Mother and daughter throw nine stones between them as they drop FOUR sizes of clothing
A mom and daughter have lost nearly 9th and shed four clothing sizes each by taking out unhealthy snacks and running 5K races together.
Elsie Spalding, 21, and her mother Tracey Spalding, 50, from Hertford, Hertfordshire, say they have been ‘closer than ever’ since they took on the weight loss challenge in January.
Within months, Elsie, a fine art student at Bournemouth University, went from 13 pounds 13 pounds to just 9 pounds 2 pounds and a size eight by turning a McDonald’s breakfast into porridge and exercising most days.
Elsie decided to join her mom at Weight Watchers after eating a cheese toastie and a tea cake together at a cafe over the Christmas break, and Tracey shared exactly how caloric her meal was.
Elsie Spalding (right), 21, and her mother Tracey Spalding (left), 50, from Hertford, Hertfordshire, say they have been ‘closer than ever’ since taking their weight loss challenge
Elsie recalled, “She told me what I was eating would have been her whole daily amount of points, adding that if I wanted to join WW, she would pay for it and help me.
“Still, I didn’t think I’d do it because I thought I’d get bored soon.”
Elsie, who previously had a body mass index (BMI) of 34.5 compared to the NHS recommended range of 18.5 to 24.9, always ate when she felt strong emotions.
She said, “I had an unhealthy relationship with food. When something went wrong, I ate or when I was happy I ate.
Childminder Tracey (photo left after her weight loss with her now slim daughter Elsie) had a BMI of 29.8 before losing weight and being overweight, according to the NHS
“I didn’t think I could break this cycle and thought it would be like this for the rest of my life. But my mom made me feel different and now we are closer than ever. ‘
Tracey encouraged her daughter to participate in her weight loss after she started seeing impressive results.
When Elsie left for college in September 2018, Tracey thought it would be a good time to join WW, and by March 2019, she had lost nearly three stones, making her 10 stones.
She reached her target weight of 9.7lb in March 2019 after quitting boozing mid week and running 5K three or four times a week.
Elsie, a fine art student at Bournemouth University, went from 13 pounds 13 to just 9 pounds 2 pounds and a size eight when she started attending park runs (photo with her mom Tracey after running)
Childminder Tracey, who also shares a son, Alfie, 23, with her husband, Dan, 52, said her motivation to lose weight was nearing her 50th birthday.
With a BMI of 29.8 before losing weight and causing her overweight, she said, according to the NHS, ‘I came on a big birthday and I wanted to be fit at 50.
“I realized that I was unhappy and started thinking about my health and fitness. I had always been between nine and tenths, but after I had kids, the pounds started to build up slowly. ‘
She constantly realized snacking, drinking during the week and not exercising did not make her happy.
Elsie, pictured left before her weight loss, said she was confident despite her size. The student (pictured right since losing four stones) now likes to go for 5K runs
She added, “I work as a childminder, so I’m picking at home all day. Then I enjoyed a few glasses of wine in the evening and enjoyed a good night out in the pub.
“I ate a lot of unhealthy foods like candy, chocolate, chips, bacon rolls, and pasta and went up to 12 pounds 11 pounds.
“I couldn’t fit my clothes anymore and I didn’t do any exercises. I just didn’t feel well. ‘
Now she is thrilled that Elsie inspired her own successful diet to tackle her weight as well.
“I didn’t want to tell Elsie to lose weight, I knew it had to be her decision and she had to do it when she was ready,” Tracey explained.
“But I think it caused something in her when she saw how I did it.
Childminder Tracey, who also shares a son, Alfie, 23 with her husband, Dan (pictured together before her diet), 52, said her motivation to lose weight was nearing her 50th birthday
“She did really well, then we both started running. We did the Race for Life and did the park runs together.
“It is so important because it is not only an improvement in our health, but also something we can do together. I’m going to visit her at the university in Bournemouth, then we’ll get up and do the park run.
“I’m so proud of her that she did it. It is not only for health, but also for our mentality.
“We have always been close, but it has brought us closer together.”
Elsie reached puberty when she was 14 and said she only gained weight from then on.
‘I was size 12 when I was 14, so I was not very tall, but compared to my friends who were a lot smaller, my size stood out. Still, I didn’t really bother. I always felt confident and was never bullied, “she said.
“When I got home from school, I just went into the cupboards to get cookies or chips and keep snacking.
