9:30pm Monday 28th September 2009
By Louise Mackenzie
AFTER years spent housebound and unable to work, Penny Melly has now reclaimed her independence and is set to help overweight people on a path to a healthier life.
It took two years for Penny to lose half her body weight and be crowned Slimmer of the Year in November 2008 and now she has kept the weight off and is due to start her role as a Slimming World consultant on Tuesday in Leigh.
At 5ft 2ins Penny has gone from 20st to 10st and now the 46-year-old believes she can offer support from first-hand experience on how to lose weight and stay focused.
“I have stayed at my target weight for a year now and I feel like I am ready to go back to work. I haven’t worked for 16 years and I was unable to do so because I was so overweight,” she said.
“Previously I have waitressed, but I had to stop that and now I am so excited and nervous because I will be doing something I am passionate about,” said Penny, who lives in St Helen’s Road, Westcliff.
“I want to help people realise that it is possible to lose weight and not be hungry because I know the fears I had when I was overweight, that I would be hungry and not be able to eat the foods I enjoy.
“It’s not true, I still eat chips and other treats, but I include them into the healthy eating plan. I want to say to people there is a healthy eating plan that could help them and it’s fun. I will give people advice, bring in tasters for everyone to try and help people along with mid-week calls.”
Penny, now a size 10-12, once had health problems related to her weight, such as asthma, high blood pressure and high cholesterol, which left her immobile and suffering from depression.
At her lowest point she was admitted to hospital with a lung infection where she was given just a 30 per cent chance of survival and put on a respirator in intensive care. Penny even contemplated drastic weight loss surgery, but the day before her appointment with the specialist she saw a leaflet for Slimming World.
“I have known the extremes of being overweight, I have been obese, I have been housebound and I have known the humiliation, but the five-minute walk I pushed myself to do to go to the Slimming World group saved my life.
“I would say to anyone who is housebound, like I was, to take the plunge and come to a meeting. I still go to the same group I started out at so I can see old friends and I go to another group to be weighed as well, so I know how important they are.”
Penny has proved changing your lifestyle is the key to long-term weight loss.
“People say that keeping the weight off is harder than losing the weight in the first place, but I haven’t found that. I have replaced the unhealthy foods in my cupboards with healthy food and when I am hungry I fill up on the pasta and fruit and vegetables that are part of it,” said the mother-of-four.
“I still put on the odd pound after a wedding or holiday, but I always make sure I get back to my weight afterwards. Before food controlled me, but now I control food.”
For more information on the meeting at Eastwood, and the ruby party due to take place for Slimming World’s 40th anniversary call 07784 474759 or visit www.slimmingworld.com
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