Mother-of-two drops 4st in four months with diet where she 'never feels deprived'

Nicola struggled with her weight, often filling up on quick fast food between busy shifts as a nurse.

However, she knew her diet had to change when blood tests showed she was putting herself at risk of heart disease.

Nicola said: “The long shifts and late finishes meant that I often found myself reaching for convenient fast food options just to keep going.

“My average day of eating would typically consist of a bowl of cereal for breakfast and then either KFC or McDonald’s for lunch and dinner. I tried different diets and calorie counting but because I didn’t have the time or energy to cook or meal prep, none of them would work for me.

“I started to feel hopeless but then I found out that healthy eating doesn’t have to be time-consuming and make you feel deprived.”

Short on time, Nicola managed to find a quick way to add healthy meals and snacks into her routine with the help of Goal Plans by MuscleFood.

This allows her to eat nutritious, balanced meals that are pre-prepared, including breakfast burritos, rice and chicken pots, protein pizzas as well as three high-protein snacks a day. Eating protein is a great way to lose weight as it boosts the metabolism and helps the body build muscle.

Nicola said: “Losing weight was never about looks for me - although I do appreciate fitting comfortably into my uniform and feeling more confident in my body - my main reasons for making this change were to be healthier and stronger.

“Instead of focusing on the number on the scale, I was more interested in how my internal health indicators would improve as I lost weight.

“When my first blood test results came back, I was surprised to learn that my omega-6 levels were in an unhealthy range, meaning that I would be at risk of serious heart and autoimmune diseases which as a mum-of-two was a big concern for me.

“Within just four months of being on Goal Plans, my omega-6 levels reached a healthy range and I’m now seeing a huge difference in my mood and energy levels.

“The best thing about my new diet is that while being healthy and nutritious, it satisfies my cravings as I can still enjoy pizzas, burritos, pasta dishes and cookies.

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“I’ve always been an emotional eater so the fact that I can still have some of my favourite foods when I feel like being 'naughty' means that I feel less guilt and never feel deprived.

“One of the proudest moments of my life was when my kids were waiting for me at the finishing line when I finished my triathlon which would’ve never happened if I hadn’t changed my unhealthy eating habits.

“I want my kids to grow up in an environment where eating nutritious food is the norm and not greasy fast food.”

This comes as experts shared Britons can lose weight by making snack swaps.