"I Lost 3 Stone Without Dieting" – Here’s How Sarah Finally Silenced the Food Obsession

your background and, uh, where kind of, you know, the, the whole before and now, um, scenario, because you've, um, you've lost, uh, quite a lot of weight, or you've— there's a lot of weight left your body, let's put it that way. Um, so was that, uh, was, was that a constant battle before?

Um, I'll be honest, I don't think it was a constant battle. But what was constant is I would constantly think about food. I would constantly eat badly. Doing all the sport that I've done, which I have done all my life since a very, very young age, didn't really have a whopping effect on keeping me slim. I'd probably be fit, but I wouldn't necessarily keep the pounds off just basically because To say I'm a foodie is perhaps not completely true, but, um, I do love all the wrong things. I love— I've got a sweet tooth. I love the biscuits, I love the crisps, I love the chocolate, um, and my weight just sort of yo-yoed. But in the past, I always felt I had to do it with somebody. I needed a buddy, um, and I really got to the stage in November 2023 where I just thought I don't want a buddy. I want to be able to do this by myself. And I need to— I mean, like everybody says, I know what to do. But of course, we all struggle to actually put that into place without feeling that it's totally down to willpower. And I was always the kind of person, if there was a bar of chocolate in the fridge, I could leave it there for months and months and months. But the problem was, once it was open, uh-oh. And it was, it was willpower. It was You know, and if I had a buddy, I was always very good at going, no, no, no, I'm fine, thanks. I don't want that because I sort of felt a little bit sort of self-righteous. And I'm sort of, oh, well, I'm slightly one up on you because you're, you're about to give in and I'm being really good and saying no. And yeah, it's, so I lost, I lost 3 stone with you since November 2023. I lost it up by July 2024. Prior to that, I had lost 3 stone. Well, I had put it all back on, so I'd lost 3. So I've lost 3 stone now 3 times. But the previous 2 occasions, it slowly, bit by bit, crept back on because it was purely down to willpower. The second time I did it, I, I literally counted every calorie. I worked it out. I had a little book and I mean, it was looking back on it, it was horrendous and quite horrific really in that sense, just to what degree I went to. To constantly be aware of what I was eating and how. And I learned a lot. I learned, oh well, yes, you know, the calories in rice compared to the calories in potato. And that's great. And that's a big learning curve. And that's something we all should be aware of. But now I don't think of calories and it is so enlightening. It truly is. You know, they couldn't be further from my mind, which is absolutely fantastic and very, very liberating, as you well know.

Yeah. So were you— I mean, was there an obsession as well with food before?

I would be constantly picking and nibbling. Yes, I guess I was always thinking about food, really. Yes. I would eat between meals. I would have crisps for dinner. And then the classic of the evening, you're watching TV and I'd sort of get up to get a cup of tea and I'd go, oh, you know, would you like anything? Really meaning tea or coffee. And I— this little voice would go, oh, well, if you go into the cupboard— and you think, yeah, okay. And of course I would just give in because I like crisps and I like this and I like that. And so, yeah, bit by bit, um, it was all that snacking in between. It was fundamentally overeating, not allowing my body to use the food I'd eaten effectively and always topping it up. When actually there was no need because the tank was nowhere near empty and it was just constantly stacking food on top of food. And I was just like, this is, this is wrong, you know. And now having gone through that process of losing that food noise in my head, it's fascinating just how little I actually need to eat. I never feel hungry. That's the weird thing.

It's amazing. So, so you— where did you find us?

You just popped up as an advert on Facebook.

Right. Okay.

Yeah.

And, and had you got to a place at that point where you knew you had to do something different?

