Nuts to being fat!
My favourite choccie treat became my downfall...
As I munched my third Snickers bar of the day, I sighed. I loved nuts – even more if they were covered in chocolate!
But the cals in the choccie treat didn’t like me.
I was 21st and a whopping size-26.
Worse still, I could barely taste the sweet snack. I was so used to scoffing them, they barely registered with me these days.
I’d always been bigger, loved my takeaways. But I really started to pile on the pounds after having my first daughter Danielle.
I was only 26, assumed I’d easily lose the baby weight. But I never did.
And, seven years on, when I had my daughter Demi, now 8, I put on more. It didn’t help that my relationship with the girls’ dad was struggling.
Depressed, I turned to food for comfort – or should I say, chocolate and nuts! It took my mind off the fact I was getting bigger…
But there were constant reminders.
‘Can we go to the park, Mum?’ Danielle would beg me.
But I always said no – at my weight, the thought of seeing the other mums there was scary.
‘How about a takeaway as a treat instead?’ I’d say to the kids.
I hated letting down Danielle but, by now, I had a three-a-day Snickers habit.
And all those cals came at a cost. In 2011, my relationship with the girls’ dad finally fell apart.
But, instead of falling further
By now, I had a three-a-day Snickers habit!
into depression, I knew this was my chance for a new start. And I knew where to begin...
Out went the takeaways, carbs, and cals. In came healthy grub and trips to the gym.
As for my beloved Snickers? I couldn’t face ditching them completely, so I kept them for very special occasions!
I started weights and aerobic classes with a gym buddy and we spurred
each other on. In five months, I was a curvy size-18 – the motivation I needed to keep going.
And around that time, I met Arthur on a night out.
At 6ft 1in and with a great body I was instantly attracted to him. And he was the extra push I needed to get to my size-10 goal.
He spurred me on at the gym, gave me confidence boosts about my figure, helped me with healthy eating. Then…
‘I’ve bought you a bike,’ Arthur said one day, and now I cycle to work every day.
Within two years, I reached my goal of 10st –perfect for my 5ft 6in frame.
Now the kids and I sit down to eat a healthy meal every night. I feel I’m setting a good example and hope it’ll give them good habits for life.
One of the great things about losing weight is shopping for pretty outfits.
But the most exciting thing of all is that I can be active with the kids. Danielle, now 15, even wants to join the gym with me.
I look back at photos now and think, how could I let myself get that unhealthy?
And people’s reactions to my weight loss is priceless.
‘Is it really you?’ friends who haven’t seen me for a while ask.
Though I still have my fave Snickers once in a blue moon, there’s no way I’d ever go back to eating three a day.
To do that after all I’ve achieved? Well, it’d be nuts!
Out went takeaways, carbs, cals. In came healthy grub