American moves to UK and quickly notices 1 big change happening to body

An American living in the UK has been left baffled after showing off how moving across the Atlantic had a big effect on his body , as he's tried to lose weight for years before his move. Russell McKinley is a gaming influencer who is originally from Chicago but now lives in Britain. While he often makes videos comparing life between the UK and the US, whether it's food products like Fanta drinks , or ways of living, he has recently opened up about an unexpected change to his body that started happening once he moved across the Atlantic to his new home in London. "The moving to the UK effect," he wrote on the Instagram video, which turned out to be a slideshow of the impressive weight loss journey he'd been on for the last year. Starting in January 2025, Russell started to document his weight loss journey, with began with him weighing 279lbs (126.2kg). Just a month later, he was down six pounds (2.7kg) as he showed himself going for a run. A month later, he was down to 267lbs (121.1kg). His weight started to steadily go down more and more by every month, as he continued to share he still allowed himself to enjoy delicious food and other 'treats' of life. In July, he'd officially gone under the 250 mark, weighing in at an impressive 247lbs (112kg), as he continued to enjoy his summer in London, including spending time in pub gardens and meals out. The weightless continued, losing an impressive nine pounds between August and September, as well as for the following month. By January 2026, he officially weighed in at 197lbs (89.3kg), having lost 82lbs 37kg in the span of a year. And yet, he wasn't done, as he continued his weight loss journey until April 2026, where he'd reached 177lbs (80kg). The video then went on to show before and after photos of how much Russell had truly changed physically over a year and four months, including him trying on a pair of shorts that fitted him before his weight loss. "If I knew that the better food and walking everywhere would lead to this, I would’ve made the move much sooner," he wrote in a comment of his post. He then added: "Cheers to everyone who has shared supportive words and encouraged me on my journey to better health." The comment section soon filled with people praising Russell for his weight loss journey, as many were left amazed by his accomplishment. When asked if he had tried to lose weight, or if it had happened naturally, Russell replied he'd been trying to lose weight for several years while still living in the US, but without success. "It wasn’t until moving to the UK that affordable whole food options became available to me and I started averaging 12,000+ steps every day instead of driving around," he added. He continued: "I did go to the gym here and there but mostly just walked or ran up to that step count. So in a way it was always a conscious effort but the healthy habits became core to my lifestyle instead of an exclusively dedicated effort." In a separate post, he explained: "It really came down to two things I wasn’t tending to... regular exercise and my relationship with food. "My new lifestyle in the UK allows and encourages me to nurture both of these things. Living in the US didn’t. In the US I needed a car to get everywhere, sat a lot, and was eating food that was formulated to give me health problems. Not to mention being CONSTANTLY surrounded by a culture of overconsumption..." "The little habits that changed with my move to the UK ended up having the BIGGEST effect on me," he revealed. "Before, I would look in the mirror and see how much I let myself go, and become a bit sad. But now, I see someone who just belonged in an environment that promotes healthier living. And I feel WONDERFUL."