Yeah, I did, because I, I'd done Slimming World. And when I then joined you and saw that wonderful video you did of a lady who actually used to even run Slimming Pod— sorry, Slimming World classes and listening to her. And I thought, you're just talking so much sense. It's like, why do I need to assign sins and points to food? This is just bonkers. That's not the real world. And I was listening to her and I just thought, I mean, obviously I listened to her after I joined, but yes, it got to a point where I thought, I need to try something different here because I had tried Slimming World and yes, it had worked, but I found myself captive to the Slimming World app. And I thought, I don't want to live my life constantly scanning every jar and every bottle and every whatever just to sort of work out, have I had my 15 sins of the day? And I thought, that's no way to live. I need to find a different way. And I knew in my heart and in my head that the thing I needed to do was to change my viewpoint on food. Because like we, like we always say, oh, I knew what to do. It's like, yeah, I do know what to do, but I need to, I need to get that working. I need to have that new format in my head.

Yeah. Knowing what— I think everybody knows what to do. It's just putting it into practice when there's age-old habits going on and things overriding it is the problem, isn't it? So you started and what happened?

Um, I started on Monday, 13th of November, and I can honestly say that week, um, the noise immediately stopped in my head and it was such a relief. And I was— because I walk the dogs every day and I used to listen to the pods every single day when I went for a dog walk because that was my, my time for doing all of this. And, um, and I got to the stage towards the end of the first week and I'm thinking 'Am I ever going to eat again? Because I really have lost interest in eating. This is really bizarre.' It was very, very effective. I was, I was amazed. And the thing I did was I had decided that this was Project Me, which you may have seen on various one of my comments and my postings, because I didn't want to have to have a buddy. And I thought, my husband's not massively interested in losing weight at the moment, despite the fact he needs to. And I'm thinking, 'This needs to be me. I need to do this for myself.' So this has been my project. He only found out 2 weeks ago that I was doing it, that I have done it, because he really couldn't work out why I was— I have lost so much weight, and yet according to him, we eat the same meals. So yes, I had to come clean.

And so what's different? I mean, how— first of all, how much have you lost?

I've lost 3 stone. I'll be honest, I have put a couple of pounds back on, but it doesn't bother me because actually when I— what I, uh, achieved with SlimPod is I went way beyond what, uh, the, the, the point that I have ever reached previously. I went down to 9 stone 12. Now I haven't been 9 stone 12 since I was in my 20s, and I'm now, um, 58. So I was quite shocked at that because in all your videos it's like, well, have a goal, do this, do that. And I was like, no, actually I'm just gonna see where this takes me. And, and when I went past 10 and got into a 9, and I'm thinking, oh my Lord, I've never got this far ever on, on with it. It was so little effort. It was phenomenal. So I'm thinking, oh, I'm just gonna sit. And then I stuck at 9 stone 12 from July last year all the way until we went skiing in January. And I'm thinking, I got through Christmas, everything. And I'm thinking, this is really weird. I'm just not budging from 9 stone 12. Um, and then when we went skiing, we stayed in a hotel with a 5-course meal every evening. So, uh, despite the fact I was incredibly selective, because that's what my brain now tells me to do, I put on a couple of pounds. So I bobble around 10, but that's still less than I was on the previous 2 occasions when I lost the 3 stone back then, because I only made it down to 10 stone 3 at that point. And I now know that, yeah, I might just have a bit of a heavier week, but I do weigh myself once a week. I want to keep in check. I want to make sure that no bad habits are creeping in. But I'm very, very happy with how I am. I just bounce around 10 now. And there's a couple of pictures I posted ages ago when I sort of did the— probably my latest post. And I actually thought, my God, I look really skinny there. And I don't like the picture of myself. There's one of me in like a vest top with a pair of navy shorts. And I thought, oh, I look really skinny. So having put a couple of pounds back on, I'm actually much more comfortable with that. So But I'm also comfortable with the fact that I just bounce around 10 stone, give or take, you know, which is great. So, um, amazing.

So you referred to the food noise, um, you know, when you first started. And so, um, is, is, is that— was that chatter that was going? Because that is so, uh, relatable now. So many people, uh, talk about food noise because it's in the context of weight loss medication, and, you know, that kind of, um, gets that down. So you, you, you referred to it as food noise, what exactly was going on in your head?

