'My Britain's Got Talent habit made me realise I had to change - look at me now'

A mum-of-three who shed more than two stone in just a few months has shared a simple trick tip for weight loss success. Andrea Delaney decided she needed to slim down when she realised she needed size 22 clothes.

The 40-year-old, from Failsworth, tipped the scales at 14st 3lbs at her heaviest and suffered from low self-esteem. Her size meant she felt even uncomfortable playing with her children at the beach.

Determined to make a change, she decided to join her local Slimming World group with her sister not long after welcoming her second child in March 2015. By following the group’s food plan and cheerleading with her young daughter, Andrea managed to shed 2st 6lbs in just three months and got down to a size 14.

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She found the main reason for her weight loss success was making little changes like swapping oil for low calorie spray and filling herself up on potatoes, pasta, rice and veg.

But the mum says one secret tip for slimming down is to make healthy food look as presentable as possible. “I had low self-esteem, low mood, low confidence,” she told the Manchester Evening News. “I didn’t feel worth it. I didn’t feel like I could do what I wanted.

“It limits you. Even playing with the kids on the beach – you’re always uncomfortable. Losing weight, it gives you motivation. It makes you feel alive again. It sounds dramatic, but it really does give you your life back. It changes your mindset and your mental state.”

Andrea says unhealthy snacks, 'beige' foods and takeaways were her main downfalls when it came to gaining weight. “I would go to the shop and buy a family size bar of chocolate and a bottle of wine and sit with it watching Britain’s Got Talent,” she added.

“I’d do that every weekend. It was my treat. It was behaviours like that which I’ve had to change. Takeaways were also a big thing or stuff that could be put in the oven.”

Andrea’s quick weight loss so impressed her Slimming World consultant they asked her if she wanted to run her own group.

Now a consultant herself, Andrea has groups in Newton Heath and Harpurhey and is set to launch Failsworth sessions in late June. “When I was approached to be a consultant, I said, ‘Me? Are you sure?’” she added. “My confidence grew.

“Never in a million years did I think I could run my own club. You start to believe in yourself.”