I joined Unislim in October 2010 and it has changed my life for the better in so many ways.

I was always heavy, a chubby kid and teenager. I put on some weight while in college but it was when I lived in Korea and Spain that I really packed on the pounds. My lifestyle was incredibly stagnant and my diet was terrible. I basically lived on pizza, beer and crisps.

It started to affect my personality. I had always been interested in clothes, make up and going out and having fun with the girls, but I got to the stage where I was almost a recluse. The thought of a night out made me feel nervous and embarrassed. Even when I did go out – I never had anything to wear. I watched as all my friends went out in beautiful dresses while I shoe horned myself into clothes I didn’t even like. I dreaded nights out.

I also yearned to be fitter. I would basically plan my life around the least amount of walking or physical activity as possible. I would say not o going somewhere if I thought people would see just how unfit I was, unable to walk anywhere to fast or too far.

I never had any rock bottom moment which led me to Unislim. I just realised I could start something, anything. Had I thought about the enormous amount weight I had to lose I would have been doomed to fail; I just needed to make a start, have a beginning, smaller targets. I asked my mother would she come with me and I have not looks back since. From day one I had the mind-set that I was going to start and keep going. If I had setbacks, I had setbacks, but that I was going to pick myself back up and follow the plan again.

The diet isn’t even a diet in my eyes; it doesn’t feel restrictive in the slightest. There is no point counting, just a little weighing involved. Even eating out is pretty straightforward. I can have treats, enjoy going out at weekends and never feel as though I have to explain to others that I am dieting, because I am not really. It’s more about healthier choices and eating more knowledgeably and noticing what you are eating.

The meetings are what have helped me come so far. Without the meetings and my leader, Michelle, I doubt I would have come this far. There is support all along, information and help at every turn. I have learned so much about nutrition and food choices that I feel as though I have all the tools to never return to my old weight. More importantly I intend to keep going to the meetings for long after I reach my goal weight.

Apart from the nutrition side, Unislim has helped me become a much fitter person. As the weight came off I was able to do more and more physically. Most days of the week I am active; mainly kettle bells and walking. Most recently I have started running (slowly!) a dream I never thought I could achieve.

Apart from the nutrition side, Unislim has helped me regain the personality I had kind of forgotten I had had previously. Week by week I get less shy, feel more confident and have so much pride in myself and all I have achieved. I never thought I could have lost so much weight and become so much fitter, and for it to be so easy!