It would be, I'd see an advert on television, I'd go, ooh, yum. You know, it would be constantly sort of like, my face would light up if I saw something that really, really appealed to me. Food would be quite major in the forefront of my mind. I'd have breakfast and then I'd be going, ooh, now what should we have for lunch? You know, but it wouldn't be a question of, oh, because we work from home, you know, shall I make some soup? So therefore I'll make it now kind of thing. It would just be constantly planning, constantly Yeah, just constantly thinking about food in the sense that I would be just going into the kitchen to get a cup of tea, and as I opened the fridge door, it'd be like, "Oh, well, maybe I'll just have a little nibble at that." And so, yes, food was just in my mind the whole time. So you're right, I think the food noise has become a little bit of a phrase, but food would just be in my mind the whole time, wherever I was. As I said, we've got, you know, the wicked corner cupboard with all the crisps and the biscuits in it. I just don't go to it anymore. I'm not interested. And even if I sort of try to almost tempt myself, I'll open the door and I'll stand there and I'll go, "No, why am I doing this? I'm not hungry. I'm not— why?" And then I just shut the door. So yeah, it's quite interesting. But yeah, I would constantly think about food. And my husband still does. And he goes, "Oh, it's so terrible. I can't lose weight." You know, constantly thinking about the next meal. And, and yeah, we were both as bad as each other, and that's why I wanted to break that cycle, and I had to find somehow to do it.

Amazing. So, um, so, so what was kind of the process after that? You noticed you were— you weren't eating as much. What do you think is the biggest, um, I suppose, contributor, uh, in your change of habits, uh, to losing that weight?

Biggest change is I predominantly eat whole grain granary bread now. I rarely touch white unless I'm out and I have no choice. I had already changed to whole wheat pasta anyway. I always now have egg for breakfast. On perhaps out of a month, I might have toast on 2 occasions, but I start with protein every single day. I I will have more protein on the plate than anything else at other meals. If I have chips, I will only have a few, and then I will— they are now very much the minority vegetable on the plate. So proportions have changed quite dramatically overall. The proportions, what the physical amount I actually eat has changed dramatically. As I said, the assortment of what I eat has changed. Yeah, fundamentally that, and definitely, absolutely just not interested in snacking in between. Don't snack between. I don't have— I rarely eat biscuits now. If I fancy a snack, I do eat crisps and I do eat peanuts, but only because to me, rightly or wrongly, I perceive them as sort of a proper bit of food in the snack world compared to something like, let's say, a Wotsit. And a Wotsit is so supremely puffed up and manufactured and, you know, and it's just rubbish food, whereas at least in fairness, a crisp is a sliced potato. So, you know, I do selectively choose if I'm having— if I'm going to have anything like you go to friends for a drink and they put some peanuts out, I go, well, I'll have a couple. But the amount I eat of everything has just dramatically reduced.

Yeah, amazing. And that is probably the— obviously that. And have you done more exercise?

No, because I've always been active, always walked the dogs every day. So that was sort of part of the conundrum, you know. I'm doing all this exercise. We, we are fundamentally, um, house developers. Um, not right at the moment, we're going through, um, a, you know, different phase. But, um, fundamentally, ever since my husband and I have been together, we have built houses. He's been a builder all his life, so I've always done, uh, certainly for the last 20 years, very physical work. Um, whilst he would be predominantly building the house, I would be doing the gardens. So, you know, because we'd always buy something run down like an old barn or something. So I've always done very, very sort of grafty physical work. So that's why I suppose perhaps I always felt I could get away with eating as much as I was.

Yeah.

