I was 145kgs when my husband and I separated in January 2003 - I was flabbergasted at how much I weighed.  Then I started walking and eating less and dropped 20kgs, but over that winter I put 16kgs back on.

In August 2004 I started the Ultra Lite program, however given it was winter, I only gave it a week to work!!

I would've been one of the world's worst dieters.  I've tried nearly every diet imaginable.  However, in November 2004 I decided that it was finally time to lose the weight and went back on the Ultra Lite program.  I had 3 weeks off teaching and thought that I should exercise over the summer period.

I stayed on it until Christmas, and then over the holiday period I went off the program, but stuck to their diet menu and walked my 2 boys all over town. 

My friend was also dieting at the same time, and this was a huge incentive to stick to the diet - her encouragement was great. I had also set a goal to get under 100kgs when my dancing classes began again at the end of January.  This I achieved through many hours of walking and sticking to the diet.

When I got down to 100kgs (at the end of January 2005), I decided to increase the exercise, go back on the diet for two weeks at a time, with a week or two break (still keeping to their diet plan in between) and I continued to lose weight. 

May 14th was my birthday target date to get to 80kgs - which I am now under.  I'm very happy at a healthy 70kgs.  I never imagined I'd ever be this size again.

What were the greatest difficulties you faced losing weight?

Dieting is a hard thing to do, especially if you have so much weight to lose - you feel as through you'll never get there. 

I'm proof that it can happen, but you need to find your own motivation, whatever that may be and stick to it. 

I was lucky to be able to exercise as much as I have and constantly lose weight each week. 

There were occasions when I'd got frustrated and wanted to just give in, but when that happened I just changed my "routine" to keep myself interested to continue. 

I also became disappointed at times when my body would plateau for a week, but the plateaus didn't last very long and the results continued to come after each one. 

To help keep me on track and motivated, I bought a special pair of jeans which I would fit into when I achieved my ideal weight.

When I was feeling a little flat about "dieting", I'd get my special jeans out and hang them on the wardrobe door as a reminder. 

I can now fit comfortably into those jeans and I wear them regularly.

How did you actually lose the weight?

Put Simply, I kept to the Ultra Lite program. 

For some of the time I would stay solely on the program for a period of up to 5 weeks, at other times I'd alternate between being on the program and doing my own thing.

I also walked every day and began doing circuit training with an instructor. Now I've improved my fitness so much that I run a couple of kilometres each day. 

There is no secret to what I've done - I just became one very determined person to lose weight and now I'm just as determined to keep it off. 

The Ultra Lite people at Terry White Chemist in Sunbury advertised my weight loss when I was half way to achieving my ideal weight.

Not only did this prove to be motivational for me, it also has inspired others to embark on their own weight loss journey. 

It's a great feeling to help others to try and achieve their goals, no matter how great or small because I understand how hard the journey can be.

How has losing all that weight changed your life?

I'm now able to wear size 12 jeans!

That's something I never dreamed I could do again. I now have size 10 skirts in my wardrobe and my top half is also a comfortable size 10. 

I now feel so much more energetic, which is a good thing as I'm a single mum of four wonderful children. I can do so much more with them now because I have far more enthusiasm and energy. 

There's also a history of heart disease in my family and I hope that I may have reduced the likelihood of experiencing future medical problems by losing weight. 

I also teach dancing and my energy levels have improved dramatically for that and I have even returned to full time office work, something that I would never have had the confidence to do while being so large.

Apart from my family and friends, I have the girls at Terry White Chemist in Sunbury to thank enormously for their encouragement, the wonderful circuit instructor for making exercise so interesting and challenging that I kept coming back for more and all the people who've commented on my weight loss throughout the journey, which has given me added incentive to achieve my goals.

Conclusion

Kim Phillips lost an amazing 75kgs naturally on the Ultra Lite Weight Management program.

Losing so much weight has changed her life forever and she now has the fitness, confidence and energy to enjoy life to the full.

And you can too!

For your nearest Ultra Lite practitioner visit www.ultralite.com.au or call 1300 730 307 (Australia) or 0800 401 402 (New Zealand).

We sincerely hope that you found Kim's story inspiring and thank you for visiting weightloss.com.au