A woman says her life has been transformed after shedding almost seven stone and improving her health enough to ditch her diabetes medication.
Alison Heward has lost 6 stone 8.5lbs over the past year after being spurred into action when her weight began to leave her fearing for her health.
The 58 year-old, from Bungay, said: 'My weight impacted on so many aspects of my life, from struggling to find clothes that I like to fit, to not being able to do simple everyday tasks without feeling tired and out of breath. I soon began to realise that I was slowly killing myself and if I didn't lose weight soon my time was limited.'
Since she began to tackle her weight Mrs Heward said her health has improved so significantly she no longer depends on medication to treat type 2 diabetes.
The transformation has seen Ali, as she is known to her friends, pick up the title 'The Greatest Loser' for shedding the most amount of weight at her Slimming World group run every Thursday at the Archbishop Sancroft High School in Harleston.
She said: 'I was absolutely terrified about walking through the doors; in fact I sat outside the venue for three weeks before I plucked up enough courage to walk in.'
In her first week Ali lost an incredible 9.5lbs pounds and has continued to lose weight over the past 12 months, achieving many of the club's awards along the way including a number Slimmer of the week and Slimmer of the month awards along the way as well as being crowned Woman of the Year in August 2018.
Since shedding the pounds Ali is now physically able to carry out gentle exercise into her daily lifestyle.
She started with just five minutes of activity each day and is now incorporating more than two and a half hours a day.
Slimming World consultant Lisa Hartgrove said: 'It is a real pleasure to support Ali on her weight loss journey and make those amazing steps towards a healthier lifestyle. Diabetes is one of the biggest threats to our health with record numbers of people now on diabetes-related medication. It is great that we are helping so many people to reduce the risk of diabetes.'
• To find out more about Slimming World, contact Lisa Hartgrove on 07860 793826 or email losewithlisa@outlook.com
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