'They told me to go jump off a bridge and kill myself': Plus-size model who shed 240LBS reveals she's been sent DEATH THREATS from 'fat activists' who are angry about her weight loss 

  • The mother-of-three more than halved her body weight after being told by a flight attendant to buy herself a second seat because of her size
  • The 36-year-old from Las Vegas has since dropped from a size 34 to a size 12/14 and now weighs 170lbs
  • She said she does not 'miss anything' about weighing 410lbs and that she loves her new body
  • Rosie said she was targeted by 'fat activists' who sent her hateful messages

By Miranda Bryant For Dailymail.com

Published: | Updated:

Plus-size model Rosie Mercado who shed 240lbs said she was targeted by 'fat activists' who told her to kill herself after her dramatic weight loss.

The mother-of-three from Las Vegas said she does not 'miss anything' about being 410lbs but that she has received hate mail directed at her transformed body.

The 36-year-old, who used to be a size 34 and is now a 12/14, was told to 'jump off a bridge and kill myself' by people who objected to her weight loss, she claimed in an interview with TMZ.   

Abuse: Plus-size model Rosie Mercado, pictured left before her weightloss and right after, has revealed she received vicious hate mail after losing 240lbs
Abuse: Plus-size model Rosie Mercado, pictured left before her weightloss and right after, has revealed she received vicious hate mail after losing 240lbs

Abuse: Plus-size model Rosie Mercado, pictured left before her weightloss and right after, has revealed she received vicious hate mail after losing 240lbs

The 36-year-old from Las Vegas, pictured recently, said  

Hateful: The 36-year-old from Las Vegas, pictured recently, said she was told 'to go jump off a bridge and kill myself'

'I got hate mail...Not so much from the other models, just fans that hated on me. They told me to go jump off a bridge and kill myself for losing weight.

'Fat activists, there you go. Yeah fat activists, they just hated the thought I was really public about my weight loss and I was losing weight,' she said. 

While Rosie, who now weighs 170lbs, 'loves' her slimmer physique and the 'freedom' it has given her, she said some people reacted negatively to it.

She said: 'Because I guess everybody loves to be happy in their own weight. Some people love being overweight, some people don't.

Humiliated: The mother-of-three more than halved her body weight after being told by a flight attendant to buy herself a second seat because of her size
Humiliated: The mother-of-three more than halved her body weight after being told by a flight attendant to buy herself a second seat because of her size

Humiliated: The mother-of-three more than halved her body weight after being told by a flight attendant to buy herself a second seat because of her size

Dedicated: She has since dropped from a size 34 to a size 12/14 and now weighs 170lbs
Dedicated: She has since dropped from a size 34 to a size 12/14 and now weighs 170lbs

Dedicated: She has since dropped from a size 34 to a size 12/14 and now weighs 170lbs

'I think it's a personal choice and you've just got to take it, there's good and bad that comes with any life choice and changes so you know what? 

'You've just got to let it go and not pay attention to the negative remarks.' 

Rosie said her critics did not like her being 'authentic and open' about the changes to her body and her subsequent tummy tuck and skin removal. 

Despite losing almost half her former body weight she said she is still plus-size, adding: 'I love it.' 

Forward-looking: Rosie, pictured recently at a baseball game with her son, said she does not 'miss anything' about weighing 410lbs

Forward-looking: Rosie, pictured recently at a baseball game with her son, said she does not 'miss anything' about weighing 410lbs

Happy: Rosie, pictured recently working out, said she loves her new body

Happy: Rosie, pictured recently working out, said she loves her new body

She said people who resented her shrinking body associated weight-loss with 'size zero' but to her it has represented 'freedom'.

She added: 'Diet for me really equaled a lifestyle change, it equaled freedom, it didn't equal a size. 

'It equaled to having freedom of choice, getting on a roller coaster, going zip lining and just having fun.'  

Rosie has previously said she was first triggered to lose weight after she was told by a flight attendant that she needed to buy an extra plane seat because she was too big for one.  

Abuse: Rosie said she was targeted by 'fat activists' who sent her hateful messages
Abuse: Rosie said she was targeted by 'fat activists' who sent her hateful messages

Abuse: Rosie said she was targeted by 'fat activists' who sent her hateful messages

New-found joy: Rosie, pictured recently with her son, said people who resented her shrinking body associated weight-loss with 'size zero' but to her it has represented 'freedom'

New-found joy: Rosie, pictured recently with her son, said people who resented her shrinking body associated weight-loss with 'size zero' but to her it has represented 'freedom'

She decided to overhaul her diet and start doing exercise and later got a gastric sleeve. 

Rosie followed a low carbohydrate and low dairy diet and worked out six days a week. 

Although she is much happier now, she told TMZ that she is 'grateful' that she experienced life at 410lbs because it taught her 'a lot of lessons'.

She said it taught her to be 'humble, how to treat people, never judge a book by its cover and persistence.'  

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