Olivia Attwood has revealed she suffered a "really sad end to sport" as a teenager following a serious health problem. The ex-Love Islander competed in long-distance running at county and national level before having to confront a 'horrible' and 'sudden' end to her days in athletics.
The 31-year-old TOWIE star admitted she overtrained which saw her lose weight. As a result, she then devastatingly developed an enlarged heart valve.
Speaking to the PA news agency ahead of taking part in ITV ’s new competition show The Games, she said: "I got really over-trained, and I was super underweight. “I ended up having an enlarged valve in my heart from too much training.
It all ended really suddenly and horribly. ”It took her years to even get back in the gym, having adopted a negative attitude towards sport in general. “Sport was my life,” she said. “And this was like coming back to an environment that I’d shut the door on. "It was really emotional, the first day of being on the track, and it took a while to get back into running at pace like that. “I’d never run like that in normal life, unless I was being chased by a murderer – or if there was a sale on!”The reality TV star will go up against 11 other super-fit celebrities who will have just weeks to master some of the toughest Olympic sports.
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