For decades Hayley Short battled to lose weight and years of yo-yo dieting saw her try everything and anything, often with awful side-effects.
“I’ve always struggled with my weight from being young and was a size 16-18 when I started senior school,” she explained. “I’ve tried so many ways to lose weight and although it worked sometimes I soon piled the weight back on.
“One time I didn’t eat any food at all, just had milkshakes for weeks and another time I lost weight but I also lost my hair as it started falling out.”
But finally the 41-year-old has changed her life and eating habits for good and has lost six stone after joining Slimming World.
“So many people ask how I’ve lost weight and I can’t wait to tell them as I’m so proud of myself,” the mum-of-five said. “I’ve gone from a size 20 to a size 10 and I’m a regular at the gym. I hated the gym at first and now I love it.”
Hayley, from Colchester, Essex, weighed 17st 2lb when she headed to the slimming group in Shrub End, run by Linda Duncan, last January.
The hairdresser had enjoyed success with a slimming group in 2019 before the nation went into lockdown and her weight began to spiral.
“Without the support of my weekly group I didn’t think about what I was eating at all – it was all processed foods and sugary drinks,” she said. “I was getting bigger and bigger.
“I was so fed up with being overweight and not being able to play with my children or go swimming as I was conscious of people looking at me.
“I had aches and pains in my hips and didn’t do any exercise at all. I would get out of breath walking and even putting on my socks was a struggle.”
With weekly meetings keeping Hayley on track she swapped sweets, biscuits and crisps for fruit to snack on and ditched fizzy pop for water. She also gained a new love for cooking meals from scratch.
“Hayley likes to say she’s a slow steady loser, with just less than 1lb weight loss a week and yet those pounds added up to over 5st in a year,” said Linda. “So many members compare their progress to hers knowing that small steps can lead to big results – it makes them so excited for their future as a result.”
Before and after diet
Height: 5ft 4in
Starting weight: 17st 2lbs
Weight lost: 6st 2lbs
Current weight: 11st
Before
Breakfast: Large bowl of sugary cereal with skimmed milk
Lunch: Ham sandwich made with white bread, butter and mayonnaise, crisps, chocolate biscuit, fizzy drink
Dinner: Processed food like burger or a sausage roll, chips and beans with ice cream and cake for pudding
Snacks: Sweets, crisps and chocolate – anything I could find in the cupboard
Drinks: lots of sugary, fizzy drinks throughout the day
After
Breakfast: Fresh fruit, for example an apple and low-fat yoghurt, black coffee
Lunch: Sandwich made with wholemeal bread, boiled eggs mashed with light mayonnaise, high fibre bar
Dinner: Slimming World Shepherd’s Pie made with lean mince, served with lots of vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower and carrots
Snacks: Low fat ice cream
Drinks: Black coffee and lots of water throughout the day
