Pop Idol star Michelle McManus sheds nine stone as she shares transformation snap

McManus found fame after winning Pop Idol back in 2003, and talked about the change she's made to her mindset as she showed off her transformation.

The singer shared a photo of her slender frame in a green dress alongside a snap from before she shed the weight. She penned in the caption: "Sometimes it’s okay to stop and take stock of what you’ve achieved.

"For the past year or so I’ve been making changes in my life to help me reach the place in which I now find myself. Happily it is a place of good health and contentment."

She continued: "I love both versions of myself in the above two photos. The image on the left was taken in late 2022, eight months after I'd given birth to my second beautiful baby and I’d just started a new job presenting The Afternoon Show on @bbcradioscot.

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A post shared by Michelle McManus (@ladym_mcmanus)

"Even though life was going great for me, at the time I was very tired both physically and mentally.

"If I’m honest, I was also struggling with my fitness - caring for two babies under three was my priority and working on myself was not something I had dedicated time to considering, let alone doing."

She went on to explain: "The photograph on the right was taken a few weeks ago, behind the scenes at a photoshoot I did in Glasgow. In total I've dropped 9st through calorie deficit and introducing exercise into my life.

"Looking at these images side by side, I can honestly say the numbers attached to both are almost irrelevant. It’s not about the label on the clothing or what it says on the scales, but instead I’ve learned it’s truly all about how you feel about yourself.

"Life gets in the way, situations change and priorities shift. Someone introduced me to a great quote recently that really resonated with me: 'The only lifelong relationship we'll ever have is the one with ourselves.'

"It is something I've learned too, loving yourself and feeling self-worth is so important. It's taken me such a long time to understand that, but thankfully now, at 44 years old, I finally get it, and perhaps that is the biggest and best transformation of all."

Michelle has been sober for five years and shares two sons with her husband Jeff Nimmo: Harry, four and two-year-old Peter.

She candidly confessed in 2016 that she struggled with the public scrutinising her looks while she was on Pop Idol.

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She explained during an interview on ITV's Lorraine: "It was difficult, everyone wants to look the best they can look. I was only 24, I'd never been to London, it was always made such a big deal, I've been up and down, it's always going to be a part of me.

"I think it will always be a part of me, even if I was to lose all the weight and become a real skinny minny, it would still somehow be there."

McManus faced fierce criticism during her time on the show due to her weight, particularly from record producer judge Peter Waterman.