By Jacqui Lang
Pictures: Peter Mathew
After years of being overweight, it was one very little man who helped Frances slim right down.
These days, just walking down her local shopping street is enough to make Frances McCracken giggle with joy. While once she dreaded walking anywhere and hated the stares she got from passers-by, today she doesn’t even attract a smile — and she wouldn’t have it any other way.
“Now, when I walk down the street, people I’ve known for years just keep walking; nobody recognises me and it feels great,” she beams. “My husband Roderick is still shocked that I’m slimmer than when we married 33 years ago!”
Incredibly, it was only 12 months ago that Frances, 56, weighed a whopping 167kg and was dangerously overweight. But after being inspired by the birth of her grandson, Frances wowed her family by shedding 102kg in just seven months.
Sad reality
From a Scottish family of hearty eaters, Frances, who moved to Australia when she was four, says, “I was always big for my age, even as a young girl. That’s just the way it was and I never expected I would change.”
When Frances left school she became a chef, and being surrounded by food did nothing to help her bulging waistline.
And the threat to her health didn’t bother young Frances.
“Even the thought of an early death didn’t worry me; until recently, I didn’t expect to live past the age of 65. I knew that as a big person, I was likely to get diabetes and other weight-related diseases. I just accepted that was the way it was.”
For the full story, see this week’s Woman’s Day (on sale May 12).
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