A woman from Woodbridge said she “feels free” after losing five stone with the help of online pilates classes and exploring the outdoors – proving the lockdown is no excuse to stop you reaching your goals.
Natalie Brading, 31, said she would “end up in tears” when getting ready for an evening out when she was a size 18, worrying people would judge her.
She said a “horrific photo” was the final straw to make her change her lifestyle for good – and she hasn’t looked back since.
“When I saw that picture I just thought it was horrific,” explained Natalie. “So I decided to do something about it.”
Natalie, who is originally from Devon but moved to Woodbridge with her partner eight years ago, was almost 15 stone before joining Slimming World. She now fits into a size 10 comfortably, even a size eight in some shops.
She reached her target weight around three weeks into the lockdown and has been taking advantage of her local walks and her love of cooking to help shed the pounds.
She said: “I have been doing exercises from YouTube, I joined a pilates class online and I have even restarted my Couch to 5K.
“I have discovered lots more walks and footpaths in Woodbridge, so I have been quite fortunate and I have been more active during lockdown.”
Natalie joined Slimming World because she “felt she never looked good” and it started to have a huge impact on her social life.
She said: “I had a fear of people judging me and I was constantly second-guessing.
“Whenever I got ready I would end up in tears and I would often ruin an evening out as I would be so conscious people were looking at me.”
From a young age and into her teenager years, Natalie said she always struggled with her weight and felt like the “chubby child”.
She joined Slimming World a few years ago, but stopped going to the group and gained all her weight back and more.
Now she continues to keep up her weekly group visits and said that the virtual image therapy is a “great way to have a connection with other people”.
She also loves to food optimise and has been preparing meals from scratch, finding it helps to make a food plan for the week ahead.
“It’s nice to walk into a shop and not be afraid to try something on,” she said.
“It really is freeing – and it’s been good to make shopping fun again.”
In March, Natalie said it was the first time she managed to look in her wardrobe and willingly put a dress on, adding that she didn’t feel so self conscious.
She said: “I am so much happier and much more confident.”
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