Real Success

After losing a fantastic 4 stones to reach his target, Jim Maccall shares his route to success, as well as his top tips for Food Optimising on the go.

“The realisation that I was overweight came with the birth of my daughter Holly. At 18 stones, the photos of me holding Holly show a very proud, but very rotund father. Another key factor in me wanting to lose weight was the difficulty I had getting my wallet into my trouser pocket!

“Crash dieting and low carb plans seem to be the standard route that men take when trying to slim - I’d done them all. They made me miserable - cutting out complete food groups that I enjoy and weighing and measuring everything. At some stage I had to start eating ‘normally’ again and the weight went back on.

"My mum and her friend joined a Slimming World group and told me all about how much they could eat and still lose weight; I had to give it a go."

“I’m one of life’s cynics and was a bit sceptical about going to a group. I was therefore absolutely chuffed when I stayed for my first meeting and realised that everyone supports each other. The bullying and embarrassment tactics that I’ve heard other slimming clubs use are not there.

“I love the range of foods I can enjoy with Food Optimising. Home Economics at school gave me a loathing for cooking – all those soggy, stodgy bread and butter puddings! I now love cooking and eat regularly and healthily. I enjoy Free or low-Syn Sunday dinners and home-made chicken fried rice.

“Part of my job as a Training Adviser involves visiting companies in all parts of the UK. Motorway snacks have always been, or so I thought, a necessary evil. I now take a huge stock of fruit and plenty of water and Diet Coke for those long boring journeys. I find the ‘grab and go' Healthy Extras handy for when I’m in a rush. This has certainly helped me resist the temptations of mega size chocolate bars and roadside burger vans.

“I meet people in different places every day and I’m faced with a full range of ‘challenges’, such as pub lunches and finger buffets at meetings. With guidance from my Consultant Julie and the rest of my group during Image Therapy I’ve found these meals need not be a problem at all. I’ve identified the best choices to make and ways of keeping the Syns down and my intake up!

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“I now walk where possible instead of taking the easy option. A great source of Body Magic has been uprooting our garden to make it child–proof!

“My health has greatly improved since losing weight. I’d always been warned that my blood pressure was a bit on the high side, now it’s at the very healthy end of average. My doctor told me this is purely down to diet and weight.

“My wife, Donna and I are thinking of taking up horse riding. The last time we went I ended up with a horse called Samson, who as the name suggests, was more suited to pulling a plough. I plan to take up keyboard lessons again now that my fingers don’t end up pressing three keys at once. I can even use my ladders at home with confidence and ignore the notice saying ‘safe working load 100kg’!

“My life has changed in so many ways since losing four stones. I enjoy sailing with my family but was always a little too effective as ballast! Now I can’t wait for our next trip!”

find out more

If you'd like to reveal the real you, find your nearest warm and friendly Slimming World group, where men and women are welcome.