Christy's bio-mechanical leg tattoo causes ructions

Dunshaughlin man and Operation Transformation leader Chris McElligot was on Ray Darcy's radio show yesterday to explain his motivation to get a bio-mechanical leg tattoo during the run of Operation Transformation even though the healing process impacted on his training and he missed his weight-loss target by half a pound.

Chris said: “Since I’ve lost my leg I’ve always had this idea of a biomechanical tattoo on the back of my leg, of my existing leg on the calf. I suppose I was never in the right place to get it at the right time. And for many a year I kept throwing this idea around my head and what I wanted it to be.”

Chris explains that before Operation Transformation began a tattoo artist had designed the tattoo for him and that he had arranged to come in for the tattoo in February.

He continues: “I wanted a tattoo of a biomechanical leg that would look similar to the prosthetic leg that I have so that even when kids look at it, they are intrigued by it. And they are kind’ve thinking ‘maybe this is what everybody looks like’ and I wanted people to know that I’m not ashamed.”

“I’m more confident now than I’ve ever been in a long time because of Operation Transformation, because of the weight-loss, because they’ve given me the tools to go in the direction I’m going.”

Psychologist Dr Eddie Murphy adds in the interview with Ray D’Arcy: “It’s very symbolic the tattoo and partly its symbolic about the acceptance of the residual limb and the prosthetic and the acceptance and the whole piece. Chris is an ambassador as well; he’s an ambassador in terms of amputee, because he wants to be out there. He works with young children, he works with children with disabilities and he wants to show that there’s no shame behind this and he’s a real strong voice for saying ‘this is how I am, take me for who I am.’”

However at this week’s weigh-in fitness expert Karl Henry was not happy with the timing of Chris’ tattoo especially as Chris missed his weight-loss target this week. Karl said: “I’m really, really disappointed this week. It’s not the tattoo but the timing of the tattoo. To get it done while on a show to follow a plan, to lose weight, to get healthy, to do something that could potentially jeopardise that plan both in terms of your 5k, in terms of your resistance... going into it you didn’t really know if you could train when it was done! I suppose put yourself in my shoes, if you’re coaching a team for a cup final and one of your players went and got something done and you potentially had to take him out of training, how would you react to that?”

Speaking to Ray D’Arcy, Dr Eddie sums it up: “So we had division in the camp. Two of the experts sided with Chris and two experts sided with that he didn’t make the half pound but we felt that it was quite and important statement that he made today in terms of a statement about his life.”

Chris says: “I completely understand where Karl’s coming from. He’s trying to mind me and try and make sure that my body is in good condition before our 5K but I also know my own body. Sometimes the leg can be my downfall because there’s so much pain that I have with it, it’s shrinking all the time and that it causes me so much pain but I’m known to a lot of people who know me as this strong character and a really strong character and the leg will never stop me doing anything.”

Chris McElligott
Last week’s weight: 16st 3.5 lbs/ 103.1kg
Target weight loss: 2lbs/0.9kg
Actual weight loss: 1.5 lbs / 0.7 kg
Current Weight: 16 st 2 lbs / 102.4 kg
Total weight loss to date: 1st 9.5 lbs/ 10.8kg
Target for next week: 2 lbs / 0.9kg

Operation Transformation airs Wednesdays and Thursdays at 8.30pm on RTÉ One.