Mom of three loses 14 stone without exercise; she still eats roasts for dinner

For years, Janine Hurst, 35, struggled with her weight. At one point, the mother of three said she felt like the ‘fattest mum’ in the playground. One day, the stay-at-home mum from Rotherham stepped on the scales and discovered her weight had crept up to 25st.

That was the beginning of her weight-loss journey. She wanted to lose weight for herself and her children, aged six, four and two.

An unhealthy meal that had to go

The British mum’s diet wasn’t the healthiest. She would skip breakfast and start her day with pastries instead, drinking nine cans of energy drinks to wash it down. She used to eat sausage rolls and pork pies daily. While her children ate nutritious meals, she reached for snacks. Evening meals were mostly greasy Chinese takeaways and dripping kebabs, which cost her up to £6,200 a year.

This is nearly four times the £820 most Brits spend on takeaways each year, according to insurance firm Zego.

She was a UK size 30, and when she stepped on the scales that day, she was beyond horrified."I was the fattest mum in the playground. I used to stand at the school gates, keep my head down and try to get away as fast as I could,” Hurst told the Mirror. She struggled with her relationship with food, using meals as an emotional escape rather than nourishment.

When her two children were diagnosed with autism, Hurst turned to food for comfort. By then, she had really ‘given up’ on herself. Soon, her health started deteriorating.

When her child had a meltdown, she couldn’t even console her. "I was heaving myself off the floor as I tried to calm her down. And then my shoulder popped out of its socket. After seeing the doctor, it was clear my weight was putting too much pressure on my body,” the mum said."If I kept eating the way I was, I would be dead very soon. The idea of not being around for my kids was overwhelming."This was a wake-up call. She wanted to be healthy for her children. She wanted to be around when they grew up.

A new beginning

The woman, who had earlier turned to Slimming World to lose over five stone, decided to resume her weight-loss journey. She started by working on her diet. Taking control of her plate pretty much did the job.

Now, the mum starts her day with an English breakfast prepared using low-calorie spray. For lunch, she has salmon and salad. In the evenings, she eats a roast, with a side of vegetables.During the first week, she lost 14lb. A year later, she had lost six stone. Now, she maintains a healthy weight of 10st 6lb. She is now a size 12.

Talking about how the weight-loss journey transformed her life, she said, "It's changed my life. I can run around with my kids and join in when doing silly TikTok dances. At the school gates, they can't get rid of me. I'm there chatting for hours. Like many other mums, I'd put my needs last. But by finally choosing myself, I've become the mum I always wanted to be."