In January this year I decided I needed to do something about my weight. I was 12st 7lbs, wearing a size 18 and, although I seemed confident, I was miserable about the way I looked. At just 32, with a BMI that said I was obese, I needed to take action before my health suffered.

I started putting on weight when I met my husband Peter, 40, eight years ago. I seemed to get into a rut of eating the wrong things and having much larger portions – I’d eat a huge baguette for lunch and then have half a bag of pasta covered in cheese for dinner. I was also having two or three glasses of wine with dinner each night and so the weight piled on.

I hadn’t tried many other diets but I had been on an unrealistic exercise regime and even had a go at cutting out foods with more than five per cent fat content – such as cooking oils and dairy products – all to no avail. I couldn’t find a diet that worked for me, and so I never took them very seriously.

Then I saw an advert for Closer Diets while reading the magazine one day and thought I’d give it a try. I opted for the Closer Diets plan and suddenly I was losing an average of 2-3lbs per week - I couldn’t believe how quickly the weight was coming off! I was still eating everything I liked but in moderation and boy, was it working!

The meal plans and recipes were fabulous (and didn’t involve hours in the kitchen) – I didn’t once feel like I was on a diet. Instead of having half a bag of pasta now, I’ve learnt that 100g is more than enough. I can now have soup without having to eat four slices of bread with it too!

I managed to get to 9st 9lbs in just six months without having to deprive myself of anything. Seeing the quick results was such an incentive, every half a stone I lost people would tell me how fantastic I looked and it made me feel gorgeous! It’s now 10 months on, I’m 8st 11lbs and I’ve never been happier.

My friends and family can’t believe how well the plan has worked; in fact I think my mum and sister are even a little envious! The level of personal support you get on a Closer Diet is incredible – the personal, motivating emails I received each week spurred me on.

This time last year, I assumed my weight was inevitable – genetic even – that I’d always be a bigger woman, but Closer Diets has helped me get my life back on track! Bring on the skinny jeans!

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