It was Tarryn Richardson’s friend’s challenge that kick-started her phenomenal 21.2kg weight loss. Here’s how she did it…
What Tarryn says about her 21kg weight loss…
“Weight had always been an issue for me, and I realised the only way to change this was to believe that losing weight was not a negative experience; it was about discovering the person I was underneath the protective fat suit.”
Before: 94kg
After: 72.8kg
Height: 1.72m
Time required to reach current weight: 1 year
Lesson learnt: “I did not redesign my life to fit in with my‘diet’; rather, my ‘diet’ had to fit in to my lifestyle.”
Secret weapon: Weigh-Less
The gain
Tarryn had always been a big eater. “At age 11, a teacher asked me what my hobbies were. My reply: eating! By the time I reached high school, I was overweight and very image conscious,” says Tarryn. After graduating from university, she was eating out and getting takeaways four times a week.
The change
The tipping point came when Tarryn returned from a holiday four kilos heavier, weighing 94kg. “When I looked in the mirror, I got a fright – I was officially a fat girl. It was obvious I had lost all respect for my body.” Her boyfriend’s sister approached Tarryn in January 2010, wanting to know if she’d be interested in joining their “Biggest Loser” team, a group of friends who would get together and compete to see who could lose the biggest percentage of body weight. “I realised that it was now or never and took the plunge.”
The lifestyle
“I started to go to gym five times a week; I would do running, spinning – any form of cardio. On the weekends, my boyfriend, Adrian, and I would hit the gym together. I found that I was becoming a happier person and started to notice my body changing.” Tarryn also turned to Weigh-Less to help her with meal plans. “Adrian and I weigh our food for dinner and prepare our own lunches for work. We use recipes from Weigh-Less or make up our own. It’s fun when we do the latter – it makes every meal exciting.”
The reward
Besides the obvious weight loss, Tarryn enjoys the emotional benefits. “I’m no longer as moody. At work, I feel like people take me more seriously. My professional and personal relationships have flourished.”
Tarryn’s tips
It takes two. “Sharing the experience makes it easier.”
Banish defeatism. “I thought I could never lose weight, but I was wrong.”
