Losing weight has given Annie Rees a new lease of life in more ways than one.
Not only does the Turriff mum-of-three feel younger and healthier but the debilitating hip and knee pain she once suffered has gone.
“I no longer have any knee or hip pain which had become a persistent nuisance,” says Annie.
“My hip was so sore that it was getting to the point where I really needed to see someone but since losing the weight I’ve not felt that in the past six months.
“There are a lot of health benefits with losing weight.”
The road to transformation
Annie’s story is an inspiring journey of self-discovery, determination and transformation.
And it all began during a simple trip to the beach with a friend.
“Two years ago I went to the beach with a friend in the summer and I really wanted to go and swim in the sea but I felt so negative and self-conscious that I didn’t,” says Annie.
“I left the beach wishing I’d gone in the sea.
“But I was so self-conscious so there were a lot of things I wouldn’t do like swim or dance, basically I wouldn’t come out my comfort zone.”
Lack of confidence and self esteem
It wasn’t long before Annie realised that her weight was holding her back in every aspect of her life including her career as a photographer.
“I was trying to start my own business as a photographer,” says Annie.
“As I was so self-conscious, I didn’t want to be in front of the camera but I knew it was so important that I was at the forefront of what I’m so passionate about.”
After a bad experience with a diet as a teenager, Annie was at first sceptical about doing another diet.
“When I was 17 I went on a diet and I lost five stone then but it was extreme,” says Annie.
“I was at the gym every day and I was calorie counting as well so the thought of doing that again was really daunting which is why I was put off and I didn’t want to do it.”
Going out of her comfort zone
Despite her worries, Annie decided to take the plunge and joined her local Slimming World group.
“I joined in January last year and at my weigh-in I was 19 and a half stone,” says Annie.
“I nearly cried when I got on the scales because I’d not accepted how big I’d got.
“But I remember them being really comforting and saying ‘don’t worry, the first time is the hardest’, so I was really determined to do it.”
Just a week after joining, Annie lost seven pounds.
“It felt amazing,” says Annie.
“After that I kept getting slimmer of the week.
“I found the diet really straightforward and easy.”
Dropping three dress sizes
By September last year, Annie, who is 6ft 4 inches tall, had lost five stone and dropped from a size 22 to a size 16.
With the weight loss has come a whole host of health benefits.
“As a photographer, I get into strange positions for taking photos especially for children’s portraits,” says Annie.
“I would have to get on the floor and be up and down and I would end up out of puff and a little bit sweaty which was always embarrassing.
“My knees would also really hurt.
“Now I find it so much easier, it’s a lot more comfortable doing Christmas shoots and I’m not sweaty and out of puff.”
The secret to shedding the pounds
And what was the secret to Annie’s weight loss?
“It’s all about how you cook food,” says Annie.
“I used to use oil with everything so I would cook my potatoes in goose fat or use olive oil.
“Now I use a low fat oil spray.
“I also used to eat buttery toast and I’d use lots of butter in mash potato but I wouldn’t do that now.
“It’s about making those little changes like cutting back on butter and oil.
“I also avoid chocolate.”
Cutting alcohol reduces calories
One of the biggest changes for Annie has been reducing her alcohol consumption.
“One glass of wine would often turn to three or four and this would leave me tempted to snack,” says Annie.
“So I swapped wine for low calorie soft drinks or hot sugar free cordial.”
Annie’s husband Richard and their three children Olivia, 16, Joshua, 13 and Chloe, eight, are also reaping the health benefits.
“My kids are doing really well and they’re a lot healthier than they were before,” says Annie.
“We cook everything fresh and we have our own vegetable patch so we grow our own stuff as well.”
Swapping meals out for the cinema
Annie and her family have also cut down on meals out.
“For us, our entertainment would be going out for a meal but now we do something else like go to the cinema,” says Annie.
“Food doesn’t need to be the centre of everything.”
Losing weight has also given Annie more focus.
“My weight was really holding me back but now I have a lot more fresher ideas,” says Annie.
“I’m a wedding photographer but I also started photographing cats at cat shows and that’s really taken off.”
Annie has also noticed a boost to her confidence and self-esteem.
“I feel really good and it’s nice to be fitting in clothes that I’ve not worn for a long time,” says Annie.
“It’s an amazing feeling and it’s given me an extra boost: it’s boosting my business, it’s boosting me and now I’m trying to boost other people too.”
Asked what message she would give anyone out there who is contemplating making a lifestyle change, Annie says: “I would encourage other people to give it a go.
“Lindsay Milligan, the Slimming World consultant in Turruff is brilliant.
“Her emotional intelligence is amazing as she can read you like a book.
“I have never met anybody as supportive as her.”
Looking to the future, Annie, who now weighs 14 and a half stone, is focused on her business and is keen to shed another couple of stones.
“I have high hopes for my business to really take off,” says Annie.
“And I would like to lose another couple of stones.”
The Turriff Slimming World group meets at the Baden Powell Centre. For more information check out the website slimmingworld.co.uk or phone 07815 995968.
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