THE WEDDING
AS slimming challenges go, it sounded like a tall order for any bride-to-be... But Ashleigh Warren put in a superhuman effort and managed to lose half her body weight for her big day – in only ten months. That meant shrinking 10st from a size 22 down to a svelte 8 to 10 after a holiday snap made her vow to get slim before her wedding. Ashleigh, 24, married husband Phil Whitaker in March this year and walked down the aisle in her dream dress, a slinky fishtail number. She says: “It was an amazing, magical day. Being able to wear a beautiful dress instead of a big puffy number that covered me up was fantastic. I didn’t know it was possible to feel that confident about myself. “It’s a cliché I know, but it was honestly the best day of my life and I felt a million dollars.” Ashleigh was able to show off her new figure in a bikini for the first time in years during her Mexican honeymoon in April. Personal banking officer Ashleigh and Phil, 29, met as students at Liverpool Hope University when they both started working part-time at KFC. While her job at the fast food restaurant gave her love life a boost, it did nothing for her figure as she started snacking on fried chicken instead of proper meals. Ashleigh, who studied psychology, says: “When I went to University in 2010 I weighed 10st but I led a student lifestyle, not eating properly and going out a lot.
“Then when I got the job at KFC I started nibbling on food there instead of going home to make proper dinners. The weight just kept creeping on.”
Ashleigh says her weight left her constantly feeling self conscious – worried strangers might be looking at her
She said: “Life was an embarrassment and I constantly felt like I was being judged because of my weight instead of who I was inside.
“While Phil was happy with me whatever weight I was I started to lose confidence and stopped going out as much.”
Dreaded
As Ashleigh’s weight ballooned she even dreaded a couples holiday on the beautiful island of Fuerteventura in the summer of 2015.
She said: “I was worried I wouldn’t fit in the plane seat and when we went to a theme park I refused to go on any rides in case I was asked to get off because I was so heavy.
“I didn’t feel great either. I was having migraines and I couldn’t climb the stairs without getting out of breath. I just felt tired all the time.
“I didn’t want to blame it on my weight, but deep down I knew what was to blame.” The holiday pic, right, left