A woman is celebrating after losing half their body weight in September this year and winning a golden slimming award.
Mary Barnes, from Colne had lost a life-changing 13st 11.5lb to win Slimming World’s ‘Club 50’ Award – which has been special-created this year to celebrate the company’s 50th birthday – and is awarded to those members who have lost an incredible 50% of their starting weight.
Mary, who’s had gone from 27st 9.5lb to 13st 11.5lb, says: “I’ve been overweight for longer than I care to admit . I’m so proud and happy to win this award, especially in such a monumental year for Slimming World. It just gets better as we come closer to the end of this special year I feel like a new woman since losing weight – in fact, I look so different that people who I haven’t seen for a while often can’t believe I’m the same person. For me though it’s the change on the inside that’s been the greatest – I’m happier, healthier and much more confident now.”
The 58-year-old joined the Monday group, which is run by Gwen Mortimer, on 2nd July 2018. Mary says: “My weight impacted on so many aspects of my life, from struggling to catch my breath, high blood pressure, finding clothes to fit let alone that I liked, to not being able to do simple everyday tasks without feeling tired and exhausted. Before I lost weight, I hated having my photo taken and whenever I saw pictures of myself, I didn’t feel like my smile was real – yet now I’m beaming!”
After retiring at Christmas in 2017 and being ill throughout Christmas and into the New Year, in fact most of January, with flu, pneumonia and being hospitalised with whooping cough, suffering with cracked ribs Mary was advised to seek help with her weight. Her lungs constantly filling up struggling to catch her breath and high blood pressure meant that she had to finally accept that she was obese but didn’t really know how much she did actually weight. Mary took a further six months to decided to join her local Slimming World group at St Johns Methodist Church, Colne. She says: “Walking through those doors was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, I was embarrassed about my size and scared that I might be the biggest person there I had an image of what a slimming club was like judgmental, and full of thin people. I needn’t have worried though, everyone there was so friendly especially my Consultant Gwen, I went along with my daughter Carrie who wanted to join and took my husband Roy as well for moral support, I was so relieved when I found out that my weight was confidential between me and her – I’d had visions of having to tell everyone how much I weighed!
“Since then I’ve made so many friends at the group and I honestly don’t think I could have done it without their support each week. They helped me with recipes and tips and if I was ever struggling, they were always there to build me up and remind me why I’d wanted to lose weight in the first place and how far I’d come since first stepping through the doors. And it was so rewarding to support other members who needed a boost too.”
Mary followed the club’s Food Optimising eating plan and swapped junk food and the love of cake and not wasting anything for fantastic healthy meals finding a love of cooking and preparing meals from scratch fish, chicken, salads vegetables fruit all good things that have made such a massive difference to the way she and her family eat. She says: “People think slimming means going hungry, eating nothing but salad or obsessively counting every calorie you eat, but it’s not like that at all at Slimming World. I love food and it’s never once felt like I was on ‘a diet’ – in fact, people are always surprised at how much food I have on my plate and can’t believe I’m losing weight eating so much without ever feeling hungry.
“I still enjoy all my favourite meals like full English breakfasts and roast dinners, but I’ve learned how to make small changes like using lean meat or cooking with low calorie spray instead of oil or butter. It fits in so well with the rest of my family and we can all eat the same meals. I know that I haven’t ‘gone on a diet’, this is a change that I’ve made for life and I have the tools I need to stay like this forever. My smile is definitely real now!”
Today Mary’s lost a total of 15st and went from size 36 dress to a size 16 dress. She’s also more active nowadays and regularly walks between 7 and 14 miles at least 3 or 4 times a week and loves helping out on her youngest daughters farm herding the cattle and being involved with family life.
Gwen Mortimer, who runs the St Johns Colne Slimming World group, says: “The changes we’ve seen in Mary are incredible. I hope her success will inspire other people who’d like to lose weight by forming new lifestyle habits and as a result, become happier and healthier to come and join us. There’s a warm welcome waiting at Slimming World and, just think, if you start today you could soon feel like a completely new person, just like Mary her confidence and zest for life is so inspiring and motivating.”
The Colne group meets every Monday at 5:00pm or 7:00pm, Tuesday at 9:30am and Saturday at 8:30am or 10:30am at St Johns Methodist Church Colne. To join call Gwen Mortimer on 07783414157 or pop along.
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For further information please contact Gwen Mortimer on 07783414157 or gwenking49@icloud.com
