Stunning Jacquilost six stone

Nov 9 2012 by Cheryl McEvoy, Ayrshire Post

She’s an inspiration, and that’s a fact.

For Jacqui Cunningham has spent the last two years relcaiming her health, and her figure.

And that is no mean feat for this busy working mum, as she had to overcome serious knee and back problems in her bid to lose a remarkable six stones.

Jacqui, 51, of Irvine, piled on the pounds after being laid up for four months with a disc bulge in 1997 and an operation on the cartilage of her right knee.

Despite eating a healthy dinners, Jacqui indulged in snacks between meals, coupled with inactivity, the pounds piled on.

She explained: “I never really got back into the swing of exercising on a regular basis.

“So you would think after seeing photos of myself on holiday in Portugal in 2006 and at my son John’s 21st birthday in 2009, I would have done something about it.”

It took a serious health scare in 2010, when she found a lump on her breast, to spur Jacqui into action.

She said: “Thankfully I got the all clear but I knew that at 18 stone I would never have been fit enough to cope with being ill.”

In April 2010 Jacqui, who is married to husband John and has three grown up children, John, Paul and Vicky, joined Weight Watchers and started going to the gym on a regular basis.

And the weight started to come off steadily.

Jacqui said: “I had goals along the way.

“The first was a primary school reunion in August 2010 with former classmates from Troon Primary and some of us hadn’t seen each other for nearly 40 years.

“The second was my nephew’s wedding in June 2011, followed by my 50th birthday in the September.

“I lost weight steadily during this time, sometimes losing too much, which was caused by the increase in my activity levels along the way and had to compensate for this by eating more.”

And in June of this year Jacqui reached her target weight of 11 stone 9lbs.

Jacqui, who works at Malcolm Sargent House in Prestwick, is delighted with the results

She added: “I have changed my eating habits completely.

“I now make better choices filling up with complex carbs, fruit and vegetables which keep me fuller for longer so I don’t feel the need to binge.

“I stopped drinking large glasses of wine and swapped them for gin and slimline tonic.”

And she insists that she was supported throughout by family, friends and experts, adding: “I’ve had motivation and support the whole way from my family and friends, the staff and my personal trainer at North Gailes gym.

“But I couldn’t have done it myself without the weekly meetings and the help and encouragement of my Weight Watchers leader Morag Barr.

“I’ve been known to appear at various meetings throughout the week and would even turn up at my her door to be weighed if I couldn’t manage to fit one in.

“I’m still attending meetings to keep my weight in check and so far have remained within the 5lbs required to be a gold member.

“I still track what I’m eating to ensure I maintain my weight as there is no way I’m going back to what I was.”