And Slimpub taught me I just don't need that much food. I haven't used it all up. And then I topped the tank up again and I was like, well, you still haven't used up what you had in there before. So yeah, it's, um, it's been fascinating and I've absolutely loved all the videos that you do week by week. And I would watch all of them and/or just simply listen to them in my pocket as I walk around the field. And I would just, you know, listen to them and, and I would just be itching for the following week to sort of get the new ones. And I've learned a lot listening to all of those. And Dale Pinnock taught me a lot about food. And one of the ones that sticks in my mind is when he talked about having toast for breakfast, then a sandwich at lunchtime, and then spaghetti bolognese in the evening. And as he rightly says, individually, per portion, there's nothing wrong with any of those 3 meals, but you've just done back-to-back carbs. Yeah. Like, oh yeah. And I used to do stuff like that. I wouldn't plan particularly well, let's say. Um, and so, yeah. Um, and, and now I hear people go, oh yeah, no, no, I, I've really cut down on food. I only eat when I'm hungry. And I'm thinking, right, well, I do understand that. But on the other hand, I think what I have fundamentally learned is to reconnect my brain with my stomach. And I just don't eat beyond satisfied. And when I have eaten too much, like we've gone out to dinner at a friend's house and you feel you want to eat all 3 courses. And I come away in the evening and I'm thinking, mm, I feel so full and really uncomfortable because I've gone beyond that new threshold that I now am very aware of in my head.

Indeed. Amazing. And that, and that's kind of stuck now, hasn't it? Um, because, uh, when did you actually kind of get to your below your goal weight?

Um, July last year. Right.

My goodness. So that's nearly a year. Yeah.

And various members of your customer service team have very sweetly said, oh, you know, someone would like to have a chat with you. And I thought I would love— I'd love to have a chat with you. But what I had in my head was, I've achieved that point, I've arrived at a certain point twice before, this is now the third time, albeit with a different method. And I thought, I'd love to have a chat with you, I'd love to convey how wonderful and successful SlimPod has been to me. But I really wanted to leave it until I could actually really prove it to myself. You know, that to me was the— it's the longevity, it's the you know, it lasting. That, that's really what we're all trying to achieve and, and find. And I just thought, yeah, I think actually now probably the time, um, plus the fact that it would all come out in the wash and my husband would finally find out what I was doing. Um, I kept it secret all this time and people go, hasn't he noticed? So, well, yeah, he has noticed, but he hasn't got the foggiest idea what I've been doing. And quite frankly, if I try to explain it to him, I love SlimPod so much, but I find it so multi-layered. It— you can't just say it. I find I can't just say it in one phrase. It doesn't work that way. I— because I feel I need to try and explain every possible layer that I can because it all works together so beautifully and it's so effective. But, um, yeah, so that's a conclusion.

Amazing. Fabulous. Oh, it's just been amazing talking to you, and I have— we— I've waited so long.

Oh, thank you. But no, I just, you know, as I said, when I am right back to the customer. So now I sort of see adverts on telly and they go, well, you know, so, well, will I put the weight back on? And I'm thinking, well, yes, if you're, if your mindset's not correct, you probably will, because I've put it back on twice and I don't want to put it back on a third time. So, um, yes, you know, it's, uh, it's, uh, oh, it's just a revolution, it really is. And the bottom line is I just used to eat too much.

Oh, and so, so what, in your head, um, what is the difference in mindset now about you know, about the weight kind of not coming on or being permanent. What, I suppose, your habits being permanent, because there's, there's obviously, there was obviously a fear there when you did lose the weight. Oh God, it all come back on again because that's what it's always done. Which point was the tipping point when you started to believe that it was going to stay off and you agreed to talk to me?

I think it's because I was, I am, and, and approaching that sort of year, sort of. And yes, I did put those few pounds back on after skiing, but, and I got a little bit like, oh, oh no, here we go again. But it's settled and I'm like, oh, I clearly have nailed this. And I think that was probably, so it was the anniversary coming up plus the fact that, okay, Sarah, you, you put a couple of pounds back on, but you know what, you did look a little bit skinny and a little bit scrawny. And you've— you're, you know, you still feel fabulous in the clothes. Well, the few clothes in the wardrobe that fit me. So many of them look like Billy Smart Circus. It's unbelievable. But, you know, yeah, I think it was— it was just— it was that— it was— I had hit this slightly new upper weight of 10, but it was just still just staying around 10. And I was like, oh, that's good because 'Well, I had a little bit of chocolate the other day,' and then I realized I had a little bit of chocolate, not the whole bar. And it's astonishing now how I— and I astonished myself— I can eat a slither of chocolate and put the bar away. And I never used to be able to do that. And even my husband would go, 'Oh yeah, very funny.' See, well, there's no point me asking, is that, you know, does it need to go back into the cupboard or the fridge because you would have eaten it all? And that's absolutely true. I would just have scoffed. It doesn't matter how big it is. You know, we're talking like a big bar of Cadbury's. I'm not saying I didn't feel sick and icky and everything afterwards, but I would just— and did I enjoy it? No. You get to the end of it and you know you've scoffed it. Now if I have some chocolate, my taste buds just go bonkers and I go, oh, that is just lovely, and it satisfies that little itch. And I don't have any more for, I don't know, a couple of weeks maybe.

