‘The big lady’ who shed 14st & reversed her kidney disease while eating jam doughnuts shares her top weight loss secrets
WHEN Carol Price needed to lose weight, she never imagined she could do it.
She’d just landed her dream job in a bakery and couldn’t resist the cakes she was surrounded by all day.
But amazingly, she has managed to lose a staggering 14st – while still eating jam doughnuts.
Carole, 68, who lives in Ore, Sussex, said: “I couldn’t believe I was still losing weight each week and eating doughnuts.
“I allowed myself one of the yummy treats each week.
“I’m proof that you can still lose weight if you do things in moderation.”
Carol had struggled with her weight since being a teenager, and at the age of 15, she weighed 15st.
After becoming a mum to three daughters, Kim, Tracy and Emma, now all in their 40s, the weight kept piling on.
By the time she was in her mid-50s, she was a size 32 to 34.
“I didn’t seem to be able to do anything about it,” Carol said.
“I hated being heavy but at 5ft 10in, I told myself that I got away with the extra pounds.
“And even after losing a bit of weight for a knee replacement a few summers before, I’d soon piled it back on again.
“Now here I was, a size 34 and weighing 29st, getting my dream job in a bakery and eating cake every day.
“I couldn’t imagine slimming down whilst I was surrounded by so many goodies.
“Jam doughnuts were my biggest vice. I’d eat one every day along with any other cakes I fancied.
“I knew all the sugar was doing me no good but I couldn’t say no. It was like an addiction.”
BRUTAL WAKE-UP CALL
By 2017, she still weighed 29st and could only get maternity clothes to fit her.
“I was utterly miserable,” Carol said.
“I tried to smile when customers called me ‘the big lady’. Who could blame them?”
Then, her health worsened.
“I’d had kidney failure for 26 years, started by a serious water infection, and now I was getting infections again along with backache,” she added.
“My doctor explained that I needed a kidney transplant.
“My daughter Kim, then 36, offered to donate hers to me.
“A test showed she was a match and I was overcome by her kindness, but it suddenly dawned on me that it was time to take serious action about my weight.
“How could I allow my daughter to donate me a kidney when I wasn’t looking after the body it was going to? It was a light-bulb moment.
“As well as my daughters, I had three stepsons, 15 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren worrying about me.
“I needed to do something for them as well as myself.”
How to lose weight safely
Losing weight should be a long-term commitment to healthier living, rather than any drastic measures.
The NHS tips – which can be adopted slowly – include:
- Get active for 150 minutes a week – you can break this up into shorter sessions
- Aim to get your 5 A Day – 80g of fresh, canned or frozen fruit or vegetables count as 1 portion
- Aim to lose 1 to 2lbs, or 0.5 to 1kg, a week
- Read food labels – products with more green colour coding than amber and red are often a healthier option
- Swap sugary drinks for water – if you do not like the taste, add slices of lemon or lime for flavour
- Cut down on food that’s high in sugar and fat – start by swapping sugary cereal for wholegrain alternatives
- Share your weight loss plan with someone you trust – they can help motivate you when you have a bad day
Read about:
- The five fat loss foundations
- The calorie formula for weight loss
- The perfect portion sizes for meals to lose weight
- Sun Health’s 8-week weight loss kick start plan
So in January 2018, she joined Slimming World, weighing 29st.
“I’d lost a bit of weight through the weight loss program for my knee op years before, so I knew it could work for me,” Carol said.
“When my consultant asked for my goal weight, I thought back to 15-year-old me. ‘I’d like to be 15st again,’ I replied.
“I threw myself into the plan, reminding myself that I didn’t need to go without. It was about moderation.
“Alcohol and foods high in fat and sugar, like my favourite doughnuts, were called Syns and I was allowed five to 15 of them each day.
“‘A jam doughnut is 15 Syns,’ I told my husband David, then 62, excitedly. It meant I was still able to eat a jam doughnut every day.
“Only as the weeks went on, as it turned out, just knowing I could was enough.
“With my new healthy filling meals, I didn’t find myself reaching for the doughnuts like I had been for so long.
“And as the weight started to come off, I felt even less tempted by the calorie laden treats surrounding me.
“In the end I treated myself to one a week.
“The fact it was a special treat meant I enjoyed it all the more and they were all the more delicious without the guilty feeling.”
I’m proof you really can have your cake and eat it – just not every day
Carol Price
The weight quickly started to drop off, and she soon swapped her maternity clothes for size 24 outfits.
“Every week I looked forward to my jammy treat and every week the pounds kept dropping off – then the stones,” she said.
“David thought I looked great and he got healthier too, supporting me by eating the Slimming World meals with me.
“Six years on, on New Year’s Eve 2023, I’d reached my goal weight of 15st.
“I was thrilled, but my bank balance wasn’t – I’d had to buy a new wardrobe of size 16 to 18 clothes.
“I looked so much better, but the biggest bonus was my health.
“I no longer needed that kidney transplant. My blood pressure is fine, my cholesterol is perfect.
“Now it’s not just my medication that’s keeping my kidney function stable.
“The transplant may still need to happen one day but my weight loss means it’s been postponed for some time yet.
“For the last 18 months my weight has stayed at 14st 8lbs, even though I’m still enjoying my yummy jammy doughnuts once a week.
“I’m proof you really can have your cake and eat it – just not every day!”
