Great Yarmouth mum of six delighted after losing incredible 20 stone

Nicola McPherson before she shed 20 stone (Image: Archant)

For the pencil-slim 42-year-old, whose incredible weight loss achievement has seen her shed 20 stone, it meant she could finally fit into a car and share the white-knuckle experience with her children.

The delighted mother-of-six, of York Road, was able to plot her slimming progress by ordinary acts of attainment like being able to ride a pedal bike, go swimming, and enjoy the town's famous rollercoaster for the first time since her teens.

And now she is relishing a whole new world of retail opportunity having dropped ten dress sizes - and two-thirds of her body weight - via a simple and solid regime of healthy eating and exercise.

Her unwavering commitment has earned her the admiration of instructors and mentors at Fitness 2000 after she was first referred there for exercise by her doctor.

And now she wants to inspire others to transform their lives - and says it's not as difficult as people would think, once you put your mind to it.

'Chocolate was everything. I would get highly excited if they brought out a new range,' she said.

'Now my lifestyle has changed to such a degree that it is not important.

'I feel happier now than I can ever remember. I feel ready to take on the day, every day. It is an incredible feeling.'

Her life-changing moment came when she was handed a high blood pressure diagnosis and also one of fatty liver disease.

Until then, and since her first child was born when she was 18, she had an 'ostrich' attitude to her weight, ignoring the pain in her knees and continuing to make herself almost sick with food every night before bed.

First came a visit to the dietician who told her to eat with her family at 5.30pm and not to touch a morsel thereafter.

That small change saw four stone fall off quickly and it was at that point she was referred to Fitness 2000 in Southtown Road where staff devised an exercise plan she could stick to.

Miss McPherson who has two children with special needs said: 'Exercise can make you feel just as good as a chocolate cake. I was in a sad situation.

'People have said to me 'it must have been so hard' but after the first week something just clicked. I have not had any massive cravings or been rolling around in pain because I am hungry.

'But getting my mind in the right place was the most important thing for me.

'There are lots of people who eat for reasons, not hunger. If everyone had the opportunity to find out why they were doing it, it might be slightly easier for them.

'I couldn't have done it without Fitness 2000. I really enjoy it and the staff have been so helpful. I walk everywhere now whereas before I took the car to go to the shop for a couple of hundred yards.