Yeah, that's, that's exactly me. Uh, you know, I was doing some really tedious stuff today and I reached for the chocolate, and I know what it is that triggers me, uh, and I had, I had, um, 2 squares and then I had another one. I thought, oh my God, that's enough, that's enough, I can't do it anymore. Whereas actually it satisfied that and then I went, you know, just that bit too far and then, uh, and now I won't touch it again for probably, you know, a week or so. That's, that's, that's been enough. So yeah, and it's perfect, isn't it?

It's just, it is perfect. It is, but, and I realize now that I actually did not enjoy eating the chocolate how I used to eat it. You get to a stage where your taste buds are just completely overloaded, and it's that first taste, that first bite, that first little block, and you go, oh, that is just gorgeous, and it melts in your mouth, your favorite brand, whatever it is. And then you realize now in hindsight, you go beyond that and you go, well, did I really enjoy those last few squares? No, because my taste buds were in overload. And they weren't enjoying it. And it's that restraint. I have restraint. I have a friend who can eat half a biscuit and put the other half back in the packet. And I never, ever understood how she managed to do that. And I saw her at the weekend and I— and she now knows what I— you know, she now knows I'm on the same page as her. And we just had a really good laugh. I said, Gina, I had no idea, no idea how you used to manage that. But I do now. I completely get it. You're just enough for your taste buds to feel happy, to feel happy. And then after that, it's going, yeah, that's fine, that little itch is satisfied. Good. Um, yeah, it is amazing. Yeah.

And so she is, um, what you'd probably call a normal eater who can, you know, who's in control.

Absolutely. And I do realize now that sugar is the devil beyond all doubt. I will read the back of the labels and I'll go, you know, that doesn't mean to say I won't have chocolate, obviously, which is 100% sugar, but I'm just thinking, you know, my point is I will look at the back and if it's that salad dressing or that salad dressing and I like them both, I go 'Oh, well, that's got less sugar in it. I'll have that one.' So yeah, it's— sugar is the one thing I look out for. I don't really bother about anything else anymore. I just— I certainly don't count calories. Not that bothered about fat because I love cheese, and I now eat that like it's going out of fashion. And I did that all through losing down to 9 stone 12. And I now know what my body likes, what it's happy to eat and use on my behalf, um, to make energy for me. And I now know what it really would rather not have because it just stores And sugar is the number one thing. It really is.

Amazing, amazing, amazing. Honestly, it's been so fabulous talking to you. Honestly, it really, really has. I just, uh, I keep on seeing you pop up and I need to speak to that woman.

I just see all these people and I just go, yeah, yeah, no, go for it, go for it. You know, you have got absolutely nothing to lose apart from weight and a complete freedom in your brain regarding food and just And I now know what eating normally means. You know, I don't have food fear. I can pick up a bar of chocolate, eat only a small bit, put it back, but also not go, oh my God, I've had chocolate. Oh, that's gonna, you know, it's gonna sit on my hips forever more. Have pizza, but I have half a pizza and I have some salad. And yeah, you know, it's everything in moderation, which is the same slogan that used to go around my head, but I never managed to actually fulfill it. There are two mantras from Trevor's little, little pods, and I just love them. You know, it's, you know, eat less, move more, choose better.

Duh.

And then the other one is, you know, enough is enough, and enough is so much less than it used to be. And I was just like, wow. And I live by those now. Those are my new mantras.

Amazing. So one last thing.

