Finally i’m setting a healthy example
After years watching her sporty daughters from the sidelines, Rachel Lienerth is the role model she always wanted to be...
s ruby and Jessie went through their kickboxing drills, it was almost like watching a dance routine. my daughters, then 11 and seven, had started practising the sport six months earlier, and I loved seeing them put so much skill and care into kicking and punching the air. But alongside my pride in my strong, beautiful girls, I felt sadness. I was the only parent sitting on a bench at the back of the hall.
All the others were joining in with their children. I knew there was no way I could keep up with my two – after all, I struggled to walk upstairs without panting for breath. I’d never been slim, but my struggles began in earnest not long after I started university, when I began to feel extremely tired and unwell and was diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome. Determined to become a teacher, I used every bit of energy I had to study, which meant I was constantly exhausted – there was nothing left for any sort of exercise, and living with my parents, I ate very hearty meals.
After graduating I moved in with my boyfriend, Mark, and carried on eating as I always had. Teaching PE lessons was more of a struggle than ever. By the time Mark proposed, I was a size 18. A year after our wedding, I fell pregnant. I was a size 20 when Ruby was born. Three years later I had Jessie – I was so busy, slimming wasn’t on my radar. I started to suffer from severe discomfort in my joints and was diagnosed with fibromyalgia, a longterm condition that causes pain all over the body. Now I felt even less like getting active. As Jessie grew up and started racing around the park with her sister, I began to feel very self-conscious as I watched them from the bench. I tried to lose weight a couple of times, joining Slimming World for a few weeks, then leaving after I’d lost a stone. I told myself I was too busy – because my job as a primary school teacher took up too much time, or because the girls had an activity
‘slimming wasn't on my Radar’
that clashed with group. When I was at my biggest, we took the girls to Walt Disney World in Florida. It was supposed to be the trip of a lifetime but my weight held me back. ‘Are you coming on with us, Mummy?’ Ruby called, as the two of them and their dad raced up the steps of a roller-coaster. ‘It’s a bit hot,’ I yelled back. ‘I’ll sit in the shade and watch you.’ I was terrified that I wouldn’t be able to fit into the roller-coaster’s plastic seats.
life-changing moment
It was 18 months later, watching my girls kickboxing, when everything fell into place. I wanted them to grow up with a healthy role model. I decided I’d go back to Slimming World as soon as possible and change my lifestyle for good.
With a new determination, I walked into the Ivybridge group near my home in Devon. As my Consultant, Leanne, talked me through the plan, I listened, taking in every word. It was a shock to discover I
was 18st 4½lb, but seeing those numbers made me more set on doing it properly. To help with my fresh start, I went shopping and filled my trolley with lean meat, fresh vegetables and fruit, and yogurts. That night I cooked the family pasta with a homemade tomato sauce. And I started making myself a hot breakfast every morning and a big mixed salad with turkey or chicken for lunch. And, as I went to group every week, I felt much better. I soon felt ready to do something that meant the world to me. At the girls’ next kickboxing session, I stopped hiding at the back of the hall and got right into the action, spurring them on as they built up their skills.
In December we went on holiday to Australia to see my brother, Steve. The night before, I went to group and got my 7st award. When I met Steve at Sydney airport, he did a double take – I’d been a size 20 when he’d seen me last. Now I was a size 10! This time, I didn’t spend the holiday just watching my girls have fun. I was right there with them, wearing not just a swimsuit, but a bikini! We started planning another big overseas trip, too – a return visit to Florida.
Reaching goal
Back home, Ruby and I decided to exercise together regularly. In March last year I reached my target of 10st 5lb.
Stepping off the plane in Florida this summer, as the heat hit me, so did the thought that this was going to be a very different holiday to last time. When we went to the theme park, I relished it, racing the girls up to the rides to sit beside them. One day we went shopping and Ruby and I bought identical skinny jeans and a few days later I borrowed one of her vests to wear with them! Laughing next to Mark and the girls, I knew I’d become the slim, energetic mum I’d longed to be. And it felt amazing! ✱ to find your nearest group, visit slimmingworld.co.uk, or call 0344 897 8000