Wigan slimmer: I want to set the right example

Emma Heyes, from Platt Bridge, has lost more than three stones after joining a slimming class,

The 35-year-old mum has spent the best part of 12 months making small lifestyle changes which have added up and made a huge change in her life.

And Emma, who is now preparing to relaunch a weight loss group in the town, revealed the motive behind her decision to shed the pounds.

“It was my daughter, eight-year-old Melissa,” she said.

“I wanted to set good examples for her really. When I was younger, I was overweight in my teens and I didn’t want that for her.”

“So I wanted to set that example so she didn’t have to experience what I did.”

Emma added: “When you are overweight when you’re young, girls can be quite cruel. I didn’t feel great in my own skin when I was a teenager. I didn’t go through a tough time, but I was very self-conscious.

“She is picking up good habits from me. It rubs off on your kids.

But since slimming down, Emma said: “It’s amazing. I have loads more energy. I enjoy spending more time with my daughter and husband now.”

And how does she do it? “I plan my food, eat more fresh food and make my own meals rather than buying processed foods,” she said. “I find it easy once you get into the swing of it. It’s just knowing how to buy the right things.

“There’s a quote I like which says ‘If nothing ever changed, there would be no butterflies.’

“It’s those little things, small changes, not too much at once, but they make a massive impact.”

Emma’s achievements also resulted in a career change, going from an auditing job with Hitchens Foods, to becoming a full-time consultant for Slimming World.

She said: “I just wanted to give people that good feeling, that extra confidence and that boost you get when you lose weight.”

She will soon be taking over as permanent consultant for a group which meets at St Cuthbert’s Rugby Club, located in Montrose Avenue, from May 10.