£30K TRANSFORMATION CHALLENGE WINNER: Tracey Lost 4st 1lb* & WON £1000 Cash!

Before finding The New You Plan, Tracey was exhausted. She hated the fact that she had gained weight so continued to eat for comfort. She was fed up of being stuck in a vicious cycle and decided enough was enough. She entered our £30K Transformation Challenge for accountability, lost 4st 1lb* and WON £1000 cash.

Here, we catch up with Tracey to hear how she's feeling and she shares her advice for anyone thinking about starting the plan.

New You: Why did you decide to join the challenge?

Tracey: I entered it for me as I wanted to prove to myself that I could do it. I have been so determined this year. I bought a pair of size 16 jeans about three years ago. They didn't fit but I bought them thinking I'd lose weight and they'd fit by summer. And I never did. They sat in a carrier bag with the receipt until I found them earlier this year. I tried them on and I couldn't even get my leg in, never mind pull them up. And this was the moment I knew I had to do something about it. My birthday was in just over 2 months time so I set myself a goal that they would fit by then.

New You: Was there anything that helped you stay on-track while doing the challenge?

Tracey: I found buying a piece of clothing a size smaller motivating. I'd keep trying it until it fitted and that felt great.

New You: We’d love to know how you heard about the plan!

Tracey: I was on Slim and Save initially. I liked the Shakes but kept starting and stopping and couldn't get into it initially. And then I saw that Slim & Save was closing and I panicking, thinking, what will I do now?! When I saw that New You was collaborating with them, I looked on the website, read through quite a bit on there, and knew I was happy to try it.

Getting started...

New You: What led to you starting the plan?

Tracey: I felt so drained. I just felt like I was in such a bad place and I knew the biggest part of that was my weight, and that had to change. But it was hard because I just wanted to make myself feel better in that moment, so I would eat and then hate myself again and it was a vicious cycle. And every day I would wake up and think, I've got to stop this. I hated looking in the mirror, I wouldn't go out with my family. It got to the point that I'd just really had enough. I knew that the only person that could change this was me. No one else was going to do it for me.

I started on a Thursday morning. I had a few shakes left so I started on those and placed an order. My husband asked why I didn't want to just wait and start on the Monday? We all have this idea in our heads that a diet should start on a Monday. But my mind was made up. I didn't want to spend all weekend eating. My mindset was just so different. I didn't even find it hard to do, because in my head I thought I either get bigger or I have to stay on the plan to do something about it.

I think the menopause played a big part in my weight gain. I've always suffered with depression and anxiety and I have endometriosis. My periods have been really heavy constantly and they have been the bane of my life that they actually controlled it. I would have so much bloating and pain and I couldn't fit into my clothes at times.

It was only when I went to the doctors to get checked for a hernia that I found out I had really large fibroids. They couldn't remove them with keyhole surgery because they were so large. So I would have to have a total hysterectomy. I couldn't get my head around that so I ate more because I felt so stressed about all of that going on and how that was making me feel.

New You: And tell us about that first week…

Tracey: I found it really easy because my head was definitely in the right place to do it. I focused on a day at a time and knew when I'd finished one day, that I'd be able to do the next. I can do another. When I did my first weigh in, that spurred me on to do another week.

I took photos before I started (the ones where I'm wearing the blue top). I'm not holding the I AM IN sign because I wasn't planning to enter the challenge. It wasn't until I weighed myself and saw that I'd lost 11lbs that my husband told me I should enter the challenge. So it was a week after I'd lost eleven pounds that I actually took the picture with my poster.

New You: What are your go-to meals & snacks?

Tracey: I do really love the shakes. I have tried all the flavours, but I find I stick with what I really like, which is the Chocolate Orange one. I just tried the Caramel Bars recently and I love those.

Life changing...

New You: How would you say the plan has changed your life?

Tracey: I think I'm so much happier. My kids have noticed this because I was always grouchy and snappy. It's given me back my confidence - I haven't had any for such a long time. I'm now going into shops and buying clothes, which just feels so nice. I haven't had that feeling in years. It's lovely to be able to choose clothes I like rather than trying to cover myself up.

I think I spent so many years making sure that everyone else is okay all the time - being a mum, a wife and a sister and forgetting about myself. I think that's what this has done that for me this year. I thought about myself and what I need and how I should feel about myself. New You has given me everything that I needed to feel right in myself. It's made kinder to myself, if I'm honest.

New You: What is the nicest compliment you have received since losing weight?

Tracey: Everyone has said about how great I look and my husband is always telling me I'm stunning. I can see he's really enjoying how I look, and that makes me feel good. We were going to a friends' 60th birthday party, so I bought myself a new top and trousers. I was taking my 4-year-old granddaughter Maisie. While I was getting ready she told me that I looked absolutely beautiful. She couldn't stop hugging me and telling me she loved me and it was just lovely.

New You: How will Christmas look for you this year?

Tracey: Because I'm in a better place, I'm going to be happier. I won't be worried about looking bloated and spoiling the day by beating myself up about how I look. I'm looking forward to getting dressed up on Christmas Day, rather than wanting to hide in my pyjamas.

New You: What would you say to someone thinking of starting the plan?

Tracey: I would definitely say, do it. Take it day by day. And if you get through day one, you get through day two. And if you can get through the first three days to get yourself into ketosis, you will feel so much better in yourself. After that first week of seeing how much weight you have lost, it just spurs you on to do another week. It's small steps.

Definitely do it over all the other diets. I've dieted all my life and I've never lost weight the way I have on this. So I would definitely say do it 100%.

New You: And then finally, what’s next?

Tracey: I feel really comfortable now but I've still got a little way to go. I would still like to lose another stone or even a little bit less. So I'm going to keep going because I like how I feel now and I don't want to go back to how I was feeling. I actually love how I feel right now and it's nice.

Fancy Losing Weight* & WINNING Cash?! End 2023 STRONG!

Tracey is proof that you can lose weight and change your health for the better!

Whether you want to lose half a stone or 10 stone*, have a slimmer figure, or are just looking to get maximum nutrition in minimum time, then New You can make the perfect partner to get you to where you want to be.

Join Our £30K Cash 2023 Transformation Challenge

*Disclaimer: Weight loss results may vary. This is not a guarantee.

Tracey won £1000 cash and you could win too!

Our final deadline of 2023 is:

• 31st December 2023

That means you have from now until the New Year to create your transformation. If you entered earlier this year and didn’t win, you can still enter again. already entered and haven’t won, please keep submitting your photos. Just remember to take your “I AM IN” photo now so that you will have amazing before and after photos.

Get all the details in this dedicated blog post here.

*Disclaimer: Weight loss results may vary. This is not a guarantee.