A woman who found herself 'disgusted' by a picture taken of her on Christmas day decided to join Slimming World after realising she had been avoiding mirrors and cameras. Caroline McNeil, 40, weighed 15st 5lb when her husband took a picture of her on Christmas morning and sent it to her - she deleted the image immediately.
Caroline said: “I knew that I’d avoided the scales and I’d started to avoid mirrors and photos being taken.
“But some were taken on Christmas morning and when my husband sent me them, I was absolutely mortified. I deleted them straight away. Disappointment and disgust are strong words, but these are just some of the words I found my inner self saying constantly whenever I saw myself.
“Having three teenage daughters, I felt embarrassed that I wasn’t being a positive role model to them."
Caroline joined Slimming World and was placed onto a diet plan which saw her cut out unneccesary snacks like crisps and chocolate, reports MEN. The childminder quickly went from a dress size 22 to a size 8 and now weighs at 10st 13lbs.
“I feel amazing,” Caroline said. “I’m not reluctant to have photos taken of me now. I’m not reluctant to look in the mirror and it’s silly things like being able to feel my hips.
Caroline McNeil during her weight loss journey (Image: Caroline McNeil)
“I have so much more energy now. I’m able to get down on the floor with the kids and I can easily chase them around the garden without getting out of breath."
Looking back to that Christmas, Caroline said: “I knew I needed to lose weight. I had been gifted a jacket that was too tight. I was also given some pyjamas that were too tight.
“I thought, ‘I need to do something about this’.”
Caroline now (Image: Caroline McNeil)
Caroline had attempted to join weight loss programmes the past but never managed to stick with the regime.
“I had lost weight while on furlough in the pandemic,” she said. “But I did yo-yo in weight.
“If ’d had a stressful day at work, I’d have a bottle of wine. If I couldn’t be bothered cooking, I’d get a takeaway.
Caroline has had an amazing transformation (Image: Caroline McNeil)
“Then every morning I’d wake up with that guilty feeling thinking I’d failed and that I couldn’t [lose weight].
“I used to think, ‘Maybe I’m supposed to be this size, maybe that’s the way things are for me.
Since joining Slimming World, Caroline has smashed her target of losing 40lbs before her 40th birthday.
“It was just getting my head into the right mindset and being able to adjust how I feel about food,” she said..
