The Biggest Loser’s Bob and Tiffany inspired her, The Club diary shocked her and a new eating and exercise regime helped Michelle Sargent to lose more than 18kg. Michelle looks fantastic and, thanks to her weight loss, she’s now free from a long-standing medical condition too.
Describing herself as “chunky” from her teenage years onwards, Michelle felt as though she had tried every weight-loss program around – without much success. Married to David for 12 years, Michelle, 35, from NSW, was diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) seven years ago.
The diagnosis helped explain her hormonal imbalances and why she was heavier than she wanted to be. “Yet I knew that the major reason that I was overweight was because I was eating way too much and not doing any exercise at all,” Michelle said.
Starting a family
Michelle and David tried IVF for more than four years, unsuccessfully. Michelle didn’t think that her weight had anything to do with her difficulty in conceiving but when she lost 10kg through exercise and fell pregnant with twins Andrew and Olivia, now four, she changed her opinion.
Racing around attending to the needs of her two babies meant that the weight “dropped off”. And, the couple came to the conclusion that Michelle’s weight had been contributing to her fertility problems when Michelle fell pregnant naturally soon after. The latest addition to the Sargent family, Monique, is now two and a half years old.
Only the best
Michelle was determined to give her beloved children the best possible start in life and chose only the freshest ingredients. But the sheer pace of life, combined with an average of just three hours of sleep each night, meant that Michelle often felt tired.
“It sounds bizarre, but instead of eating the good food I was serving to the children, I would eat piles of dinner much later in the day. Steaming bowls of pasta were my favourite. I used food as a stress reliever and as a reward, and carbs were a real favourite.”
It was looking at a photograph of herself last year that Michelle realised just big she had become. “I thought I was dressing well and wearing clothes to cover myself up so it was a shock to realise that the person in the photo was really me,” she said.
“I was wearing the sorts of clothes that my mum would wear. Don’t get me wrong – mum looks great – but when someone in her thirties is wearing the same as someone who is nearly in her sixties, it makes you think.”
Click to enlarge photos
Michelle before
Michelle halfway
Michelle after
Michelle after
Inspiration from Bob
It was around this time that Michelle was inspired by watching Bob, Tiffany and the others in The Biggest Loser Couples go through their own weight-loss journeys. Michelle felt the time was right for her to focus on her own body and mind and she wanted the change to be for good.
“I looked at The Club site and it was brilliant. I thought, ‘now this is what I’ve been looking for’! I like the fact that it doesn’t teach you to diet, but it shows you how to live a healthier life,” she said.
Diary shocker
Using the diary, Michelle was shocked to find that she was eating around three times what she needed for her size. She reigned in her portions and began to eat more regularly and earlier, too. Now, Michelle usually chooses a lunch of flatbread with salad and tuna, and dinner is often a small piece of chicken or meat with salad or vegies.
“Once I sorted out the right kind of meals and snacks I should be eating, I felt satisfied and it was quite easy. I still manage to have the occasional treat and always seem able to stay within my calorie limit,” Michelle said.
Michelle enjoys reading success stories and said that getting involved in the forums is a great way to stay inspired. “I love the weekly features too – they’re a great way to keep abreast of new research into health and fitness.
“But for me, the best thing was being able to track my results,” she said. “It always kept me wanting to achieve more. In fact, the healthier I got the more hopeful I felt that I would be able to maintain a healthy weight range for good.”
The whole family has been a great support to Michelle, whose children have also become involved in a healthy lifestyle. They help her by counting her push-ups every evening. “They get more excited than I do if I manage an extra set,” she said.
Toned and honed
Because her local gym has a reliable crèche, Michelle is happy to leave the children with the carers for a short time and burns calories with a daily cardio session, plus a half-hour weights sessions three times a week. She has found this combination to be an effective way to sculpt and tone her body.
Starting her weight loss journey at 84.4kg, Michelle dropped 18.4kg and is now a shapely 66kg. That’s a loss of 21.8 per cent of her starting body weight!
“My message to people on this journey is that if you have a bad day, don’t stress, just don’t let the bad eating day turn into two. The freedom you feel in losing weight truly does make you a more confident and happy person. Making new goals along the way is a terrific way to keep motivated.”
And more good news...
When Michelle went back to her doctor in December last year for a PCOS check-up, she was amazed to find that her hormone levels were absolutely normal because she has lost the excess weight she was carrying. “I have been on medication for PCOS for five years and I am delighted to say that I don’t need it anymore!”
Joining The Biggest Loser Club was “the best decision” Michelle has ever made, she said. “I feel so empowered by the knowledge I have that I will never go back to that overweight person I was.”