Maree Rodwell is now well into her weight-loss journey and is more determined than ever to reach her goal weight. Over a period of one year, she has lost a massive 31.6kg and her enthusiasm and encouragement are inspiring fellow Clubbies on the forums. Here is Maree’s story so far.
An avid watcher of The Biggest Loser, Maree caught an advertisement for The Biggest Loser Club Shakes during last year’s Couples Show. Weighing in at nearly 130kg at the time, Maree decided that it was high time she did something about her health. Her two sons were grown up, she was working as an account manager and she was tired of living with a host of weight-related health problems.
Getting to know the site
“Using the seven-day free membership that came with my first pack of Biggest Loser Club Shakes, I started to experiment with my individual menu plan. About a month later, I decided to ‘go it alone’ more of the time and go back to the kinds of foods I was used to eating. I kept on track by using the diary,” says Maree.
It didn't take long for Maree to become a devoted diary fan, which surprised her, as she had never spent any time using a diary of any sort before. This one was working its magic – it was helping her to stay accountable in calorie terms and stay on track to her goals.
After recovering from the odd shock about the calorie count of a few of her favourite foods (Maree loves cheese), she started to make smarter food swaps like reduced-fat cheese and low-fat sour cream. By using the diary, Maree also learned that she could allow herself the odd chocolate treat; nothing is banned, but everything has to be accounted for. Not needing to abandon all her favourite foods has been an important factor in Maree’s ongoing success.
Click to enlarge photos
Maree before
Maree after
How things have changed
“Nowadays, I normally have a Shake and fruit with coffee for breakfast, lunch is soup and yoghurt, while dinner is often steak or chicken and steamed vegies and I am still partial to the old low-fat hot chip or two.”
Maree decided not to tell anyone about her get-healthy goals and just got on with it. She says, “People started to notice that I had lost weight after I was about 8kg down. They were a bit surprised when I told them that I was losing weight with The Club and that includes my family.”
Today, the whole family is benefitting from the lighter cooking served in the Rodwell home. Even Maree’s husband is happy “as long as he doesn’t have to eat broccoli and cauliflower,” laughs Maree.
Exercise-wise, Maree finds that walking more has helped her to lose weight and get fitter. She also enjoys fitness games on her console, such as cycling, marching and yoga.
Half-way mark
Now that she is starting to get more and more comments about her changing shape, Maree has found that some are also warning her not to lose too much weight. But Maree won’t be deflected from reaching her goal weight this time. She expects to hit it in about a year or so.
Maree says, “I can’t say it is easy, but losing weight with The Club has actually been easier than I anticipated. Filling in the diary regularly is easier than I thought it would be and it is great to jump onto the forums; it has been wonderful for me during the times that I felt I needed some kind words and even needed to hear some tough ones. Knowing there are lots of people out there who are having the same challenges and advice from people who have been there is a real support.”
One year from now
This time next year, she intends to be seen once more on The Club site at her goal weight of 80kg and she is determined to be dressed in her victory outfit, “A sassy dress from Cue and a pair of shoes so high that I can’t walk in them” she says. We know she’ll do it. Watch this space!