It was an innocent if somewhat pointed comment from her four-year-old niece Maddy that inspired Sarah Monahan to look to a radical new-age solution to get rid of the extra kilos she’d piled on over the previous six years.
“It really made me think I needed to lose some weight when my niece pointed out what a ‘big fat tummy’ I had,” the 40-year-old laughed.
It wasn’t just about feeling confident in a bikini that inspired her to explore the extreme option of a two-week fast, but rather a desire to regain her health after the trauma of facing her former Hey Dad..! co-star Robert Hughes again.
She looks fantastic!
Sarah [far left] during her Hey Dad..! years.
He was convicted of 10 child sex charges in 2014 and found guilty of molesting four girls, including Sarah, between 1984 and 1990, but she had to wait until June this year to find out that he would remain in jail after he lost his appeal in the High Court of Australia.
Sarah, who was recently named an ambassador for bullying app SeeSayDo Something, says she piled on weight because of the stress and trauma of being forced to relive her abuse and fight for justice all over again, and at that point her weight ballooned almost 20kg from her preferred weight for her height, 48kg.
Standing at just 150cm tall, Sarah says even a small weight gain changes her appearance and can affect her confidence. “When I weighed myself and found I was still 56kg, I knew I had to do something,” she told us.
“I’d heard about this amazing fast that seemed to achieve incredible results in a very short space of time, and even though I knew it was going to be difficult, I figured I needed to do something extreme to lose the extra weight.”
Dr Shuquan Liu heads Traditional Chinese Medicine Australia and has helped a host of high-profile business people and celebrities lose weight and transform their lives with his 101 Wellness program, and Sarah thought it could help her.
“I loved the results – but to be honest I didn’t think it would be as difficult as it was,” Sarah admitted to us, who spent 14 days fasting, drinking only water or black tea and satchels of liquid Chinese herbs made to a special formula.
For her remarkable story and her full body transformation photo shoot, pick up a copy of this week’s Woman’s Day
