‘HOW I LOST SIX STONE IN A YEAR’
A WOMAN who felt so uncomfortable about her weight that she would crop pictures of herself has lost six stone in 12 months, and completed her first half marathon.
Rebecca Dabill, 24, spent years dieting and struggling with the mental battle of losing weight.
In January 2016, she decided to join Slimming World in an attempt to regain her confidence.
“I felt uncomfortable in my own skin and would crop pictures to hide my weight. I just didn’t feel healthy.”
Rebecca, who lives in Adamsdown, Cardiff, has always struggled with her size, but began to gain weight again after falling into bad habits at university.
“After three years at university, which included a lot of bad food and drinking, I started to pile on the pounds, especially as I am a comfort eater.”
After a stressful year, Rebecca was mentally exhausted from hiding her dress size and spending hours of her day planning an outfit that would best hide her weight.
She said: “We reached Christmas and I was the biggest I had ever been, wearing a size 20, and everyone noticed. I hated to admit to anyone my size.
“After more time over Christmas hiding my feelings, I drew the line and I finally decided to give Slimming World a go.
“I remember I picked a group and was so scared about going. On the day I nearly didn’t go, but walking through the doors was one of the best things I’ve ever done.”
Rebecca weighed 17st 4lb at her first meeting and was shocked by the number she saw on the scales.
This feeling filled her with the determination to shift the weight and she signed up for a Race for Life run the very same day.
“17st 4lbs looked back at me and I felt like I wanted the floor to swallow me up looking at the huge number, but I decided that I needed to use this as a shock to motivate myself.”
Committed to the challenge, she began training regularly, hitting her targets each week and eventually reaching her goal weight of 11st 4lb this month. “I wanted to focus on myself and Slimming World has improved my mental health,” she added.
“Each week my weight was chipping off and my running was getting better and better.
“Running is now a regular part of my life and I regularly participate in different races, including the Cardiff half marathon in October.”
After completing her first half marathon in a very respectable time of two hours and two minutes, Rebecca says she feels so much healthier and happier.
She has managed to stay on target with the support of her friends and family and finding a more maintainable and balanced diet.
“The diet and running went hand in hand and I just really enjoyed it.”
Rebecca now encourages others to lead a healthier lifestyle and spends her days supporting those who also struggle with their weight.
“I work a lot with adults with disabilities and try my best to inspire them.
“Some of them have now joined Slimming World because they have seen me naturally lose the weight, and they know they could do it too.”