Elsie, pictured left on a night out before she lost weight, joined Weight Watchers after eating a cheese toastie and a tea cake at a cafe with her mom. Tracey wanted to put Elsie (photo after her dramatic weight loss) into action
“I got worse at 16 and 17. I was a size 16, sometimes I was a size 18 and my friends were all size eight.
“When I went to college, I did my own shopping, so it would be cheap pizza and oven chips, packs of Supernoodles, or McDonald’s 99-cent burgers.”
And despite trying to diet, she always found herself dropping back into her old eating habits.
“I was aware of it, but I didn’t really want to do anything about it. I tried diets but it would die and I would just go on as before, ”she said.
“I used to feel confident with my friends, but I started to go for other people because I was going to worry about what I looked like. That was quite difficult. ‘
A few months after she entered college in September 2018, Elsie was surprised when her mom came to visit and she looked very slim because she had joined WW.
Tracey (photographed with Elsie on vacation for their weight loss) realized that she was constantly snacking, drinking during the week and not exercising but not making her happy
“She looked really good,” Elsie recalled.
“We did some shopping, she fitted this top and looked great.
“I was really impressed with what she had accomplished, but I didn’t think I could do the same.”
After Christmas 2018, Elsie joined the weight loss club online and went back to college.
The pair agreed that Tracey would go to class and pass on the advice she received to her daughter, who would go herself when she finished college in May.
Elsie said, “I had to change my whole lifestyle, so I gave up everything.
“At first I wouldn’t have a cooked breakfast or a McDonald’s because I was afraid if I allowed it I would fall back into bad habits.
After Christmas 2018, Elsie (photo on vacation during her weight loss) joined the slimming club online and went back to college
“I struggled for the first few days, but after the first week and a half, I had lost seven pounds, which changed my mindset and made me really determined.
“The change was incredible.
‘I now eat a lot of vegetables, chicken fillets, WW snacks and sugar-free jelly. I really do have a sweet tooth, so that helps ease my cravings. I cook many meals from scratch and prepare meals for lunch. ‘
Elsie, a typical college student for her diet, normally got out of bed at 11am. But when the weight started to drop, she got up early to go for a walk or run.
When she went home, she went with her mom on a park run, a free weekly 5k running event in green spaces in the UK.
Tracey (pictured enjoying a drink while maintaining her slim figure) says she can sleep better at night now that she’s not carrying extra weight
“I always got a lift everywhere and I never trained, but I started taking the stairs and walking everywhere,” Elsie said.
“My mom did the coach of the 5k running app, so I did too, and when I got home at Easter, we started running together.
“It took me about seven months to reach my goal of 9.13 pounds in July.
“I did it very quickly and I was very strict. Since then I have lost more and now weigh 9st 2lb.
“I feel really great now. Sometimes I still feel a little self-conscious, but when I go to the store and buy size 8 instead of size 16 it feels so good.
My whole fashion sense has changed. I buy things I never thought I would buy. I was wearing skirts and small crop tops all summer. ‘
Shaping together has brought the mother and daughter team closer together than ever.
“We love finding recipes and cooking together,” says Elsie. ‘We still eat something like fish and chips, but we make our own hand-cut potato or sweet potato chips, and then we have chicken nuggets with chickpea breadcrumbs.
Elsie is pictured enjoying a glass of prosecco in a dress while making the most of her new figure after her dramatic weight loss
‘We also do the park run together on Saturday morning.
“We were always close, but we’re even closer now.”
And Tracey says she can sleep better at night now that she’s not carrying any extra weight, making it easier to get up and enjoy her mornings.
“I feel brilliant now, I sleep better at night. I feel good going out to buy clothes and summer is great because I don’t feel like I have to cover everything and can wear shorts.
“Before I hit the snooze button, but now I’m jumping out of bed and running in before the day starts.
‘I eat a lot of homemade soups, fish and vegetables and I don’t drink for a week. I don’t miss it. ‘
Elsie remembered feeling beach fit for the first time this summer and said, ‘I was on vacation in Spain wearing a bikini for the first time in my life.
“For mom, losing weight was also a huge boost for self-confidence.”
Tracey and Elsie look forward to spending Mother’s Day together and will spend it at home this year, with activities limited due to the corona virus.
“I think it’s going to be a quiet party this year. We’ll probably just cook something nice together, ”Elsie said.
“She really is the best mom. I couldn’t have done this without her. ‘
For more information about myWW, visit WW.com or download the WW app and follow Elsie’s journey on Instagram at @es_progess
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