'Chronic condition meant my legs went huge and wouldn't stop growing'

Chloe Richardson had been dedicated to rugby for as long as she could remember.

Her passion for the sport first started at the age of nine, and by her early twenties, she was already playing semi-professionally.

Her intense sports schedule meant she also worked tirelessly to ensure she stayed in tip-top shape.

But all that changed in 2022 when she realised something drastic was happening to her body.

Chloe, now 26, was thriving in her rugby career when she noticed her legs were growing bigger while her body stayed the same.

No matter how much she trained or how many hours she spent in the gym, her waist remained small but her legs continued to swell.

Having always been fit and active, Chloe says the sudden change was unsettling – pushing her to dangerous extremes.

Chloe, who lives in Warrington, says she began working out three times a day while cutting her calorie intake to just 800kcal.

And even though she could see her ribs, her legs continued to balloon.

“I’ve always been an active person,” she told the Manchester Evening News. “Always in the gym and playing rugby, always been really good on my diet and things like that.

“My legs were just getting bigger and bigger but my waist was staying small. For ages, I was working out and putting myself in a hole.

“I was exercising two to three times a day, seven days a week. I was cutting my calories to ridiculously low but I was never seeing any change in my legs.

“It got to 800 kcal a day, which is nothing. My ribs were showing but my legs were the same.”

“It was one of the most mentally tough times of my life. I couldn’t buy clothes that fit. I didn’t want to wear anything baggy or that made me bigger.

“I didn’t like wearing a bikini full stop or getting my