Why Shanna Moakler Decided to Speak Out About Her Major Body Transformation (Exclusive)

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Shanna Moakler is showing off a major transformation!

The 45-year-old former Playmate opened up to ET's Deidre Behar about why now was the perfect time to share before-and-after pics of her weight loss over the last year and open up about her journey.

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"I am in a place where I feel like I am close to my goals," Moakler exclusively told ET. "I also am at a place where I am not only feeling the difference, I can actually see it too!"

Wearing a stomach-exposing, red T-shirt and black leggings in both pics posted on Instagram this week, Moakler's after photo showed off her flatter tummy and slimmer legs. The mom of three -- Atiana, 21, Landon, 16, and Alabama, 14 -- explained that having a doctor that gave her unneeded hormones and being in a toxic relationship made her gain 40 pounds and begin unhealthy eating habits. Moakler revealed that at her highest, she weighed almost 170 pounds.

"When I was put on the hormone testosterone, it made me gain 40 pounds. I was almost 170, which is very heavy for me. I was always 125 my whole life," she shared. "Today I am 135! I do not expect to be what I once weighed in my '20s or even '30s for that matter, but I would like to feel healthy and strong for my age."

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Ok ignore how absolutely awful I look in these photos 😂 but I wanted to post my progress over a year, now I know people are gonna say you look fine on the photo on the left ( and that’s sweet) I hid my weight pretty well but I wasn’t fine, I was super unhappy, miserable and I was working out like an animal with no results for a couple reasons...1) I had a doctor lie to me and give me hormones I didn’t need which made me gain 40lbs ( this is common as the more they sell the more bonuses they get, like trips to Hawaii!) 2) even though I was working out I ate like shit because I was in a completely unhealthy relationship...I first had my mommy make over with @drleifrogers this was to fix my muscles which was probably the best thing I ever did in my life!! I am so grateful for him and his staff! And if you have had c sections or recti diastassis from babies look into it! My YouTube video on my journey is on my link tree in bio! 3)! I started working with @davidallennutrition who finally got the hormones out of my system and got me eating properly, he custom makes plans to your bloodwork!! It’s epic! I stopped eating for emotional pleasure and started eating to fuel my body. I also started using @bombshell_news workouts and conquered my fear of weights... and finally got out of a relationship that didn’t empower me. There was no easy fix, there was no overnight plan... but i had an awesome team and I now just work out daily, I still eat healthy but allow myself some good stuff and I’ve learned soooo much from the whole experience the last two years! I hear from moms and newly divorced women everyday who are in the thick of things and I wanted to show if I can do it, I know you can too! ❤️👊🏼⚓️💪🏼

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"I remember filming my TV show, Growing Up Supermodel, and just being uncomfortable," she said of her breaking point. "And then when I saw myself on TV, not even recognizing myself, it was really hard to see. Then in June I separated with my boyfriend of five years. I was super unhealthy, eating terribly and I decided that this was it. I was going to put all the energy and love and time back into myself and make myself feel good again."

Moakler shared that her previous diet consisted of fast food, take out and processed food, "things that I could just grab on the go."

"I was lazy and I didn’t want to cook or plan my meals. That all changed -- and it didn’t change overnight. I had to really make conscious decisions every day and plan and cook," she shared, adding, "I am now single and have never been happier."

To transform her body, Moakler had a "mommy make over" to fix her muscles, she wrote on her Instagram post, which she said was "the best thing" she's ever done. Additionally, she started working with a nutritionist who "got the hormones out of my system and got me eating properly." 

Her diet now consists of coffee, some hard boiled eggs, turkey bacon or a protein shake for breakfast. "For lunch, I love salads, so I will do, like, a kale Caesar with chicken breasts. I try to switch up my proteins," she noted. "And for dinner, I will have baked lemon salmon with steam or roasted broccoli. I cook everything myself and I portion everything out as well. For snacks, I usually have oranges or a protein shake. My diet was custom-tailored to me off my blood work with David Allen Nutrition."

And amid self-isolation in the COVID-19 outbreak, she's sticking to her workout routines with the help of great apps on her phone. "Before the health crisis, I was doing weights and cardio three times a week. Legs on Mondays, arms and abs on Wednesdays, and full body on Fridays. I would do about 20 to 30 minutes of cardio, but that's just more because running helps me feel good," she described. "I also enjoy a hot yoga class."

Above all, she's so grateful for the positive feedback and support she's received from her fans and followers.

"I am actually really surprised how supportive everyone has been," she expressed. "I know we will never make everyone happy, but I get letters from women everyday who are going through bad breakups or just had babies and they are struggling. It won’t happen overnight but I wanted to show [that] if you really stick to it you can and will change your life."

"We all fall down in life, we all at some point will hit a wall and become overwhelmed," she added. "However, we all do possess the ability to take our power back and make daily changes to better ourselves. I learned that no one else is responsible for my mental, emotional and physical well being. Only I can dictate my happiness. I want people to know you don’t need to have a lot of money to make healthy changes and there are SO many resources out there to get you on a path of health and wellness! Take it one day at a time, one healthy choice at a time. We got this!"

Watch the video below for more on Moakler.

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