Joining The Biggest Loser Club has been one of the best health choices Debbie Simpson has ever made. Having lost around 20% of her starting body weight, she finally feels comfortable in her own skin and Debbie now loves regular exercise. Plus, by using the online diary, Debbie has finally pinpointed the foods that she is intolerant to.
Debbie has been unhappy with her weight since her early twenties and, over the years, she has tried a whole host of weight-loss methods. Over the long-term, nothing worked for her. Debbie also joined gyms and went to keep-fit classes but her initial enthusiasm soon vanished and her weight woes continued.
Six years ago, Debbie, who is from the UK, discovered that she and her brother had an older sister. Their mum Gail and dad Alan had had a daughter who was in Sydney. “In the 60s,” says Debbie, “it was not the thing to have a baby out of wedlock and so, reluctantly, mum and dad gave up our sister, Sandi, for adoption. I had always wanted a sister and when we came over here to meet her, we really hit it off.”
Moving to Australia
Debbie also fell in love with Australia and, to be nearer her sister, Debbie and husband Mark moved to Australia in 2007. The couple wanted a new and healthier life. Debbie planned to give up smoking and lose weight; she wanted to feel fit and healthy. “I managed to give up smoking but didn’t do so well with diet and exercise and my weight continued to rise,” she said.
Debbie wore baggy size 14-16 clothes and constantly felt uncomfortable with her weight and shape. “I started a job as an admin assistant and getting ready for work was torture. I would change about six times before eventually returning to the same comfy clothes that I started with," she said.
“I can’t describe how unhappy I was and how many tears I shed. Yet, I couldn’t lose the excess weight.”
In August 2009 Debbie had a tummy upset which she had from time to time and she went in search of something light to settle it. She had used soups and shakes in the UK during similar flare-ups and spotted The Biggest Loser Club Shakes in the supermarket.
“The Club Shakes were really tasty and very filling and because I received a seven-day trial to The Biggest Loser Club site, I thought I would give it a go,” she said.
Click to enlarge photos
Debbie before
Debbie before
Debbie after
Debbie after
Debbie after
Diary fan
Debbie loved the diary right from the start. “Finally, it was plain to see where I was going wrong all those times before," she said. "Sometimes I was eating the wrong things, sometimes too much in general.”
After the trial ended, Debbie signed up for three months and then, began to focus on her fitness. “Before, I tended to overdo things – I would literally run before I walked which meant that pretty soon, I would dread the treadmill and stop exercising altogether.”
Having seen the fantastic results that walking had brought for Shaun on The Biggest Loser and being a big fan of The Commando whose by-line is “consistency”, Debbie decided that regular walking might just work for her.
Debbie set her alarm clock 30 minutes earlier each morning (she found morning exercise worked better for her than leaving it until later) and she just got on with it. If she felt tired, Debbie would simply walk at a slower pace or choose not to walk on an incline. Now, she walks holding small weights which has helped to tone her arms, too.
“Sometimes, I feel like doing intervals or running and recently, I ran 5km without stopping and probably could have gone on but I had to leave for work. This just proves how fit you can get by walking alone.”
Losing weight at the rate of around 1kg per week, Debbie went from 74.6kg at the start of her Club journey to 59.8 kg and her goal weight in four months. Since then, she has maintained her weight at around 60.5kg; she wears size 10 clothes and can get ready in five minutes flat without any tears.
Debbie remains an avid diary user as it has helped her to stay on track. She also weighs herself regularly and if she sees her weight gradually creeping upwards, she reviews the foods she’s eating and reigns in her portion sizes.
Gluten intolerance
“The other great thing about using the diary using the diary, I now know that I can’t eat bread and bread products are responsible for my occasional upsets or abdominal pain. I just looked back and saw what I had eaten that may have triggered the problem. I now know that bread and bread products trigger my tummy problems and I even know how long it takes between eating bread and having symptoms now.
I love being fit and the feeling it gives me and look for new challenges all the time. Recently, Mark and I went for a four-hour bike ride around the state forest and had a picnic lunch. I didn’t shudder at the thought of wearing cycling shorts, I just felt so proud of how fit and healthy I now am. Now that’s the life! What can we do next weekend?”