A super-slimmer has told how she managed to shift nearly nine stone - and puts her new incredible figure down to pole-dancing.
Vikki McNamara from Dublin, Ireland, had struggled with her weight for a number of years, and found it hard to keep the pounds off.
But now she has had so much success that she left her previous job to retrain as a fitness instructor.
Her secret to losing weight and keeping it off is all about exercise, reports RSVP Live. She says she was sick of feeling like an old lady with an achy body - so did something about it.
The mum said: "When my son was a baby, I was carrying him down the stairs and my knees felt sore, my back felt sore.
"I just felt like an old lady, I had no energy. I then starting trying to do something but it took me a long, long time. It took a lot of different programmes, I've been around the block, I've tried them all.
"I had lost maybe two or three stone and then my friend and I decided to do something different and try a fitness class.
"I wasn't fit at all, but we decided to start doing a pole fitness class."
It was pole fitness that sparked Vikki's joy for fitness and helped her shed the rest of the weight.
"That started it, it was something different," said Vikki. "You just start feeling yourself again with movement and exercise."
This inspired Vikki to retrain as a fitness instructor - something she felt she would be good at because she knows what it's like to be overweight and unfit, and can help anyone in a similar scenario who trains with her.
"Being someone who was overweight, I knew how difficult it could be for somebody to go to a fitness class," said Vikki.
"I started off teaching classes in Balbriggan and now I'm a trained instructor and master trainer in a few things."
Vikki also has her own website and social media pages where she posts fitness videos and offers one to one sessions.
For her, her classes are targeted towards women of a similar age group as her, which would be women in their 40s and 50s.
"I want to provide diversity in fitness," said Vikki. "Making sure that all the components are being filled rather than just going out marathon running - not that there's anything wrong with that!
"But just making sure you're sitting all the boxes is hugely important."
