Amazing recovery for sixth anorexia sufferer whose heart ‘could have stopped at any moment’

A woman who was warned by doctors her heart could “stop at any moment” due to an eating disorder claims a fitness app saved her life.

Julie Levens, from Huyton near Liverpool, struggled with anorexia and overtraining during Covid.

The 30-year-old’s condition became “out of control” during the lockdown.

At her lowest weight of just under 6kg, charity worker Ms Levens was rushed to hospital with protruding collarbones, fed a tube and told doctors she was “lucky to be alive”.

But she claimed that changing her “mindset about food and fitness” helped her progress her way to recovery and finish in second place.

The 30-year-old, now 8, says she’s shifted her mind to healthy eating and fitness and has broken away from dysfunctional habits and can enjoy breakfast again, thanks in part to a fitness app

“When I went to the hospital, they didn’t know how my heart was still beating,” Ms. Levens said.

“When I went to the hospital and was fed through tubes, one of the doctors told me my heart could stop beating at any moment.”

During her hospital stay, she was so severely underweight and malnourished that doctors did not allow her to go to the bathroom on her own.

Around 1.3 million people in the UK and 28.8 million in the US suffer from an eating disorder such as anorexia or bulimia.

According to the NHS, many patients have no control over what they eat, skip meals, exercise too much and struggle to recognize that their weight loss is serious.

The charity worker said her eating disorder was caused by disordered habits that “got out of control” during lockdown.

At her lowest weight in less than six years, she was rushed to hospital, where she was tube-fed and doctors told her she was “lucky to be alive”. But now she has achieved second place and continues her road to recovery

Ms Levens sought help from the NHS when she realized she needed a drastic change to improve her health.

However, she felt that NHS services did not offer enough support and felt like a “naughty child” because she was “a bit underweight”.

“What I needed was more personalized and supportive care,” Ms Levens said.

On a walk after being discharged from the hospital, she came across the fitness app POW8R and now credits it with her recovery.

Ms Levens said POW8R’s live high-intensity interval training (HIIT) sessions became a lifesaver and gave her crucial structure and motivation to get healthier.

After using the app for fitness and health advice for two years, she came in 2nd and now feels stronger than ever.

“When I started training I was using 4kg kettlebells and my upper body was so weak I couldn’t even lift them properly,” Ms Levens said.

After two years of using the fitness and health advice app, Ms Levens came in 2nd and now feels stronger than ever

Ms Levens sought help from the NHS when she realized she needed a drastic change to improve her health

“Now I use 16kg kettlebells and do the live workouts up to four times a week.”

She added that changing her eating habits was key to her recovery from anorexia and that Holly Braithwaite, 36, co-founder of POW8R, helped her avoid calorie counting and compulsive behaviour.

Although she is not a professional eating disorder expert, Ms Levens said Ms Braithwaite made an effort to provide emotional support and guidance.

“She took the focus off weight and focused on getting strong and healthy, supplementing my workouts and getting the right amount of vitamins and protein,” she said.

“Breakfast used to be the most difficult meal of the day for me.

“Now I enjoy all my meals and especially enjoy making my post-workout breakfast with Greek yogurt, protein powder and berries to fuel my muscles and get stronger.”