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What people don’t tell you about losing weight

It’s almost impossible to go online without hearing about the latest diet fad, the quickest way to lose weight or that tapping your nose 83 times and humming the Eastenders theme tune twice a day can help you get that summer body.

It’s no mystery that a large percentage of the UK are a bit more than on the cuddly side for whatever reason; low income, bad diet, a pizza fetish.

Before and after

Before and after

There are countless products and fancy pills that claim they can help you drop the pounds without any real hard work. Ok, so some people say things like ketones and diet pills work, but there’s always a but.

Usually you have to always take them and literally can’t come off them or the effects will just wear off. Detox teas, juice diets and cutting out carbs completely may work for some people, but again – to an extent.

Take it from someone who has tried everything. Take it from someone who has eaten basically nothing but powdered milkshakes and green tea for a week. Take it from someone who attempted jumping everywhere instead of walking because it might burn a few more calories. I wish I was joking. Take it from someone who went from almost 20 stone and a size 22 to 15 stone and a size 16-18 in just under a year.

No one will tell you that the only thing that will make you lose weight and keep it off is hard frickin’ work, and the only way you will find out is when you do it for yourself. There are no shortcuts, no worthwhile ones anyway.

I didn’t lose weight for anyone but myself. I am one of those annoying, stubborn people who will do exactly what you tell me not to do, so when someone told me not to eat something, I did. Self destructive and stupid, I know. I couldn’t tell you what it was that gave me the kick up the backside to finally lose weight but whatever it was, it worked. I joined the gym, bought some ugly trainers and started googling things like “how to get rid of love handles”.

Now I will never be one of those awe inspiring girls that eats Kale and cuts out carbs, because I would probably turn suicidal if I couldn’t have Marmite on toast every now and then. All I really did was start caring about what I was eating. I felt immediately better when I started simply substituting chips for veg, and not eating crisps for breakfast. When it came to the gym, I just kept telling myself over and over again that everyone has to start somewhere and I am definitely not the only insecure person in there.

I won’t lie, the equipment was a little bit frightening and it took me a good few months to get to know everything – and now I even lift weights, but I can’t quite bring myself to hashtag ‘girls who lift’. It took time for me to see a change, and the temptation around all the time is unreal. I did this whilst I was at University, which is probably the worst environment ever to chose to lose weight.

All the sweat, pain, blisters and tears were entirely worth it when I heard the first “have you lost weight?”, which then changed to “you look so good!” which evolved to “how did you do it, share your secret!”

The secret is, there isn’t one. It is entirely down to dedication and hard work. If you want it bad enough for whatever reason, you can do it if you really want it, and you will find the motivation sooner or later. This time last year I was struggling to do up size 22 jeans, and this year I graduated in a size 14 dress.

Don’t ever let anyone tell you that losing weight is easy. It is the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but it is the most rewarding.

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