‘I battled weight for 20 years – then I lost 5 stones after learning key thing’

A woman who has been battling with her weight for over 20 years has finally found the secret and lost an incredible five stone.

Determined Katie Thornton, 33, had been struggling with the pounds since primary school and became so self-conscious she couldn’t even look at herself in a mirror. But now the mum-of-two has lost an incredible 70 pounds in just eight months thanks to overhauling her diet – and her husband Simon has lost three stone as well.

Busy Katie, who runs her own salon called The Glam Studio, in Skipton, North Yorks, said her hectic schedule meant she often grabbed food for fuel rather than for nutrition. Often skipping breakfast, Katie would grab convenience food and sweets on the go during the day before heating up a processed meal from the freezer for dinner.

Katie’s whole ethos has now changed thanks to joining weight loss group Weigh Better Together, where she has learned about making healthier choices with nutrition.

Katie lives with her police officer husband Simon, 34, and two children, Evie, aged 11, and eight-year-old Max.

She said her biggest inspiration for her weight loss journey has been her children, and wanting them to see how to eat in a more healthy way.

“I’ve always been up and down with it, I’ve tried different ways of losing weight, I’ve tried different fad diets, going to different classes, seeing dieticians, going to the gym religiously, I’ve tried loads of things and I never really found something that worked for me,” she said.

“I avoided being in photographs, I didn’t look in mirrors, I didn’t take pictures of myself because I didn’t like the way I looked.

“My little boy is eight, my daughter’s 11, she’s just started at secondary school, they’re at those ages now where I remember struggling with my weight.

“For me, it was a case of I wasn’t happy with how I looked and felt in myself, and also I was more and more aware that I didn’t want to have a negative impact on my children.

Since joining Weigh Better Together in March, Katie has seen the weight fall off and encouragingly she reveals she still has time for a takeaway and a glass of wine now and then.

She added: “I think the secret for me is this is the first time I’ve done something like this and not felt I am on a diet. The way I’ve lost weight is through calorie deficit. The class teaches you about nutrition, it’s not just lose weight, lose weight, lose weight, it’s about making healthier choices so you get that balance in your diet without feeling like.

“You don’t have to tell yourself you can’t have anything, I still have wine on the weekend, I still have a takeaway, I still have a bit of chocolate with my kids but it’s all about finding the balance with it.

“I have learned how to read food labels and make choices and just be aware of what is in the food I am eating. I was a typical example before I would get all the ‘low calorie’ food, light versions of this, light versions of that, and to me I would be thinking ‘I’m eating all the diet stuff, why am I not losing weight?’.

“The class has taught me it might be low in calories, but it’s full of sugar. So, you think you are achieving the better option but you’re still just putting rubbish in your body basically.”

Before embarking on this weight-loss journey, Katie was often missing breakfast but now she plans meals ahead and starts the day with yoghurt and fruits.

She continued: “I have my own salon, which is very busy, non-stop. I was eating for convenience, instead of planning ahead, essentially, I was eating to try and get energy out of my food before. So, it would be processed stuff, I’d have some chocolate to try and give myself an energy boost.

“Now I plan it in advance, I fuel my body, so I don’t get to that point, I am fuller for longer because I am having more protein, more fibre in my fruits and vegetables, I’ve cut out a lot of processed sugar… so I’m not getting those hits of sugar and then instant dips.

“So I am fuelling my body, instead of just trying to make it through the day for an energy boost if that makes sense. Totally change the way you see food and your relationship with it.

“You can still have a really good tasty meal and still within your calories. Sometimes do a really nice spaghetti Bolognese because the kids love that, and we’ve just switched out white pasta for brown pasta, it’s little changes like that.”

Weight Better Together founder Adele Wilkin, who started the company with her business partner Denise Walker, said: “At Weigh Better Together we are so proud of Katie, and the hundreds of individuals we have helped since launching our business.

“Opening our 28th class in September this year is a testament to the huge impact we are making, and we believe that, with the right support and knowledge, anyone can achieve their weight loss goals and maintain them for life.”

BEFORE DIET

Breakfast

Skip it, or have a bowl of cereal.

Lunch

Supermarket-cooked chicken, rice and mayonnaise.

Dinner

Pulled out of the freezer straight to the oven, processed food.

AFTER DIET

Breakfast

Greek yoghurt and a variety of fruit

Lunch

A sandwich thin with a healthier mayonnaise with less sugar, with a boiled egg and a banana.

Dinner

I do save a bigger portion of my calories for my evening meal, because my husband is doing it with me as well so quite often we’ll sit down and might have chicken with vegetables. But sometimes we might have a nice big beef burger with a brioche bun with some chips.