Sarah Liveing felt so deflated after needing a super-sized life vest on a rafting trip she walked off the pound
Sarah Liveing had been looking forward to a once-in-a-lifetime holiday to Vermont, USA, with her family.
And when she, husband Chris and their three children signed up for a white-water rafting trip, she was filled with dread as the rest of them excitedly prepared to get into the rapids for a day of adventure.
And it was with good reason, for next minute the rafting instructor handed out the life jackets – and she had to wear a size XXXL.
Sarah recalls: “The rafting instructors struggled to find a large enough vest to give me.
"Then one of them called out, ‘We’re going to need a big one – she’s a large lady’.
“I had to just stand there and take it. I felt completely crushed. It was a moment I’ll never forget.”
Sarah was a size 26 and weighed 18st, and this was the moment she knew she had to do something about it.
Devastated, she pledged that when she got home to Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire, she would abandon all sugary snacks and take up regular walking.
Having dropped a whopping 8st, she is now a size 12 and weighs just 10st – and has even found a new career as a weight-loss and stress-management consultant.
Sarah, 54, was always slim when she was young – a size 12 – but her weight crept up as she focused on raising her children Millie, now 23, Alice, 21, and James, 17.
She says: “In my childhood home biscuits and chocolates were locked away, reserved only for rare treats, which only made me want them more.
"That desire continued into my adult life.
“My weight fluctuated from the age of 11. The lowest I dropped to was 8st 5lbs aged 18 and the biggest I went up to was a size 16 as a young teenager.
“I resigned from my job in fashion PR to become a mother in May 1991, aged 30.
"When I got married I had slimmed to a size 12, but then I became pregnant three months later.
"I knew I wanted to be a mum, but the change to the rhythm of my life threw me a bit.
“I put everything into raising the children and justified constant snacking as a way to reward myself for my efforts.
“I had one meal a day – but it lasted from breakfast until way into the evening!
"I couldn’t help eating baked treats like croissants and chocolate, and I would snack all day on anything I could get my hands on.
“My particular favourite was Haagen-Dazs ice cream – I would sit there and eat an entire tub.
“I was a one-woman eating machine. I dread to think how many calories I was consuming every day – it must have been more than 3,000.
"I would go to bed every night feeling so full.”
As her weight increased with each pregnancy, Sarah was prone to bouts of stress and depression – all linked to a severe lack of confidence.
She says: “I once took my children to a Hear’Say concert and a man behind swore at me and said he couldn’t see the stage because I was so large.
"I was so upset that I shook with nerves.
“I used to hide behind my sense of humour when it came to my weight. I would laugh it off, but there soon came a point where I felt that I couldn’t ignore it any more.
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