IZZIE WEARS:
Above: Top, Mint
Velvet. Jeans, Next.
Boots, Primark.
Necklace, Mango.
Ring, Primark
p: Dress, Zara.
Leggings, Topshop.
Shoes, ASOS. Ring,
Accessorize‘No one’s talking
surgery now’
Izzie Kennedy, , is an audiology student. She lives
in Bexhill-on-Sea, East Sussex, with her mum and
brother. Izzie, who’s Slimming World’s Young Slimmer
of the Year , is ft ins tall and weighs st ½lbs,
having lost st ½lbs at Anne-Marie Burke’s Slimming
World group in Sidley, East SussexA
s I sat and listened anxiously, the specialist
said: ‘I know you understand how serious
your liver disease is, Izzie, and that at some
point in the future a transplant might be
required. If you don’t lose weight, the next step could
be a referral for gastric bypass surgery.’ I glanced at
my mum sitting beside me and felt a sting of shame.
I was only 15 – how had things got so bad?
From the age of four, I’d started gaining weight
steadily no matter what my GP tried – including
referring me to dietitians. I’d turn to sweets and
cakes to make me feel better, and when I started
secondary school and had more independence, I’d
buy extra snacks to eat on the way home. My poor
health meant I’d sometimes miss school for days at
a time, which didn’t help my growing shyness.
Fifteen years old and 20st 11lbs, I sat in front of
that specialist at King’s College Hospital in London,
and learnt that my weight was the main reason I’d
developed non-alcoholic fatty liver disease – which
can lead to severe liver damage, such as cirrhosis.
I knew I didn’t want to have weight-loss surgery, but
I resisted when Mum joined Slimming World
and asked me to come with her. The whole idea
seemed embarrassing – surely it wasn’t meant
for people my age? After a few weeks of seeing
how much Mum was able to eat while losing
weight, though, I took the plunge.
On my first evening at group, with Mum
by my side, I realised I was just as welcome as
every other member. And I discovered I didn’t
need to get hung up on what I weighed or how
much I wanted to lose. I followed the Free2Go
eating plan, which was all about focusing on
healthy food swaps rather than weight loss, and I
loved it from the start. I adore pizza, so I made us
chicken with a pizza-style topping and Slimming
World chips, and other meals like salmon and
broccoli pasta bake. They were all really filling
and, because I wasn’t hungry, I didn’t reach for
snacks to lift my mood after school. I even had
energy to start taking my Labrador, Millie, for long
walks along the beach near our home.
Originally, I thought I might lose a stone or two.
But when I hit 19st I realised I wanted to keep going.
In September 2016, weighing around 12½st, I had
a follow-up appointment at the hospital. Seeing the
results of my recent ultrasound, the doctor looked
impressed. She told me my weight loss had reversed
the effects of the liver disease. As she discharged me,
I squeezed Mum’s hand. I’d done it! I’ve just started
studying to become an audiologist and I feel like my
whole life is ahead of me...with a clean bill of health.What is
Free2Go?
Children aged
to can attend
a Slimming World
group when
accompanied by
a parent, guardian
or family member
who has most
responsibility for
their meals at
home. They’ll follow
the FreeGo plan,
specially created to
help young people
make healthy food
and lifestyle swapsSLIMMING WORLD well-being special
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