathon.
Despite the ongoing risk of suffering broken bones as a result of the osteoporosis brought on by her condition, Lexi Richmond wants to raise £5,000 to help other people battling mental illness.
“I must’ve gone from about nine stone to just under five stone,” said Lexi, from Bridgend, who is now a healthy 21-yearold student.
“It got to the point where I was just eating an apple a day and working out for three hours a day and the weight fell off. But I couldn’t see there was a problem at all. I suffered from body dysmorphia and thought I was bigger than I was.
“My parents took me on holiday and it was people looking at me by the pool that made me realise [how thin I was].
“People would give us free starters [in restaurants] and say ‘That’s for your daughter’ so I think people must’ve thought I was ill.”
At her lowest point Lexi – who is also a wellknown local singer who performs under the name Ahnuh Valentine – was so small she had to buy clothes that were a US size triple zero, the equivalent of a UK size zero. She is now a size eight.
“I remember going into Ted Baker, which has American sizes, and a double zero was too big,” said Lexi, who is in the final year of the events management degree course at Cardiff Metropolitan University.
She developed anorexia while in Year Nine at Bryntirion Comprehensive School in Bridgend after being bullied over her size.
“I was a bigger girl, I will admit,” she said. “And I am short so it shows up.”
She was taunted and called names like “fatty” and tripped up as she walked.
As a result she started eating her lunch in the toilets so no-one had the opportunity to make a nasty remark.
At home Lexi avoided meals and made excuses not to eat, which caused rows with her parents Cath and Steve.
When she did eat she used a teaspoon or would take so long to eat in a restaurant that they would be forced to leave before she had finished.
And even though she was convinced she didn’t have a problem her mum Cath, a nurse, knew bet- ter. Lexi was referred to a psychiatrist at the Princess of Wales Hospital when she was 14 and both the hospital and school provided vital support to help her get back to normal eating habits.
She was even picked up from school at lunchtime and taken out to eat to ensure she not only ate well but also that she didn’t have to feel selfconscious.
Leaving school early to attend college and taking up running has also helped Lexi to overcome her demons and now she is a size eight, a healthy weight for her height.
But the anorexia, which caused her body to think it was going into meno- pause, has left her with osteoporosis.
Despite this she and dad Steve, who runs Steve Richmond Carpets, are in training for the London Marathon on April 23.
They aim to raise £5,000 for a new charity called MQ, which stands for Mental Health and Quality of Life.
Lexi said its aim is to carry out research into the causes of mental illness.
She also hopes that by telling her story and showing that the disease can be overcome she will inspire other sufferers.
To sponsor Steve and Lexi go to www. facebook.com/ LexiandSteves London Marathon/
‘It got to the point where I was just eating an apple a day’ Lexi Richmond