This is a brilliant story from Lauren who lost 4 stone after having her little boy, and is now maintaining her new healthy lifestyle.

Read Lauren’s story below:

Hi everyone, I’m Lauren, Fran’s daughter and proud mum to my little Frank, who is just over 18 months old. I have been lucky enough to be able to give up work to be a full-time mum, which gives me the great opportunity of time to exercise and experiment with cooking.

So does anyone feel like they’ve been on a diet for their WHOLE lives? Because I do!

 

I feel like I’ve always watched my weight or been unhappy with the way I look. I am the sort of person who eats a bit of cake and some crisps and puts on half a stone!!

 

I’ve tried probably every ‘fad’ diet out there – juices, soups, teas, slimming clubs, Clean 9, diet pills (which are very dangerous) and as I said at the beginning, I have starved myself too.

 

 

I was always big at school and felt like the other girls were prettier than me and were all slim or skinny. They could always wear whatever they wanted in summer and I remember always feeling so down and jealous and always asked myself – Why me?

 

Why am I so fat?

 

The boys never fancied me and I constantly felt left out because I was overweight or FAT.

I did dabble in my mum’s classes and knew all about nutrition from a young age, but I was still overweight.

 

I remember the trigger to actually doing something to lose weight was when I was around 17 years old at a family photo shoot.

 

I didn’t feel comfortable at all during the shoot and when it came to looking at the pictures I was shocked. The pain and upset just rose in my throat and I couldn’t wait to get out of there so that I could cry.

 

I felt disgusted in myself.

 

This was the real turning point for me and I began to eat healthily and exercise straight away.

 

I started feeling better about myself and the results were visible. I was lifting weights and doing cardio and feeling fantastic. Then as the weight begun to drop healthily, I got a taste of being able to control the weight loss.

 

I started skipping meals and noticed the weight falling off quicker.

I was hooked.

 

The exercise got less and less because I had no energy, but I continued to lose weight. I went down to my lowest of 8 stone.

 

I remember being so happy I was so light on the scales, but I felt moody and depressed and was lying to my family about how much I was eating.

 

Then one day my dad spoke to me about the effect I was having on the family and it really hit home that this had to stop.

 

I gradually started eating again and kind of forgot about trying

to be this skinny person.

 

 

Over the next few years the weight gradually crept back up again.

I’ve always felt I was overweight but when I was 23

I met Franks Dad – Steve.

 

I think I was 11½ stone when I met him. I still worried about my weight, but he made me feel special. We went out a few times a week and at least once at the weekend and it became a cycle of getting drunk and eating takeaways.

 

I went up to about 12 ½ to 13 stone. I then got pregnant with Frank and I really did say –

 

“Right I’m going to eat whatever I want now I’m pregnant!!”

 

Oh dear me, was that the wrong decision!!!

 

I ballooned to 16 stone and once Frank was born,

 

I looked in the mirror and realized this was going to be hard work!

 

I didn’t bother trying to lose weight for a good 6 months after my son was born.

 

I lost a bit here and there through breastfeeding and not eating properly for a while as a new mum, but my main focus was Frank,

and I still liked to go out and enjoy drinking alcohol and eating nice foods.

 

I think it was August/September time 2015 I looked in the mirror and thought – This can’t go on!

 

I just didn’t feel attractive and wouldn’t let my partner near me because I thought I was so disgusting.

 

 

I took my first full body picture in September, which is the photo in the collage. I was big and around 14 stone there, but had intentions of losing weight the healthy way. I’ve been steadily losing weight since, and a few months ago it hit me – the only way I’ve lost this weight is through living the Kick Start Fat Loss lifestyle of clean eating and exercise.

 

I remember my mum buying into the franchise and giving me a couple of the KSFL recipe books. I started cooking and preparing KSFL meals and snacks and it was like a light bulb went on in my head!

 

The recipe books actually taught me to think differently about food and what I was putting into my body. I started reading labels and cutting out processed foods and sugar. I felt like a totally different person after about 5 days. I was less bloated and less tired and felt like I had so much more energy.

 

 

KSFL has actually changed my mindset and taught me to look for healthy alternatives that I could use in pretty much any recipe.

 

It’s really educated me with what is good for your body and what isn’t. The ksfl recipes are also really simple. You are using all clean, organic, nutritious foods, all from scratch. The recipes are simple, yet taste great. The ingredients are designed to aid weight loss too!

 

With KSFL you can actually eat real filling tasty food. It’s not like some other diet plans, where you are left hungry and craving.

 

There are a few different recipe books, one of my favourites being the Sweet Treat and Savoury Surprise book! I bake banana and date loaf probably once a week, which tastes amazing, and I know that everything that has gone into it is natural ingredients and won’t interfere with my weight loss.

 

I do a curry night most Fridays, where I cook a curry from the KSFL Clean Curry recipe book. It has all different meat and vegetable dishes, and also has the picky bits that you would order from a take away, so you feel like you are having a treat, and its actually really healthy food. It is basically guilt free food and I’ve actually started to enjoy eating and NOT feeling guilty for once!

 

 

In January this year I started cutting out alcohol completely. I had a smoothie for breakfast, a salad for lunch and meat and greens for dinner. I cut out caffeine and only drunk herbal teas and lemon water and I really stuck to this regimentally. I was and still do go to the gym 1-2 hours a day, 5-6 days a week. I love the buzz I get from exercising and it really lifts my mood.

 

Ksfl food really does get easier.

 

The more food you make, you just learn as you go along and educate yourself from practice.

 

I’m not going to say my journey has been easy and I’m also not going to say that I NEVER fall off the wagon because I am human after all! If I do have a bad day or weekend, I try not to let it engulf me into feeling guilty for a week, because sometimes that does more harm than good. When Monday comes, I simply prepare a couple of day’s meals in advance, so there is no temptation to just grab something awful out of the cupboard when I’m hungry.

 

My top tips would be to purchase some tupperware, so you can prepare breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Buy a notebook so you can write down all the food and drink you consume for a week, or longer, just to keep a check on how you are doing.

 

If you do slip up, note it down, we have to be honest with ourselves otherwise how will we ever change our bad habits?

 

 

Try and exercise a little, even if it’s 10 minutes a day, every other day, or even twice a week.

 

The more you do, the better you may feel and the more you will want to do it! Have a realistic goal – I can’t sit here and say I want to be a size 8!

 

(Well, I can but its not realistically maintainable to me I don’t think). So my goal is to be a nice size 10 and probably 10 ½ -11 stone.

 

I am currently just over 12 stone, so my goal is in sight, its just getting this last bit of fat off that is that last push to finish line!!!

 

Although really, KSFL isn’t about the end goal I don’t think. It’s about maybe reaching your goal, but maintaining that healthy lifestyle for good.

 

 

Good luck on your journey, Lauren x

 

Read about Laurens MUM who is th Kick Start Fat Loss Franchisee

for Orpington click here

 

Are you in the Oprpington area?

 

Ill be doing a Book launch and talk on Monday 4th April

it could be wonderful to see you.

 

I hope you find Laurens story inspiring.

 

Have a happy healthy day

 

Love Rachel xxxxxx

 

Snapchat Rachel L Holmes

Do you want to become a Kick Start Fat Loss Franchisee?

 

Are you ready to take your business to the NEXT LEVEL?

Add you email HERE

 

Posted on April 1, 2016 by rachellholmes