Brandi Mallory Was a ‘Bright, Shining Light,’ Remembers Extreme Weight Loss Trainer Chris Powell (Exclusive)

Previous Extreme weight loss coach and host Chris Powell remembers Brandi Mallory after her unexpected death at age 40.

The 45-year-old personal trainer spoke with PEOPLE exclusively about hearing the heartbreaking news and reflected on how he bonded with the former reality star during their time together on the show.

“It’s so sad that she’s gone because of what she was to so many, including me,” he tells PEOPLE. “She was just an amazing person.”

Mallory appeared on Season 4 of the ABC series, which aired in 2014. She spent a year alongside Powell as she embarked on her weight loss journey. She had an incredible work ethic, Powell says, but it was her personality and charisma that truly shined.

Brandi Mallory and Chris Powell on “Extreme Weight Loss”.

Rick Rowell/Disney General entertainment content via Getty

He explains that during the series, people are often “on their best behavior” during the first few weeks of filming – only for their true personalities to emerge over the course of the year. But Powell praises how authentic Mallory was and why she was “one of my favorites.”

“She was so lively from the beginning, and she was just dancing all over the place. She always wrote everything down in her positivity,” he explains. “It’s funny because you say, okay, we’ll see where this goes in two weeks … and she was still like that. Then, after four weeks, she was still glowing. And then after two months I’m like, okay, she’s legitimately just a bright, shining light to everyone around her.”

“And that’s obviously why the news of this hit everyone hard,” adds Powell. “She just had that spark of life and love.”

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Chris Powell, Brandi Mallory and Thad Beatty after finishing the Half Ironman.

Chris Powell, Brandi Mallory and Thad Beatty after finishing the Half Ironman. L: Caption Chris Powell, Brandi Mallory and Thad Beatty after finishing the Half Ironman. PHOTO:

Chris Powell

R: Caption Chris Powell, Brandi Mallory and Thad Beatty after finishing the Half Ironman. PHOTO:

Chris Powell

While it is on Extreme weight loss, Mallory revealed that at her heaviest, she weighed about 329 lbs. before you lose more than 150 lbs.

During that time, she was crowned “Miss Extreme Weight Loss” and competed in the Half Ironman, a fitness challenge in which she swam, biked and ran a total of 70.3 miles in less than eight hours. Mallory did it with Powell, which he says is one of his fondest memories with her.

“So you go 70.3 miles with somebody and through that whole process, that process of suffering together, you bond a lot,” he recalls. “And I just remember crossing the finish line with her at the very end. I mean, we were all exhausted and we all just broke down and started crying together and just hugging each other because it was such a monumental moment for all of us in our lives. I am happy that I had the opportunity to share it with her.”

“This whole thing is really bullshit, the fact that it’s not there. But I mean, gosh, you spend a year with somebody, you go through a lot and we share a lot,” Powell continues. “Countless times when we all hung out together and just laughed our hearts out and had fun and joked and joked with people. And of course, you have those big moments like the Half Ironman.”

Brandi Mallory and Chris Powell.

Brandi Mallory and Chris Powell. L: Caption Brandi Mallory and Chris Powell. PHOTO:

Chris Powell

R: Caption Brandi Mallory and Chris Powell. PHOTO:

Chris Powell

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Even after her time on the show, Mallory continued her fitness journey through dance, sharing her passion for fitness on social media.

Powell boasts that “you could feel how free she was” and how much she inspired others before her death.

“That girl can dance. And she always brought that energy to everything we did,” he tells PEOPLE. “She really owned the bodypositivity movement. It was great because she was very open about her weight struggles and everything, but the fact that she would just come out and just express herself completely, you could feel how free she was. And that in turn has inspired so many other people to join in and accept and embrace and value their bodies.”

“I just loved it because she became a symbol for that for so many people,” Powell says.

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