Woman sheds 14 stone after doc’s death warning

DIET and exercise guru Rosemary Conley dished out awards yesterday to eight star slimmers who between them have lost a total of 77 stone.

The winners of the Rosemary Conley Diet and Fitness Magazine Slimmer of the Year 2010 awards included one woman who shed 14.5 stone and went from a dress size 34 to a size 10.

Bridie Coulter, 47, from Co Antrim, was 24st 7lb when her doctor told her she would be dead within a year if she did not lose weight.

Her nicknames at school included Mrs Blobby and the Jolly Green Giant but she has now lost more weight than any otherfemale slimmer Conley has ever helped.

She scooped the prize for 40+ Slimmer of the Year at the awards ceremony at the London Marriott Hotel County Hall.

Coulter said: “I’d been overweight for my entire life and the reason was that I always ate too much and never, ever did any exercise.

“I used to be like a drug addict but my habit was food. While I was ashamed of getting so big, the only thing that made me feel better was eating more.”

Before starting an urgent low-fat diet three years ago, Coulter’s weight meant she had problems walking and breathing and often slept on the living room sofa as she lacked the energy to climb the stairs to bed.

“You can’t keep me still now,” she said.

Young Slimmer of the Year, 20-year-old Allyson Wicklen from Birmingham, suffered years of abuse from the school bullies because of her size. At 5ft 11ins, she had always dreamed of being a model, but her 16st weight and dress size 20 meant that was out of the question.

Since then she has shed five stone and become a size 12. She is now signed up to a modelling course, which she is due to start in March.