I don’t believe in depriving myself – and I lost 16st
CUTTING OUT THOSE CARBS CAN’T WORK, SAYS SLIMMER
A WEIGHT-LOSS expert who dropped 10 dress sizes and shed 16 stone says banning foods is often counter-productive when you’re trying to lose weight. Sue Thompson, of Chester-leStreet, County Durham, weighed 27st 8lbs at her heaviest and was afraid to fly due to her size. Fearing her weight would cause her to have a heart attack, she decided to join Slimming World and dropped to 11st 5lbs. The mum-of-one was named Slimming World Consultant Slimmer of the Year after she went from a dress size 32 to 12. Now, the 46-year-old works as a district manager for Slimming World, looking after more than 200 groups in her area and meeting thousands of members.
With many people going into the new year determined to lose weight, Sue says many people believe they need to cut out high-carbohydrate food from their diet – such as pasta, rice, potatoes and bread.
But she is urging anyone who has decided to start out on their weight loss journey to not fall for the common misconception that it is effective for long-term weight loss.
Sue, who joined Slimming World in 2010, said: “We hear conflicting and confusing messages about the best way to lose weight all the time, especially this time of year.
“Often these messages in the media, on social media and within the diet industry tell us how we need to ‘cut out’ carbohydrates in order to lose weight.
“In fact, you don’t need to cut anything out completely to lose weight and keep it off.”
Her advice comes after a YouGov study, which was commissioned by Slimming World, found the nation is confused by the role of carbohydrates in health and weight loss. It found more than 70% of people have tried to lose weight, with more than a third (37%) of them following a low-carbohydrate diet. However, many of those surveyed said they found diets that restrict carbohydrates difficult to follow because of feeling hungry, bored and restricted in what they could eat.
Sue added: “When the survey asked if starchy carbohydrates should be the main source of calories in a healthy, balanced diet, 81% thought this was a myth or weren’t certain whether it was a myth or fact. We really are a nation that’s ‘carbfused’!”
She said losing her weight and keeping it off would not have been possible without eating carbs and banning any food is often counter-
We hear conflicting and confusing messages about the best ways to lose weight all the time