After joining the RAF Zoe’s weight crept up. Now over 5st lighter, she’s been maintaining her size 8 frame for over a decade and is now a fit and active mum for her young son.
- Weight lost: 5st 3lb*
- Weight loss plan: Total
- Followed by Management
“When I joined the RAF at 18 years old I weighed 9st 13lb. By the time I returned from my first tour of Bosnia in 1999, I was almost 15st. I remember my mum telling me how fat I’d got and that I needed to lose weight.
I put my weight gain down to the drinking culture and desk-based work. The more my mum mentioned my weight, the more rebellious I became. My fuller figure became my new ‘normal’.
My lightbulb moment
Some years later I saw my best friend lose an incredible six stone in six months with LighterLife; she had gone down from a size 22 to a size 8. I’d always thought she was a lot larger than me, but I was taken aback when I found out she had been a similar dress size. Seeing her transformation inspired me to start my own LighterLife journey to lose five stone.
Weight loss is emotionally tough when you’re losing small amounts week on week, but on the LighterLife Total plan it was different. Losing anywhere from three, four or five pounds each week was so motivating and helped me stay focused. I loved going to my group each week, too, seeing how the other ladies had got on was always so inspiring.
I’m proud to say that I kept my 5st weight loss off for 11 years. Then in 2017 I fell pregnant with my son, Oscar but I wasn’t worried about the baby weight because I knew LighterLife would be there once I was ready.
Becoming an Xpress Mentor
Not only do I now look healthier than before, but I feel it too. During my weight-loss journey, I realised that food wasn’t just my indulgence or escape, it had become an addiction. When you come to that realisation it’s hard to know what to do next, and that’s where LighterLife was so helpful. With LighterLife I’ve learned mindfulness techniques that provided me with the tools I needed to deal with this and work through it.
I’m now a LighterLife Mentor in my local town of Preston to help men and women achieve their weight loss goals – just like I have. It’s so important to give people options when it comes to dieting and the LighterLife Total very low calorie diet (VLCD) was the best solution for me. I’m forever getting asked how I lost my weight, so it’s time to shout it from the rooftops.
Being a healthy parent for my son is the best gift I’ve ever given myself. I’m so thankful for the tools LighterLife has given me and I can’t wait to support others on their LighterLife journeys. Losing weight isn’t just about how you look, it’s about how you feel inside, and that positivity just radiates to those around you – just ask my mum!”
