Tanya lost 32kg
“I’m glowing with health and buzzing with energy!”
Melbournite Tanya Gathercole is terrified of flying so she had to muster up all of her courage simply to get to the first Second Chance Challenge meeting in Sydney. However, conquering this fear has been the start of a series of life-changing positives.
For the Second Chance Challenge the 32-year-old personal assistant was buddied up with Conrad Makin whom she hadn’t met before the start of the Challenge. Tanya says, “Once I got over the journey to Sydney I was really excited to meet Conrad and find out what he was like. It was great because right away I knew we were in the same ‘head space’ – we were both really motivated and ready to change our lives."
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Tanya before
Tanya cycling
Tanya after
Fabulous at Finale
Looking back there is no doubt that Tanya, who had auditioned for the Couples series of The Biggest Loser, was disappointed that she didn’t make it on to the show but she says, “I knew that it was my time to do something for myself. At at the audition for Series 4, it was a huge wake-up call to see the results of my medical examination on paper. Seeing my weight and my body fat percentage made me realise that if I didn’t do something fast, everything was headed towards a bad place. I was lucky to get a second chance."
Tanya puts her previous heavy weight down to choosing the wrong foods, partying and generally living an unhealthy lifestyle. She says, “My twin brother is the complete opposite to me; he has always been able to eat what he likes and has never been overweight. Now I know that I can’t compare myself to anyone else and I don’t – I do what I need to do to lose weight and feel good about myself."
Positive results
With such a lot of weight coming off so fast it was difficult for Tanya to see what is clearly visibile to other people. She says, “It took me a long time to acknowledge that my body was very different. I didn't start to buy new clothes until after a loss of 20kg." Tanya’s workmates even got together to surprise her with a cheque for over $800 so she could treat herself to some new clothes!
Being overweight her whole life, Tanya never had a positive outlook, but all this has changed since she has lost weight. “We each have two choices,” she says, “and I refuse to be negative!”
Life-long changes
Like other members of the Second Chance Challenge, Tanya lost her weight with The Biggest Loser Club Meal Replacement Program and although the Challenge has ended, Tanya intends to continue her new healthy lifestyle. “I fully intend to carry on with the Shakes and the Meal Replacement Bars. I never feel hungry when I have them and they are a godsend in my fast-paced life." One thing that Tanya had to give up completely though is potato. She explains, “It is my favourite and I can’t just eat a small amount.”
As a fan of The Biggest Loser Club, Tanya reveals, “I love using the online diary. Just by typing in a food I can see straight away how many calories were in it, plus just how much walking I would need to do to work off the extra calories. I love the recipes too as they were so easy and tasty, especially the Chicken Parmesan Salad.”
Tanya has learnt to eat well and how to fit exercise into her life, which has helped her feel good and look great. She has focused on replacing bad habits with better ones, stuck with her diet and exercise program and made the changes she knew she needed to. Thanks to her hard work she is loving life and can see the changes in her skin and energy levels.
By The Biggest Loser Finale, Tanya had lost 32.2kg, just less than a quarter of her starting body weight of 129kg. She’s now more than half way to her goal weight of 76kg. Well done Tanya – you look fantastic!