Well I’m Chelsea and I’m age seventeen now. I’ve lost six and half stone up to now. Before I lost all my weight I was nearly seventeen stone, and I didn’t feel comfortable with my weight. I didn’t do any exercise at all. I didn’t wasn’t eating the right foods in right portion sizes. I was just really overweight. And then I just I was just getting bullied all the time and nobody wanted to be with me. I was always on my own in my bedroom doing my own thing.

And then I found then I just really started to pick up, went to a group called SHINE (Self Help Independence, Nutrition and Exercise) that really built up my confidence. I started to lose weight. At first when I started, it started coming off of me slowly. And I thought, Well it’s never going to come off me. I’m just going to lose a couple of pounds and that’s it. It’s just going to stay on me. And then it just carried on coming off and off. And I just gradually lost it. It’s took me two years to lose the six and half stone. But it has really helped me a lot.

I’ve made a whole range of new friends. I’ve started doing more exercise, whereas I never used to any at all. I, now I can talk in front of people that I never used to be able to do before. I used to do a lot of things that I don’t do now. I help out at certain gyms. Certain swimming baths if anything needs doing I’m like there to help and things like that. I missed a couple of, like a year out of school well on and off at school because of being bullied. I got pushed down concrete steps before I lost all my weight. And then when I started to lose my weight, everybody was realising that I was changing and no one could stop me from changing who I were to like I am now. And now people on the street look at me and say, Aren’t, aren’t you changed?

And I just think I’m right proud of myself. I just think well if I didn’t change my life style, then I wouldn’t have been here now. If I’d carried on the way I was going I’d have not been here now. I’d have just done something.

And so how do you feel now about your body and your weight and that sort of thing?

I feel a lot better than I did. I feel a hundred times better than I did. But now I’ve just got to tone up because I’ve got a lot of loose skin.

You know like on my stomach it’s horrible. On my legs I can’t get like when somebody’s like, somebody’s cuddling you, you just feel uncomfortable because you just think what I they feel my stomach now how it is.

What if they just look at me as if to say they’re just horrible?

It’s horrible the way it I’d advise somebody to if they’re to lose weight, to tone up as well as lose weight.

Not just lose weight on it’s own because once you’ve if you don’t tone up while you’re losing weight, it will take you ages to tone up.

Well when I first started the programme before I started the programme it was hard to find a boyfriend. Because they were because of my weight problem nobody wanted to be with me. They were all ashamed to walk the streets with me. I had a lot of friends that were boys but it was just like none of they all were ashamed to like walking, hold hands with me in street. They were all ashamed to kiss me in the street and things like that. And then when I started SHINE (Self Help Independence, Nutrition and Exercise), I go with a lad I’d called [name]. He were in the same position as me, the same boat. We’re both same age, and we’ve both lost the same amount of weight.

Oh right.

But it, but we split up now. We’ve both gone our separate ways.

How long were you with him?

I was with him for two years. And but now I’ve lost my weight it is a bit easier to find a boyfriend. I mean before I lost my weight I used to walk past lads that were nice looking and they used to say, Move now you fat git. Fatty. And call me ‘Tubsy’ and everything. But now I walk past the lads in the street that are nice and they don’t call me that, they just smile at me.

I got up from being low confidence. I when I first started SHINE (Self Help Independence, Nutrition and Exercise) I just used, used to sit, for six weeks of the program I just sat in a corner, didn’t talk to anybody. I wouldn’t even talk to any of the friends that I’d made. I just sat in the corner.

And then after my six weeks, I just thought to myself, I’ve got to start getting involved otherwise it’s not going to change.

So I started talking to people, getting involved with other things. And I never used to do any activity. I never used to go the sports, the gym. I never used to do anything. I thought it would, if I just went to that that place, that program that helps you, then it would all of just come off of me. But we all had to work as, so I had to work as well as that program working for me.

So I had to give something to get something. So I started doing my exercise on a Tuesdays. I didn’t go to swimming for a bit because I was ashamed of who I was and how I was.

And then I started to go swimming. And then I started going to the gym. And now I do every activity going. I help other people who are like share my experience of what I’ve been through with other people to help them.

So it’s all just been a big change for me.

So why don’t you tell me a bit about the kind of thing you were eating?

Well I’d get up in a morning and have, I could have a choice really. I could have beans on toast, two boiled eggs, or cereal. And I’d chose, I used to choose it every day, beans on toast. And it were like just repeating myself for my breakfast. Then I used to go to school and have a sausage roll. Then for my dinner at school I used to have chips, cheese flan and beans. Then I used to get home at three oclock and I used to have some more chips. And then at six oclock I used to have like two packets of crisps at once and a chocolate bar. And then before I went to bed I used to have beans on toast or a bowl of cereal. And it was like that every day. Until it got to the point where I was having two sausage rolls in a morning at school, and then one in my morning break, and one in my afternoon break.
So it were just getting worse and worse.

And the sorts of the things that you were eating, was that your that your choice? Were you saying, Look this is what I want. I want beans on toast, and I want chip?

It were like, I wanted to be my own person inside, but on the outside I used to do as my friends did. I used to copy what they had. What they did, I did. But on the inside I wanted to be myself. And it were just, I couldn’t do it on my own. I needed some support. To do it with me. And then it just got to point where I just needed to do something about my lifestyle.

Well I’m Chelsea and I’m age seventeen now. I’ve lost six and half stone up to now. Before I lost all my weight I was nearly seventeen stone.

And I didn’t feel comfortable with my weight. I didn’t do any exercise at all. I didn’t wasn’t eating the right foods in right portion sizes. I was just really overweight.

And then I just I was just getting bullied all the time and nobody wanted to be with me. I was always on my own in my bedroom doing my own thing.

And then I foundthen I just really started to pick up, went to a group called SHINE (Self Help Independence, Nutrition and Exercise) that really built up my confidence. I started to lose weight. At first when I started, it started coming off of me slowly. And I thought, Well it’s never going to come off m.

I’m just going to lose a couple of pounds and that’s it. it’s just going to stay on m. And then it just carried on coming off and off. And I just gradually lost it. it’s took me two years to lose the six and half stone. But it has really helped me a lot.

I’ve made a whole range of new friends. I’ve started doing more exercise, whereas I never used to any at all. I, now I can talk in front of people that I never used to be able to do before.

I used to do a lot of things that I don’t do now. I help out at certain gyms.

Certain swimming baths if anything needs doing I’m like there to help and things like that. I missed a couple of, like a year out of school well on and off at school
Right.

because of being bullied. I got pushed down concrete steps before I lost all my weight.

And then when I started to lose my weight, everybody was realising that I was changing and no, no one could stop me from changing who I were to like I am now. And now people on the street look at me and say, Aren’t you changed

And I just think I’m right proud of myself. I just think well if I didn’t change my life style, then I wouldn’t have been here now. If I’d carried on the way I was going I’d have not been here now. I’d have just done something.

So. That’s it really.

So there’s been a lot of positive changes for you lately?

Yes there has.

Yes.

I got up from being low confidence. Iwhen I first started SHINE (Self Help Independence, Nutrition and Exercise) I just used, used to sit, for six weeks of the program I just sat in a corner, didn’t talk to anybody. I wouldn’t even talk to any of the friends that I’d made. I just sat in the corner.

And then after my six weeks, I just thought to myself, I’ve got to start getting involved otherwise it’s not going to change.

Right.

So I started talking to people, getting involved with other things. And I never used to do any activity. I never used to go the sports, the gym. I never used to do anything. I thought it would, if I just went to that that place, that program that helps you, then it would all of just come off of me. But we all had to work as, so I had to work as well as that program working for me.