Yes.

If, if you were somebody who was, you know, in their first week or two of the program, What would you say to them from, you know, from— because you were there once and, and now you're in a very different place. What would you say to them?

I would say you do fundamentally have to be in the right mind to do it. I have had friends— I have friends rather— who I have persuaded to try SlimPod, and sadly it hasn't worked for them. And they will admit they're not quite in the right frame of mind. They don't want to lose weight enough. They don't want to change enough. So fundamentally, you do have to have Project ME as the forefront in your mind, because that applies to any form of dieting, but— or anything. You really do want to— you have to want it enough. And I threw myself into it wholeheartedly, and I listened to PODs every single day for a year without fail. And I got agitated when my pod counter wouldn't go on. It wouldn't— when it went a bit faulty and wouldn't add on a pod on the counter. And so I would say, you know, you really do have to be in the right place and you do have to commit yourself and be selfish, you know, listen to it when you are completely by yourself and focus on it. I know you're not supposed to perhaps listen to it word verbatim, but, you know, you do have to throw yourself into it. And believe in it. And I firmly believe the power of the subconscious. I always have done. But this, for me, has totally proven that the subconscious is supremely powerful because I think there's a little bit that you said. It's like, you know, even if you fall asleep, don't worry because your ears are still listening. And that's very, very true. And I just feel that, that, you know, the reconnection is because the back of my brain now has well and truly woken up. And has listened and taken on board everything that either Trevor says in all the pods or you say in the videos. And you go, this is just so logical, this is so normal and right, and wow, why is it everybody else— you know, I've got friends who are still on Slimming World and it frustrates me because I'm like, food doesn't come with points and sins, and it's— it does have calories, but that's that's a calorific value. Yeah, it's just, you know, yeah. So, um, persevere, you know, persevere. Don't give up, um, relax and enjoy it, and don't fret if the weight just doesn't pop off and fall off. Um, I honestly, truthfully lost weight every single week, but your enthusiasm and positive words really spun it for me in the sense like, oh, 'Really? Only half a pound?' was how I used to think. But your positivity— and I'm a positive person, I really hate negative people, so I think I gelled with you hugely over the videos— because when you would say, 'But you know, that's a win. Half a pound is a win. Even staying the same is a win.' And that's very, very true. And then don't knock yourself if for whatever reason you apparently have put on half a pound. But we all know that you can put on half a pound overnight because you had a bit more yesterday than you ate 2 days ago, and it has— you're your body hasn't used it, it's still in your stomach, so it's bound to be on the scales because it's still there. Um, so yeah, it, you know, patience, but, but belief, belief in yourself that if you want it enough, it will definitely work for you.

Amazing. Thank you, Sarah. Uh, it's just been so wonderful speaking to you. Uh, it really, really has. Just, you know, um, I've seen all this kind of, um, I've seen, I've seen you keeping the weight off because you've actually posted, you know, several times in the group.

Yeah.

And so, yeah, and we do get a lot of people keeping the weight off, loads, loads of people. But, and everybody's got a different story to tell.

That's what's come true to me when I've seen various videos you've posted recently. The lady who lost 9 stone. I mean, that's just phenomenal. But you're right, we all have different stories. We all have very different reasons for wanting to lose the weight and how we lost it and why we wanted to lose it. And I find that fascinating because we all are very different people. And as the pods say, you know, we're all very individually very individual. Our DNA is so specific. And for me, I don't drink much anyway, but my drinking habit hasn't changed. And there was a lady you interviewed, and she, she basically didn't drink on her wedding day because SlimPod had told her she was drinking too much. And her brain went, she know what, you really need to cut back. And she's just not interested in drinks. She went, I didn't even have a drink on my wedding day. And I just found that fascinating, the psyche of it, that we're all so, so different. And it just seems to have such a different effect Um, because we are all so different. Um, it's not a one-size-fits-all, it really isn't. But, um, there are some fundamentals like sugar which we can all do with avoiding for sure.

So yeah, exactly. Yeah. So thank you. Thanks so much.

You're very welcome.