'I lost 3st 8lb in five months - my most important tip has nothing to do with diet or exercise'

Stephanie struggled with her weight at university as she made the transition from being at home to moving out for the first time. A poor diet resulted in her gaining more than three stone.

She managed to lose the weight but then piled it on again when she made the stressful transition between finishing university and entering "the real adult world". At her heaviest, Stephanie weighed roughly 200lb (around 14st).

She decided to make a change when she felt overwhelmingly "sluggish", "negative" and "embarrassed". Consequently, she dropped a whopping 3.5st.

Stephanie was able to make her huge transformation due to a change in mindset, being consistent, working on her eating habits, being mindful of her calories (both the amount she was eating and the amount she was burning), exercising and tracking her progress - but not stepping on the scale every day.

While healthy diet and working out habits were essential for Stephanie to see results, she revealed that the "most important" thing was actually developing a healthy mindset.

Stephanie said: "The first thing that is most important for losing weight is your mentality. Experts say it begins with a mental change and it really does.

"You have to be all in it, you have to be dedicated 100 per cent - and you have to do it all for yourself."

Being dedicated lends itself to "consistency", which was Stephanie's second tip.

The slimmer admitted that the first two weeks of a weight loss regime are the hardest "because your body is not used to it" but it's important to push through it if you want to see results.

Stephanie revealed that she started craving healthy foods more than the unhealthy options she used to go for.

A month after she started on her healthy eating journey, she ate a piece of fried chicken and didn't even enjoy it - in fact, she actually felt sick. The slimmer said that her body started to crave nutritious food instead.

Of course, in addition to developing a healthy mindset and being consistent, Stephanie worked on two essentials: diet and exercise.

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She revealed that she has always been a foodie and had a tendency to overindulge. To see weight loss results, Stephanie limited her portion sizes and made sure she ate until she felt full but not "over stuffed".

When it came to treats, she decided not to go "cold turkey" and cut out particular meals and snacks straight away. Instead, she eased into healthier habits.

The slimmer also resolved to do more exercise, enrolling in a spin class. Finding a workout that she enjoyed proved to be a game-changer and she attended classes an impressive four times a week.

The sessions improved her mental health as well as her physical health.