A Spalding woman who has lost seven stones of weight in less than 18 months has welcomed the push for more people to be given GP referrals to slimming classes.
Under the NHS scheme, people needing to lose weight are offered 12-week courses free of charge.
Last week it hit the headlines because doctors are being urged to refer people classed as overweight as well as those obese.
And Sue Manton, who says her referral “changed her life”, hopes other people will benefit too.
She said: “I don’t like to think where I would have been without the weight management programme.
“I’m amazed what it has done for my life. All my health problems have gone away.”
Sue (67) works at Morrisons in Pinchbeck and is a dinner lady at St John The Baptist School in Spalding.
In 2012 she was suffering from several ailments, including a longstanding cough and lots of aches and pains – and her weight had risen to 18 and a half stones.
“I was on the tills at Morrisons but when I would go to get up, I could hardly walk,” said Sue. “It was getting me down and I likened myself to an alcoholic, but with food.
“I was referred to the free weight management programme in 2013. I got 12 weeks with Weight Watchers and 12 weeks with a gym.
“The gym can be one of your choice and I went to the Castle Sports Complex.”
During the 12 weeks, Sue lost 2st 3lbs and five inches off both her waist and hips.
She was so pleased that she kept going to Helen Webster’s Weight Watchers class after the free period ended.
Sue said: “I didn’t want to do the weight management programme at first but everyone at the gym and Helen’s class was so helpful and friendly.
“I couldn’t afford to keep going to both so I stuck with Weight Watchers.
“I need to lose one more pound to make it 100lbs. I’ve got my life back and I feel so good about it.
“My doctor is very pleased – I think I surpassed what she’d hoped for.”
Following on from the recent publicity, Helen, who runs weekly classes in Spalding and Pinchbeck, believes what is already available via GP surgeries may not be widely known.
She said: “People perhaps don’t realise that you can go to your doctor and ask for a referral to Weight Watchers.
“It’s a 12-week referral with no charge. From referrals like that, we’re getting about 75 per cent of members seeing such success that they continue.
“The first target that we set our members is losing five per cent of their body weight.
“The commitment is to attend once a week to get the support. A class is about 40 minutes and includes a 20-minute chat.
To find your local Weight Watchers class, visit www.weightwatchers.co.uk
