You may have been witness to Catherine's weight loss journey over on the Secret Slimmers Facebook group and watched her shrink over the months. Well now she's won 1st place in our Transformation Challenge, we interviewed Catherine to find out more about her experience of losing 15 stone and find out what advice she might have to share with you.

Catherine: Before the Plan, I was 32 stone which was my biggest weight. I have lost about 14-16 pounds on my own but that took me about 18 months. From starting the New You Plan, in total, I’m just short of losing 15 stone. I’ve been with New You for about 18 months.

Catherine: Originally I booked a holiday to America and Iceland for my 50th, and decided I didn’t want to get on the plane and ask for a seat belt extension. So I looked into various things, I went to see a surgeon to get bariatric surgery and he told me it would cost me about £10,000, which I didn’t want to spend. He also said I would need to lose 3 stone before he could operate. So I went home, went on the internet and I looked at all the total food replacement options and the New You Plan came up in the search. At that time there was a bundle for 100 meals for £100 so I started with that. My first day on the plan was the 6th of August 2020.

Catherine: I do remember, I was really scared, but I kept trying different meals and I liked them all. The only meal I didn’t like was the burger. The first week I stuck with it 100% and I was very surprised when I stepped on the scale. I had lost 15.2 pounds in my first week! I remember getting on and off the scales 6 times to make sure it was right.

Catherine: Sometimes it was difficult because I was still cooking for the family. Or when I went to my mum's I had to explain that I'd already eaten. I only told my immediate family that I was on the Plan.

Catherine: I've always been a very confident person. I have a part-time job working with football team, I would always be walking around and up and down the stairs but I used to think I should lose weight to be able to do these things faster. I was very lethargic and very low on energy. Sometimes I would feel embarrassed, going to certain places and not being able to buy clothes. Some of the clothes I was able to buy I didn’t like and didn’t want to wear. I remember going to a work event and it was a black-tie event; I wore a dress and I look at it now and I think that dress wasn’t for someone my age, I would’ve preferred to wear something else.

Catherine: It's changed massively. Going into shops and picking up clothes that I want to wear, rather than something I have to wear. If I’m out and I’m walking, I don’t have to stop for a rest or breath. I got on the plane to New York and I didn’t have to wear the extension belt either which felt amazing! I was walking around New York, doing more than 20,000 steps a day and I didn’t have to stop. I've still more weight to lose but it’s not like climbing a mountain anymore, I have climbed the mountain and I am now coming down at the side.

Catherine: It was definitely getting on that plane and not having to wear the extension. This was the reason why I started this Plan and I have achieved this.

Catherine: My biggest motivator was seeing Mark Kirwan. He was on the plan and I used to watch him week after week. I used to wait for his weigh-ins. He has also lost 15 stone and he was really motivating me to go further. If in the beginning, someone would’ve said to me I will lose 15 stone I wouldn’t believe them. I never set a target weight for myself, I will just see where I am happy with my shape and size.

Catherine: My health has improved massively. I was always asthmatic but I've not taken my inhalers at all in the last 10-12 months. I don’t have to stop walking to catch my breath anymore. The only regret I have is that I haven’t found this plan earlier.

Catherine: People who have known me for years, saying they couldn’t recognise me.

Catherine: Remember this is your journey, don’t compare it to anyone else. Give it time to work, it won’t take a day to lose weight. Drink your water, talk to others, use the Secret Slimmers group, and use every tool you can.

Wise words from Catherine. It truly is your journey, it's your path and you take it at your own pace in your own way. Use all the tools we offer you and you can succeed in your goals, just like Catherine did.

15 stone has really been a life-changing amount of weight for Catherine to lose and New You will still be here to help her in her maintenance.

Keep your eye out for our next Transformation Challenge so you can put yourself forward. No matter the loss, you'll be in with a chance of winning!