Super slimmers shed 16 stone (From This Is Wiltshire)

AFTER losing 16 stone between them, Lisa Whiting, Olive Hartley and Tessa Goring are just a fraction of the women they used to be.

Lisa, a mother-of-five of Shrivenham , was taking 21 tablets a day before she joined Slimming World in a bid to shed the pounds and is now five stone lighter and off her medication.

The 43-year-old, who is an adminstrator, has dropped from a size 20 to a size 12.

She said: “I have struggled with my weight for years on and off. I have lost weight and put it on several times.

“A few years ago I started to get ill. I had IBS and all sorts of problems including stress and anxiety.

“I was told to lose weight. I have lost about five stone in four years. It has changed my life. I am not on any tablets and I have so much more energy now.”

Rather than calorie counting, Slimming World encourages members to eat lower calorie foods such as lean meat, fish, fruit, vegetables and rice.

Mother-of-three, Olive, 49, of Moredon , has lost nine stone in four years taking her from a size 24 to a size 12.

She said: “I have always had a weight problem, right from the start at primary school.

“In 2008 I left my old job and went to work with adults with learning disabilities and I needed to be more active.

“I had a grandchild on the way and I felt like I couldn’t get up and down stairs any more.

“I joined Slimming World in January because my eldest daughter got diagnosed with IIH, which is a build-up of fluid behind the eyes. She’s not big but they said it would help if she lost 10 per cent of her body weight. I went to Slimming World to help her.

“ I had already lost five-and-a-half stone and I wasn’t going to lose any more weight, but I have lost nearly three-and-a-half stone since January.”

Joining Slimming World helped Tessa, 35, a client manager from Taw Hill , lost two stone in four months taking her from a size 16 to a size 10 to 12.

“I have changed my mindset. Now instead of it being a diet, it is a way of life. It is just about learning new habits. It’s things like the way you cook food,” said the mother-of-two.

“For the first time in my life I don’t give myself a hard time about what I eat.”