Chocolate addict who ate 1,000 bars a year drops 12st due to 'magic' programme
Lorraine Murphy had always struggled with her weight and spent most of her adult life on and off different fad diets, trying to curb her severe sugar addiction and love of chocolate and carbs. At her heaviest point, Lorraine weighed 24 stone and would eat three bars of chocolate a day and two takeaways a week - with her portion sizes large enough to feed two people.
But everything changed for her when she discovered a 'magic' audio programme online, that helped her lose half her bodyweight by beating unhealthy food habits and learning to enjoy exercise.
"I was constantly on diets. One would stop and I'd put more weight on after making a loss because what I'd been eating was so restrictive," Lorraine, 64, said. "I did have some success. I've lost three or four stone with each of them. But when you're restricted, you can't sustain it. The weight came back and more besides.
She would eat three chocolate bars a day and two takeaways a week at 24 stone (Caters News Agency)
Lorraine now has a healthy relationship with food and exercise and feels great for it (Caters News Agency)"It was quite upsetting too. I went to a theme park in Turkey with my grandkids. They wanted me to go on the ride with them, and the bar that goes over your shoulders couldn't get past my stomach. I had to get off and my daughter went on instead. It ruined my day."
Her battle with her weight took its toll on her mental health, and she was put on antidepressants and anxiety medication. Then she came across a slimming programme online and decided to give it a go. The audio programme aims to retrain people's brains into eating better instead of putting them on a diet, and for Lorraine, it was life-changing.
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"I found it online by chance. Because there were no diets involved and no restrictions, I thought, 'Why not?' and I signed up for the 12-week programme," she explained. "It predominately involved listening to a nine-minute voice recording which works with your subconscious, empowering you to have a better relationship with food."
Lorraine explained that the programme is all about persuasion and following the mantra 'eat less, move more, choose better'. "For me, the change in my diet was pretty much instant. I just didn't want to eat the same foods anymore. I had headaches for about the first week from the sugar withdrawals and then they disappeared," she said. "But the weight didn't come off overnight - I had to believe in the process and myself."
She was once kicked off a theme park ride in Turkey for being too overweight (Caters News Agency)
She enjoys days out with her grandkids and her mental health has improved (Caters News Agency)The change in her lifestyle and eating habits was almost instantaneous, and she celebrated her 12 stone weight loss by buying her first bikini. "I went away on holiday with my partner, and I didn't tell him because it was the first time he'd seen me in a bikini," she said. "I just stood there in the living room in our apartment. He was so gobsmacked and happy. He'd always told me to wear bikinis before, but I never had the confidence."
Lorraine said the biggest lesson she's learned on her weight loss journey has been to eat everything in moderation, and she advises anyone looking to follow in her footsteps to stop dieting because it 'doesn't work.' "It's been a case of learning to consume everything in moderation. I still have the odd glass of wine and piece of cake," she said.
"I won't put weight on if I have one piece of cake. But if you're doing that constantly every day, then obviously you will. I've also learned the importance of exercise in maintaining weight loss. I walk every day now, and I do hula hooping too." Lorraine is no longer taking antidepressants, and said her anxiety is "not like it used to be". She has revisited the theme park in Turkey and absolutely loved being able to fit on the rides with her grandchildren.
Lorraine's diet before
Breakfast - Two slices of toast or croissants with cereal
Lunch - Sandwiches, crisps, and a sweet treat like a cookie
Dinner - Potatoes and chips
Snacks - Up to three 150g bars of chocolate a day, cakes, biscuits, and a ham and cheese croissant on the way to work
She would also have takeaway around twice a week with portions big enough to feed two people.
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Lorraine's diet now
Breakfast - Fruit with yoghurt, nuts, and seeds or overnight oats
Lunch - A salad
Dinner - Vegetables, potatoes, and a protein source or a homemade meal like spaghetti Bolognese
Snacks - Lorraine rarely snacks anymore
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