Woman sees 12st weight loss after being shocked by pictures of herself on a weekend break
A woman who weighed 25st 1lb (159kg) at her heaviest has seen an incredible 12st (77kg) weight loss after being left shocked by photos of herself on a mini break to London.
Lucy Nicoll, 39, from Ketttering, Northamptonshire, had enjoyed the trip away with her family, but says she "didn't recognise herself" when she later looked back at the photos of the weekend.
Deciding to do something about it, in March 2020 the mum-of-two joined two local slimming groups and has lost almost half her body weight, dropping from a size 22 to a size 8 and now weighing a healthier 12st 13lb (82kg).
Nicoll says she now feels like a completely different person and has had to buy a whole new wardrobe of clothes to fit her new, slimmer frame.
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"We went away for the weekend and back at the hotel I looked at some photographs," she explains.
"I didn't really recognise who I was in those pictures.
"Now when I look back at pictures of myself, I sort of think, 'How did I let myself go to get that big without actually noticing?'
"I wish I had noticed a lot sooner."
Nicoll, who is married to husband Phil, 42, kickstarted her weight loss journey by first joining Weight Watchers.
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But a year into her transformation, she decided to join Slimming World, and it was here she went on to win four awards for her weight loss efforts.
"Winning the awards has kept me motivated to keep going," she says of the achievement.
"It also inspires other people who might be in the same position I was in – it shows them that it's achievable.
"A lot of people think that if the weight loss is that big that it's not achievable."
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Nicoll says she found the support of the other group members really helpful in her own journey.
"They are all like an extended family who understand what you're going through even on bad days," she explains. "They know how to help and what to say."
Since losing weight, Nicoll says she has far more body confidence.
"Last year my daughter had her school prom and before the weight loss I wouldn't have had a photo with her," she explains.
"You only do that once in your life and I'm so glad I did get to have that picture."
But despite feeling much happier after her transformation, she admits she sometimes suffers from body dysmorphia.
"I do feel a lot better in my clothes but there's some days where I don't see a difference," she explains.
"I think that's from body dysmorphia and sometimes thinking you're a bigger person when you're not."
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Nicoll also suffers from Chronic Regional Pain Syndrome, an illness that means she experiences severe pain and chronic fatigue, but she says that since losing weight, she has felt some health improvements.
"I'm not as out of breath when I'm going up the stairs," she explains.
"My blood pressure is now normal and I can manage to do things I couldn't always before."
Speaking of her weight loss transformation, Slimming World consultant Angela Byers, who runs the group that Nicoll attends says: "She's an inspiration to the rest of the group and we are super-proud of her.
"It's just an amazing achievement."
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Nicoll's diet before
Breakfast: Three or four slices of toast
Lunch: A sandwich with a big bag of crisps and a cake or a doughnut
Tea: Pizza
Snacks: A couple of chocolate bars and packets of crisps
Nicoll's diet after
Breakfast: A yoghurt or a breakfast bar
Lunch: Homemade soup with salad
Tea: Grilled chicken, halloumi and salad
Snacks: Fruit
Additional reporting SWNS.
