Vanessa Gregory, 28, said she would hoover up what was left of her two boys’ dinners each evening as she hated seeing excess grub on their plates.
But this unhealthy habit combined with a diet of takeaways and oven-ready meals meant she ballooned to 18st and 2lb in weight.
Vanessa said she’d decided to get into shape ahead of a family trip to Tenerife for her sister’s 30th birthday.
And after joining a slimming group in February last year, she dropped an impressive six 6 stone and seven pounds in weight through a new diet and exercise programme.
She now weighs a healthy 11st 11lbs and says her physical transformation has made her a “better mum” to her adorable boys, Jacob, five, and George, two.
Vanessa said: “I hated wasted food, and when my kids wouldn’t eat all their tea, I would finish it and have my tea on my own. I was very lazy with food.
“I wouldn’t cook food from scratch, and the majority of the time, we would eat oven food or takeaways. We would probably have at least two takeaways a week.
“But I look back on pictures of me and I think, ‘How did I let myself get that big?”
“Now I feel like I’ve got so much energy to play with them and run around with them. I’m definitely a better mum.
“It’s changed my life completely, and I feel like a new person.”
Full-time mum Vanessa, from Crewe, Cheshire, said she’d begun gaining weight after leaving school as she could eat whatever she wanted.
But her added weight made it harder to care for her two young lads when they came along in her early 20s.
She also said her size massively hit her self-confidence, and she hated looking at herself in the mirror and shopping for clothing.
She said: “When I was younger, it wasn’t an issue. But I would probably say after high school when I had my own money, then I would buy rubbish food and eat that.
“I’d never really exercised, and that went hand in hand with it.
“But I didn’t realise how much being on the big side affects your confidence. I would hate going clothes shopping and I would hate when I saw myself in the mirror.
“I just wore leggings and a top. I would never wear shots or anything like that.”
Vanessa, who wore a size 20 dress at her largest, said she turned a corner when she booked a trip away family trip to Tenerife.
She decided to join the slimming group Beeweighed in February 2023 and lost five stone in just four weeks by just changing her eating habits.
She later started going to the gym to improve her fitness and now exercises five times a week.
She said: “I always wanted to lose weight but this was the first time I’d dieted in my life.
“I thought I’d lose a stone. But within five weeks, I lost four stone, and it started from there.
“I used to go to the gym first thing in the morning when it was quiet. At first, it was scary and intimidating. But you just have to think about what you are there for.”
Vanessa has now become a Beeweighed ambassador and works with other women who are looking to improve their diet and fitness.
And she said the most important thing for those hoping to shed a few pounds in the New Year was committing to a set of achievable milestones.
She said: “If you want to lose weight and get fit, set yourself an interim goal, like by Valentine’s day, I want to lose a stone.
“If you know you can do that, you can keep carrying on. And if you think you can do it, there’s nothing stopping you.”
