A man left with unsightly excess skin after dropping 13 stone has undergone a pioneering 360-degree body-lift operation in a UK first.
Jordan Martinez, 22, from Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, once tipped the scales at 25 but managed to lose almost half his body weight after overhauling his lifestyle in December 2015.
Despite turning his life around, Jordan was still plagued by insecurities about the rolls of damaged skin he left behind after his dramatic weight loss and launched a crowdfunding appeal to pay for the surgery after he was refused surgery on the NHS.
His condition struck a chord with a plastic surgeon who offered to carry out the five-hour operation – which involved removing strips of skin from his abdomen and back, then lifting his nipples – for just the £6,000 it cost to cover the hospital fees, and Jordan says he is the first patient in the UK to undergo the procedure.
“I was no longer willing to put my skin in my pants before I left the house,” said Jordan – now a personal trainer – who confessed he would rather “die” than carry on as he was.
Jordan Martinez, 22, from Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, weighed 25 stone before undergoing an intensive weight loss program in December 2015 (see)
Jordan became the first patient in the UK to undergo pioneering excess skin surgery after losing 13 stone.
Despite losing so much weight, Jordan, who is now a fitness trainer, felt incomplete with his sagging excess skin still hanging over him (see before left, then right)
“I’d rather die in surgery than live with my excess skin,” Jordan said.
“Even though I was the first person to have this surgery, I knew it was what I had to do to feel complete.
“I was nervous because people were telling me that I could realistically bleed to death on the table because they were doing full-body surgery right away, but I was confident that I was in safe hands.
“But I was no longer willing to tuck my skin into my jeans every morning before I left the house.
“After only five hours of surgery and the removal of my excess skin, I felt like a new person as soon as I woke up.”
His decision to lose weight came after Jordan was advised by his doctor to lose weight at the age of just 19, fearing that he would die young if he didn’t take action (it’s before the loss)
His decision to lose weight came after Jordan’s doctor advised him to lose weight at just 19 years old, fearing he would die young if he didn’t take action.
Jordan was advised by the doctor to lose weight at the age of just 19, due to fear that his size threatened his health in the long term.
Jordan decided to join Slimming World and within two years had halved his body weight.
He added: “I had faced years of bullying at school, I was labeled Jabba the Hut.
“After dealing with it for so many years and being told how dangerous my weight was, I decided to join Slimming World.
The five-hour surgery involved removing strips of skin from his abdomen and back, then lifting his nipples (first left, then right)
The 360 operation also included the removal of loose skin around his buttocks and back (before left and then right)
“But after losing around 10 stone I noticed my skin was starting to sag and I knew I wasn’t going to have a flat iron stomach.
“I felt like a sack of potatoes and I knew I had come so far that I couldn’t quit, but money was the main issue,” Jordan said.
“So I started a fundraising page to raise the money for the surgery and eventually a consultant surgeon contacted me and saw how desperate I was and arranged the breakthrough surgery.”
Now, Jordan weighs 12 stone and is working to pay off the £6,000 loan he took out to cover hospital fees for his operation.
Jordan decided to join Slimming World and within two years he cut his body weight in half (shown during the excess skin weight loss)
“After I lost about 10 stone I noticed my skin was starting to sag and I knew I wasn’t going to have a flat stomach,” she admitted (seen during the transformation)
She said: “I feel complete now and it has changed my life in so many more ways than I could have imagined.
“I used to have to drive three doors down to the supermarket to get junk food, but now I’ve quit my call center job to become a fitness instructor.
“I go to the gym three times a week and now I work on my body, while still being able to treat myself once in a while.
“Despite the fear before the surgery, I’m so glad I took the risk and it made my life worth living again.”
Jordan now weighs 12 stone and is paying off the £6,000 loan he took out to fund his operation
