Why losing weight really is a family affair for Tattershall trio

A Tattershall family say they have turned their lives around after shedding more than 20 stone between them.
The family all together. EMN-190301-134654001The family all together. EMN-190301-134654001
The family all together. EMN-190301-134654001

Clare Fordham joined the Slimming World Group at Tattershall Village Hall just over two years ago and has lost 10st 2lbs.

Dad Graham joined four months later and has shed eight stone.

Sister Cathy was determined not to miss out and has lost three stone.

Cathy pictured before her weight loss. EMN-190301-134704001Cathy pictured before her weight loss. EMN-190301-134704001
Cathy pictured before her weight loss. EMN-190301-134704001

The trio all say they are looking forward to a healthier - and happier - 2019.

In fact Clare has done so well, she has now become a Slimming Word consultant and is helping others lose weight.

Clare says: “As a family, we have always enjoyed spending quality time together and that normally meant sitting around a kitchen table discussing the weeks events over a huge meal.

“When we first joined Slimming World we couldn’t believe how much food we could eat and still lose weight.

Clare pictured before her weight loss. EMN-190301-134714001Clare pictured before her weight loss. EMN-190301-134714001
Clare pictured before her weight loss. EMN-190301-134714001

“Making small changes to the way we cooked our meals meant we could still enjoy all of our favourites like roast dinners, steak and chips and a great curry night.”

Encouraged by Clare’s achievements - and desperate to lose weight for knee surgery and help combat his type 2 diabetes - dad Graham signed up four months after Clare.

Like many men, Graham thought that slimming clubs were aimed at women and assumed the focus would be on ‘diet’ food and talking about people’s emotions.

However, he decided to give it a try and after walking through the doors, he was pleasantly surprised to find that the support provided by the group was practical and the camaraderie and sense of competition really appealed to him.

Dad pictured before his weight loss. EMN-190301-134724001Dad pictured before his weight loss. EMN-190301-134724001
Dad pictured before his weight loss. EMN-190301-134724001

He also enjoyed following Slimming World’s ‘Food Optimising’ eating plan, which enables him to enjoy generous portions of healthy food to satisfy his appetite, so he doesn’t have to go hungry.

Six months later, sister Cathy joined them at group and the family group has lost weight together.

Having shed over three stone and Clare says one of the secrets is being able to create meals quickly and easily when she got home from work that she enjoyed - and that left her full.

She adds the flexibility of food optimising made taking interesting lunches to work so simple.

As a result, Clare says she was now enjoying a much greater variety of foods and still losing weight.

She said: “We love sharing our new recipes with family and friends.

“They taste so great and people are always surprised to learn they’re good for them.

“As we’ve lost weight, we’ve enjoyed being more active as well and now that dad has had his knee surgery (only made possible by his weight loss) he is well on the way to being able to take the family dogs on much longer walks and generally enjoying a much happier and healthier lifestyle.”

The Tattershall group has celebrated the trio’s amazing achievements throughout their journey and continues to support them today.

The Fordham’s believe that supporting each other - and the support they have received from their group - has been the key to their success.

Jenny Laird, the consultant when the Fordham’s joined, was also a huge support and she says: “As a family, they are living proof that slimmers are more successful when they lose weight together and get support and motivation from others along their journey.

“Seeing their weight come down week after week has been a joy. They’re a real inspiration to the rest of the group, including me.”

Jenny still runs Tattershall group on Wednesday mornings.

When Clare reached her target, she knew that she wanted to help others by becoming a consultant.

Clare now runs two groups at Tattershall Village Hall on Monday nights at 5pm and 7pm.

She is just about to relaunch two groups at Toynton Village Hall on Wednesday January 23 at 5.30pm and 7.30pm.

Since taking over the Tattershall sessions at the end of last October, her group has lost an outstanding 55 stone!

•For more information on these groups, contact Clare on 07766716584 or email her on [email protected]

Other groups are also available in Horncastle, Woodhall Spa, Martin and Boston. For information, check out the Slimming World website on www.slimmingworld.co.uk