TRANSFORMATION CHALLENGE WINNER: Kay Lost Over 3 Stone* & WON £1000 Cash!

After gaining weight during lockdown and having skin cancer, Kay hit rock bottom. She was no longer socialising, staying in doors, and had become breathless going up stairs. She was turning 60, felt she was becoming invisible and knew she had to take control to do something about it. After finding The New You Plan, she has lost just over 3 stone* and decided to enter our £30k Transformation Challenge on a whim. After being named a winner in our Fall Focus Sept/Oct Challenge, we caught up with Kay who shares her story...

New You: Kay, why did you decide to join the challenge?

Kay: Well, I love Secret Slimmers - it's lovely and everyone is very encouraging. I'd actually shared a before and after picture and I got so many lovely comments back. And then, of course, I'd seen the challenge advertised. And I think after reading all the positive comments, I decided to just give it a go. I think it's encouraging for others as well. I was 60 this year and I'm out partying. I think maybe we get to the stage at a certain age where we think we're too old and I wasn't having it!

I'll never forget something someone once told me. She said: "When I was younger, I used to walk into a room and everybody would take notice of me and now I walk in and nobody even looks at me. I'm invisible." And I remember thinking that's not good. I've got no intention of being invisible or letting anybody else be invisible, either.

I think how you feel about yourself is unfortunately linked to your weight. It can make you totally depressed in your life. It shouldn't, but it does. It's a vicious circle really, isn't it? But for me at the moment, this is the way forward.

New You: Throughout the challenge, were there any milestones that you hit?

Kay: Well, getting the weight off was amazing. I couldn't actually believe that I'd got to over 13 stone to start off with. As the scales were going down, it was like, I can’t believe I have lost another stone. I have actually come down to about 10st 1lb*, but I'm staying around about the same at the moment, which is brilliant. I still use the plan during the week. I may be socialising a bit more at the weekends but I'm using the plan to counteract anything.

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

Kay: I found it online. I'd been whinging about my weight gain to friends. I have a friend that did a similar plan and another friend said to me, well, why can't you do that? First of all, I did actually think that maybe you needed to be over a certain weight to do it. So, I Googled, and The New You Plan stood out the most. It was the most appealing out of all of them. I like all the bright packaging and the quotes on them. I had a really good look at it, liked the sound of the meals and it sounded affordable as well so I just decided to give it a go.

I had spent the last three years yo-yoing up and down, losing a couple of pounds, putting a pound back on again. I was just finding it really, really depressing. I've tried everything else with no success so I thought I'd may as well give it a go. And it's worked brilliantly because I think it's given me the organisation and the control over my food when I am eating it.

Getting started...

New You: What led to you starting the plan?

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

Kay: I was at rock bottom. I had no work in 2020 because of COVID. My business completely dried up for the whole year, plus some. I think the lack of socialising, not seeing friends or family led to my weight gain. We've got two flights of stairs where we are and both of my knees were creaking and I was actually out of breath going up them, which was worrying. In 2020, I also had skin cancer removed from my face. I had a big dressing on my face for about two months. I really felt like I'd let myself down. I think sometimes you've got to actually be in that place to get the motivation to dig yourself out of it.

New You: And tell us about that first week…

Kay: I wasn't quite sure what to expect. I got very excited when I opened the box and saw all of the packets. I got them all organised and put them all in plastic containers. And then I think I just got into a regime straight away. And it was a case of, well, you've invested in this now, so let's give it a go. And that's what I did. And to be honest, I didn't feel hungry. I was drinking loads more water than I normally do. I never drink that amount of water, which is why I think my skin's really good now as well. It's all new to you in the beginning, and I think the portion control is a big thing. It's a shock initially, that it looks small the first week, then once you get the results on the scales, it's like, Oh, yeah. That's great.

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

Kay: Because I was dieting in the summer, I absolutely loved the Shakes frozen and I'm still loving those for breakfast. My favourite ones are the Chocolate Orange and Strawberry & Banana. Lunchtime is Soup - either the Chicken, Tomato or the Ham & Mushroom. For dinner, I'll usually have any of the Pastas, the Indian Dal, Vegetable Chilli, Mexican Tacos or the Burger. I'll always have a bar at the end of the day. I love the new White Chocolate & Apple one and also the is the Strawberry Crisp and the Caramel. I keep them in the fridge so they're nice and chewy.

Life changing...

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

Kay: I think it has completely changed my life, because before, I was at the stage where I didn't actually even want to go out, and I'm quite a social creature. When you lose weight and you can fit into nearly everything in your wardrobe, it's amazing - you just want to go out. And because I work in fashion, I feel like I need to set a good example. It's not all about how you look anyway. It's how you feel fitness-wise. I can belt up hills now. I'm not struggling going up two flights of stairs with my knees creaking. I feel fit.

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

Kay: I've had lovely comments from Secret Slimmers and some of my friends who I haven't seen for a while have been quite shocked. And, of course, my son, who is biased, is full of compliments. It boosts your confidence a bit. I need a lot of talking into believing. And I spend all my time trying to make everybody else feel good so it takes a bit of getting used to. I'm not going to be invisible. I think that's my tagline.

New You: How will Christmas be different for you this year?

Kay: I'm excited for Christmas this year as we're hopefully seeing lots of family and friends. I'm looking forward to wearing something sparkly if I can and just getting out and enjoying Christmas. We've booked to go to Centre Park just after Christmas. I'm going to have to dig out a swimming costume. That'll be interesting.

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

Kay: Don't think about it. just do it. No hesitation. Just get stuck into it. Embrace it. Go for it.... No point in wasting any time. You just need to knuckle down and deal with it and get it done. I think that's it. Just do it is my thing.

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

Kay 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.

END 2023 STRONG! Join Our £30K Cash 2023 Transformation Challenge

Kay 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.