When Lizzie Stein saw a holiday snap of herself in a bikini, it was the motivation she needed to sign up to The 1:1 Diet.
Now seven stone lighter, 24-year-old recruitment consultant Lizzie has been crowned Woman of the Year at our annual Slimmer Awards and is feeling fantastic!
Lizzie’s weight gain began when she was in her last couple of years at university.
“I was going out with friends, eating all the wrong foods and partying. When I walked, my thighs chafed together; it was really unpleasant.
“Things got gradually worse as I landed an office job after university, which was sedentary. I was suddenly surrounded by cakes, biscuits and sweets, so the weight piled on.
“I stopped going to the gym and remember breaking a chair in a restaurant and feeling really uncomfortable, but pretending it was fine. I hadn’t realised I would be too heavy for the chair; it was horrendous and embarrassing.”
Lizzie said weird little things like having to buy a bigger size bath towel when the ordinary one became too small bothered her, but she always made a joke of things to cover up her true feelings.
“Everyone saw me as the fat friend who was always carefree, but deep down I wasn’t like that.”
She’d tried getting a personal trainer to help her lose weight but carried on binge drinking with her friends so the weight didn’t budge.
The turning point was seeing herself in a bikini picture.
“When I saw a photograph of myself in a bikini on holiday, I was horrified,” she admitted. “I hated the way I looked and wanted to feel better about myself.
I’d also split up from my boyfriend at the time and I knew that people weren’t that interested me, probably due to the way I looked.”
It was seeing a university friend’s Instagram post about her weight loss on The 1:1 Diet, which prompted Lizzie to reach out to a Consultant in her area and she found Michelle Wade.
“I started on Step 2 and have stayed on that step as it suited me. I found sticking to the diet relatively easy, as I loved the meal replacement products and Step 2 allowed me to include conventional food as well.
“I’ve lost seven stone since being on Plan and have a healthy attitude towards food. I can wear fashionable clothes that don’t chafe when I walk.
“I can sit on a chair without worrying whether it is going to break under my weight and I can use a normal size towel for showering.
“I’ve got my old confidence back and friends and family are commenting on how great I look and act, which has really helped motivate me throughout the process. Two of my friends were so impressed that they’ve also gone on Plan with my Consultant Michelle.“Now, when I go out to dinner I can eat and drink sensibly, and I definitely don’t eat as much and get full quickly. I am much more conscious about what I put into my body, which is a huge turn around and lifestyle change. I definitely don’t want to put the weight back on."
Lizzie's transformation
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