- Teri had been a healthy size 12 growing up but by age 24, the mum of two had been neglecting herself
- Her unhealthy eating habits, including drinking at least two litres of Coke each day, had caused her to balloon to a size 32, weighing more than 160kg
- Suffering worrying heart palpitations and struggling to walk, she decided something had to change
- A strict weight loss clinic helped her shed 90kg in a year but it hadn’t taught her lasting eating habits so the kilos returned
- Eventually, Teri found love and with his encouragement, she started exercising and working with nutritionists to become a healthy size 14, weighing 84kg
- Teri Michelle, from Gold Coast, Qld., shares her weight loss journey that now has her running around with her energetic grandkids…
Stepping on the scales, I crossed my fingers.
But as the numbers flashed up, I was filled with a sense of shame.
I’m 10kg heavier! I realised.
Aged 24, I was a mum to Sarah, five, and my newborn, Tami. Taking care of them with my husband meant I often neglected myself.
I’d been a healthy size 12 growing up, but my 178cm tall frame had since increased to a size 18, and now I weighed 90kg.
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Read more: The inspiring reason behind my 100kg weight loss
I knew how I’d got to this point.
First thing in the morning, I’d wolf down white toast with lashings of melted butter.
Then I’d snack on chips, bickies, chocolate and have at least two litres of Coke each day.
As my weight crept up, I barely had enough energy to keep up with my girls.
Trying every diet I could, I’d shed a few kilos only to pile it back on.
What’s wrong with me? I sobbed, feeling helpless.
By 2002, my marriage had broken down and we divorced.
The next year, I met another man and we married two years later. My 125kg frame didn’t seem to faze him.
I juggled kids and long hours in my recruitment job.
It was stressful and tiring so losing weight slipped down my priority list, and I turned to food for comfort.
By 39, the scales shuddered under my 160kg body. I could barely fit into a size 32.
I was mortified seeing myself in the mirror.
I suffered heart palpitations which sent my anxiety soaring. I constantly worried I was close to death, but also about things like breaking a chair or toilet bowl under my weight.
Even short walks were too much for me.
At the supermarket one day, I tripped and landed on my knees. Hearing a loud crack, I knew I was badly hurt.
I tried scrambling to my feet but didn’t have the strength.
“Here’s a chair to heave yourself up,” someone said.
Humiliated, I eventually managed to stand, and although I was in excruciating pain, I refused an ambulance or doctor.
“Something has to change!” I said to my family afterwards.
“We’re behind you all the way, Mum!” the girls, by then teenagers, said in unison.
I signed up to a clinic that offered a strict weight loss program.
I began eating just 580 calories a day of chicken and broccoli or beef and spinach.
In a year, I shed 90kg.
The rapid weight loss left me with loose skin on my upper arms and thighs but it didn’t stop me flaunting my new size-8 frame.
“Looking sexy,” my hubby grinned. And I finally felt it.
But the results had come so quickly, I hadn’t developed healthy habits that would last forever.
Slowly, my old demons returned. At first I’d just have the occasional treat, but that quickly escalated to insatiable binges.
Over a year, I ballooned to 125kg and felt depressed.
I sadly went through another divorce in 2014.
After two years alone and putting on another 10kg, I longed to find love again.
I turned to online dating and soon, my phone pinged with a message.
Hi there, nice pic, the man had written.
Flicking through his photos, I smiled.
He’s got such kind eyes, I thought.
He asked me out and we met at a local cafe. There was instant chemistry.
Chatting for the next eight hours, I felt like I’d known him my whole life.
He’s the one, I thought.
Two years later, he proposed and naturally I squealed yes!
When we married in 2018, it was the happiest day of my life.
Having his love and support, I found the courage to focus on my health again.
“Come on, love, get your shoes on, we’re going for a walk,” he’d say.
It was agonising toddling slowly around the block.
“I can’t do this,” I cried.
“I know you can,” my hubby encouraged. “Just a few more steps.”
Each time, it got easier.
Working with nutritionists, I learned that if I ate the right food, walked 10,000 steps a day and did strength training, I’d lose weight slowly and keep it off.
Over time, I ditched buttered toast for oats with protein powder. And instead of bickies, I had coconut yoghurt and fruit.
Learning to meal prep meant I always had healthy dinners and there were no more sugary snacks in the pantry.
Two years on, I’d lost 40kg and weighed 92kg.
I felt like a new woman!
It was a relief to no longer worry I’d die but then, in October 2019, I was shocked to discover a lump in my right breast.
It was cancer.
“If you hadn’t lost the weight, you may have missed this,” the specialist said.
Determined to be around to enjoy my new healthy lifestyle, I underwent a lumpectomy and radiation and, after five years, I was given the all-clear.
Although I continued to eat well and exercise, carrying 7kg of loose skin around my tummy was holding me back.
So, in April 2024, I drew $18,000 from my super and underwent skin removal surgery.
After 12 weeks recovering, I felt like a million bucks!
Today, at 84kg and a size 14, I’m a fit, healthy grandma to three girls under five, and love chasing them around.
I’m more confident than ever and have learned there are no quick fixes.
A slow and steady approach has helped me develop healthy habits that will last a lifetime.
For professional weight loss advice, visit getmoshy.com.au
