A GLAMOROUS mum looks "two decades younger" thanks to a life overhaul following a shocking wake-up call from her GP.
Claire Spencer, 43, says her husband "feels like he’s having an affair" due to her dramatic weight loss.
Mum-of-two Claire used to spend her evenings gorging on sugary treats and snacks, as well as devouring two meals a night - all washed down with glasses of vodka and coke.
But then a routine blood pressure test raised red flags with her doctor who sent her for further tests.
Claire was horrified to discover her liver and heart health was at serious risk, and was told by her GP that she was classified as obese and needed to lose weight.
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That shocking day saw the business coach ditch the booze - swapping it for night-time cycling - and turn her entire life around.
She lost six stone in 18 months, going from a dress size 20 to 8.
“My friends and family are super proud and people tell me I look like I’m in my 20s!,” Claire told Sun Health.
“I met my husband when I was 18 and I was a size 8 and over the years I just got fatter and fatter.
“It wasn’t genetics, it was pure gluttony.
“He looks at me now and he’s got a new wife, he feels like he’s having an affair!
“I call my 30s my fat 30s.
“Alcohol was a big feature. I used it as my best friend to guide me through my business life, love life, mum life, everything.
“I’d wake up with these hangovers that made me want to eat carbs and sugar. It just went into this really unhealthy cycle.”
It wasn’t just the booze though that Claire says made her pile on the weight.
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I was so mortified when doctors sat me down and said those horrifying words that no one wants to hear: 'You are obese.'
Claire Spencer
She says: “I was overeating. My husband is a big, strong stocky man and he was making these huge portion sizes and I was brought up to finish the food on your plate.
“I would have dinner then I’d have a picky tea later on too, so I was having two meals a night and eating quite late.”
The Worcester-based mum also reveals that she spent her weekends binge drinking, take a few days off from booze in the early week, before rewarding herself on Wednesday with another alcohol blowout.
She says: “I would drink vodka and coke, wine, prosecco, anything. And then eating big portions of pasta, pizza and convenience food.
“But I had big boobs, I wore nice, tailored clothes and had big blonde hair and false eyelashes so I felt like I could get away with being overweight.
“Even when my size 18 jeans got too small and I had to fasten them up with a hair bobble because I refused to wear a size 20, I was still in complete denial.”
Horrifying wake-up call
Recalling her trip to see the GP, Claire says: “I’d just turned 41 and the doctors were concerned.
“My blood tests threw up warning markers for liver issues and heart problems.
“They sent me for scans, liver X-rays and ECGs and I was sh***ing myself.
“Then my doctor sat me down and said those horrifying words that no one wants to hear: ‘You are obese’.
“I sat there with my gym kit on, even though I didn’t exercise, and felt so mortified.
“It was that moment that made me realise I needed to change everything.
“That was October 15, 2021, and from that moment I haven’t touched a drop of alcohol.”
Claire started eating in a calorie deficit, which is when you eat fewer calories than your body needs in order to lose weight.
“I couldn’t believe how badly I’d been eating before," she says.
“I was ramming food in willy-nilly without thinking about the calories or nutritional value of the foods.”
Life-changing diet tweaks
Claire swapped fatty meals and takeaways for meals such as chicken and salad, fresh fish, fruit and yoghurt.
She still eats pasta, but now measures out her portions instead of filling her bowl to the top so that she is controlling the calories.
She also started fasting, only eating between 10am and 6pm every day.
“It just helps me to digest my food properly and helps my body to absorb all the nutrients from my food,” Claire says.
“I love whole foods, I avoid anything processed now.”
Her new diet also inspired a different evening routine for Claire.
The former self-confessed couch potato now spends her time doing DIY jobs around the home, walking her beloved rescue dogs and has even joined a night-time cycling group.
I had big boobs, I wore nice, tailored clothes and had big blonde hair and false eyelashes so I felt like I could get away with being overweight.
Claire Spencer
She says: “I was stuck in a rut of snacking and drinking in the evenings.
“I associated snacking with alcohol. I’d sit down in the evening, binge on Netflix and have lots of snacks around me.
“I had to change that habit so I joined a cycling group of women who go cycling in the evenings.
“They go mountain biking and it’s amazing, so thrilling!”
The cycling spurred on another new habit for Claire, and she soon found a love for exercising.
She says: “Over Covid I’d turned my shed into a gin room. I’d made an 80s retro bar and we used to hang out in there over the summer.
“But since then I’ve gotten rid of it and instead filled the shed with second-hand gym equipment so I’ve got a home gym and it’s life-changing.
“I walk the dogs every day, I do a night bike ride once a week and then go to the gym room about three times a week now.
“My social life has completely changed, things I thought were for old people are cool now - hiking, walking the dog and cycling.”
'I'm more confident and creative'
Changing up her old habits for new ones has seen Claire slowly lose weight and keep it off.
She says: “In 18 months I lost six stone. And for six months since I’ve maintained it.
“I’ve gone from a size 20 to a size 8 and I feel incredible.
“It’s inspired people around me and loads of people I know are trying to ditch the booze now.
“There is life after booze. I still go out and have fun but gone is the crippling anxiety.
“I used to have heart palpitations and feel panicked throughout the day, it was like a little alcohol demon sitting on my shoulder saying nasty things to me.
“Now I’m more confident, more creative and my business has grown as a result.”
One last thing Claire also swears by that has turned back the years is a collagen supplement she takes daily.
She says: “I was very conscious of losing the weight that I’d have jowls and saggy skin so I started taking the Forever Marine Liquid Collagen.
“My skin is plump and youthful and I will take it for the rest of my life.”
