Though I’d been a keen runner in primary school, I found PE uninspiring as a teenager. Lessons seemed to focus more on warm-ups than actual activity, and extracurricular sports teams required you to excel to be accepted. By university, sports afternoons were spent shopping, and I had become someone who would drive to the end of the road rather than walk.

By my late 20s, I was caught in the ever-changing world of diet fads, living on fat-free, sugar-free products while bingeing on unhealthy, high-fat, sugar-laden snacks. I’d convince myself another “low-calorie” crisp packet wouldn’t hurt, but my Slimpod journey later revealed the truth: I was starving my body of nutrients while stuffing it with ultra-processed rubbish. As a biologist with an MSc, I should have recognised the harm I was causing.

Living alone with a history of anxiety and depression, I turned to emotional eating and convenience foods. I’d overeat to the point of sickness, stuffing more in out of desperation for taste and texture. Sugar became my nemesis, fuelled by childhood tuck shop habits. By 2021, my health suffered.

Diagnosed with hypothyroidism and fatty liver infiltration, I knew my diet—90% carbs—was the culprit. I began weight-bearing exercises with a personal trainer who encouraged meal prepping, but I felt too busy to cook. Despite improved strength, my weight stayed the same.

Late in 2021, a school friend’s dramatic transformation introduced me to Slimpod. In January 2022, I joined, and the change was immediate. After listening to the programme once, my emotional bingeing stopped.

I felt hopeful and empowered, cooking meals from scratch and batch-prepping vegetables instead of relying on supermarket ready meals. Losing weight post-Christmas gave me confidence, but it wasn’t just about control—it felt natural, a new way of living.

February 2022 brought a relationship breakup. While such events previously sent me spiralling, this time I stayed focused with the support of the Slimpod community. Determined to move forward, I created a Goal Map and committed to walking 100 miles for MIND in March.

That same month, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Angry and demoralised, I questioned the fairness of life.

My doctors warned I might gain weight due to treatment drugs, but Slimpod gave me a sense of purpose and control. I prioritised healthy eating and daily walks, keeping my immunity strong. The habits I’d developed—balanced meals with protein and vegetables—became automatic.

By July 2022, I’d achieved my first goal: fitting into a size 12 dress, down from size 20+ just six months earlier. Even while undergoing intensive cancer treatment, my weight continued to drop. By January 2023, I’d lost 4 stone—something I’d never imagined possible.

A fellow Slimpodder encouraged me to enter the London Moonwalk, a 26.2-mile marathon for breast cancer. Though daunting, I said yes, training hard and completing the challenge in May 2023. It was a dream fulfilled amidst an incredible recovery journey.

As I explain in Sandra’s book The Weight’s Over: Take Back Control, though post-cancer mental and emotional recovery has been challenging, Slimpod continues to anchor me.

Bad habits, like emotional eating, occasionally resurface, but I’m empowered by the knowledge that I control what I put into my body. I’ve regained focus, and my weight is decreasing again. Remarkably, recent blood tests show no evidence of hypothyroidism or fatty liver infiltration

Regarding what I eat, I still batch cook for convenience. I ditched all the low / fat free, sugar free products and returned to the actually healthier full fat versions. I prioritise protein, vegetables and fruit ensuring I have at least my five a day and a small portion of carbs as we do need a certain amount.

I am mindful about minimising processed foods. I tend to keep in mind that a potato is as it is out of the ground, rice has been processed somewhat before it gets to our plates and pasta doesn’t naturally exist but is processed from a combination of ingredients. I generally try to avoid ultra-processed foods as much as possible.

I also try to ensure I am eating a large variety of plants over a week by enhancing my meals with seeds, nuts, herbs and spices. I still routinely have desserts but now mainly Greek yoghurt with fruit. I still have cake, ice-cream and eat out when I want to but I just not attracted to these types of foods the same wayI used to be.

Also my portion sizes have significantly reduced. I remember when I was young I was easily overwhelmed if a plateful was placed before me but over the years of overeating large portions had become the norm.

Now I am back to only managing smaller portions and listening to my full signal. It feels so good and I hate feeling too full now.

What is most exciting is that I now feel so empowered now. There will always be obstacles in life but I now confidently know what fuel my body needs, what real food is, what a balanced diet is and how the body reacts to different food types especially the processed foods and refined carbs that are so detrimental.

Whilst there may be blips, in general I feel so much more in control of what I put in my body and have hope and belief that I have control over managing my weight. In fact I know I have and when I have blips, somehow Slimpod and this empowerment is still there in the background anchoring me somewhat until the storm has passed.

It’s been life changing. Life’s obstacles still arise, but I feel equipped to face them. I’m now training for the Macmillan Ben Nevis walk—a testament to how far I’ve come. I’m delighted to share my story in The Weight’s Over: Take Back Control because Slimpod hasn’t just transformed my weight—it’s transformed my life.