By Ella Trotterdell @keepingupwithellatotts

I never realised before I started my weight-loss journey how much I would learn about myself on the way. I embarked on making changes after feeling so fed up in myself and knowing something had to change. I was grieving a recent death of someone in my family and was turning to food for comfort and a way of coping. Unless I felt absolutely stuffed I didn’t feel at ease. Wasn’t living off takeaways or relying on quick, convenient food but my portions were big and like I said I would eat till I was stuffed all the time. I joined the slimming world and it focused my mind on how I could break the cycle I was in. My family supported me all the way, helping with on plan meals, snacks etc. After losing a stone I then discovered I needed to be more active, my diet wasn’t going to be enough on its own to lose much more weight. I began planning more exercise into my weeks. 

I lost two and a half stone within just over a year of being in a slimming world. Lockdown I lost myself slightly gaining weight because I didn’t have the motivation to plan, organise and track what I was eating and drinking. I also even with a daily walk was not even reaching over 5000 steps a day. This second lockdown I am approaching things different. Caring about what I’m putting in my body, keeping more active and on the go each day. 

I think the other aspects of losing weight for me was learning to put goodness in my body and exercising to mentally make me feel better. Life is challenging but exercise, getting enough water and good foods was a start for me in tackling my mental health and getting to a place where I improved and felt more like me. Eventually all the little steps worked so much so I am now happily off my anti-depressants. I think for me it was tiny, baby steps with this journey not expecting an overnight change. 

Self-love lastly was a big part of this journey, learning to accept who I am and not aiming for perfection when I was already enough as I was. Again this wasn’t an overnight change, I had to retrain my brain to love what I saw even though I didn’t look like the models you see on Instagram or would have days where I’d feel rubbish for no reason. When I stopped comparing myself to others that was the breakthrough that helped me learn to love me and all the parts that made me unique and myself. I still have days where like most people you do just feel crap or not like the way you look in something etc but we are only human, we will have them days. But overall I am 100% more in love with myself and being positive to and about myself.