MY LEGS... !
MUM SHONA MUCKERT LOST BOTH HER LEGS AFTER A 12-HOUR NIGHTMARE
With food delivery services enabling us to send junk food to our doorstep with the push of a button, it’s tragically easy to pile on the kilos from the comfort of the couch.
And for 20-year-old Emma Higgins, the convenience of apps like Uber Eats and endless options for takeaway led to her weight creeping up to 123kg in a matter of months.
Melbourne-based Emma had been fit and healthy throughout high school, but after gaining her driver’s licence and starting a job at a cafe, the number on the scales was heavy on her mind.
“My weight gain really spiralled when I started my new job at a cafe-slashdoughnut shop, just because there were so many unhealthy options available to me,” Emma tells New Idea. “When I was working I would indulge in the doughnuts, ice-cream and pies as they were readily available. I would always be ordering Uber Eats, usually Macca’s or kebabs were my go-to.
I was very lazy – if I wasn’t working then I’d just lay in bed and watch Netflix.”
For Emma, it seemed her weight gain had happened in the blink of an eye. At her heaviest of 123kg, it was hard to kick the habits – but a comment from her boyfriend triggered a lifestyle change.
“I knew I had to change,” Emma recalls. “It became real to me when my partner expressed his concern for my weight gain and my overall health. This really made me realise that I needed to change if I wanted to live a happy life.”
While scrolling through Instagram, Emma stumbled across ‘transformation’ posts of other women who had lost
“I WOULD INDULGE IN DOUGHNUTS, ICE-CREAM AND PIES, AND ALWAYS ORDERED UBER EATS”
weight through fitness queen Tammy Hembrow’s program.
Feeling motivated, she signed up for a free trial of Tammy Fit and quickly signed up for a year-long subscription to reach her goal weight.
“I started by eating smaller portions and completely cutting out takeaway and processed foods. With the Tammy Fit app, I started following the recipes and now enjoy finding all of these new and whole foods that I really enjoy eating,” Emma explains.
“I also learnt how to meal prep for days so that I knew I wouldn’t have time to cook anything, or if I knew I was going to be out. I’ve started back at the gym five times a week and also add in walks with my family and partner.”
For exercise, Emma committed to five or six workouts per week, including full body, upper body and booty training. Because Melbourne gyms were closed during the COVID-19 lockdown, she describes the home workouts as a ‘godsend’.
“I am lucky that I have a home gym already!” Emma adds. “It was a hard change, going to the gym to having to work out at home, but it affected me more mentally than physically as I have still been able to lose the weight!”