Woman’s dramatic 53kg weight loss using Tammy Hembrow’s fitness app
A Melbourne student who weighed 123kg has undergone a dramatic change after putting an end to her excessive donut and burger diet.
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Emma Higgins, 20, didn’t realise how quickly she gained weight after working 40 to 50 hour weeks.
The moment she got her license and first full-time job at a pie and donut shop, her diet plummeted, regularly opting for leftover sweets and pasty-laden snacks from the store.
The Melbourne student said while she had “always been the big girl”, she never expected her weight to reach 123kg.
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“When I was working, I would consume endless amounts of donuts and pies, which were
readily available. For dinners, if I was working late, I would have Hungry Jack’s as it would be the only place open,” the 20-year-old told news.com.au
“On a normal day I would consume a lot of bread, burgers, and all different types of takeaways in large and excessive amounts. I was always eating; when I was bored, I would eat, even if I wasn’t hungry.”
Ms Higgins, who later found herself in a state of depression, said she doesn’t remember a time when she didn’t consume “some sort of takeaway”.
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But that all changed in January this year when she stumbled across a social media post featuring Instagram star Tammy Hembrow’s fitness app, Tammy Fit.
After taking the “plunge” and signing up, the Melbourne local went on to lose an impressive 53kg.
“I’m so glad I did it,” she said. “My mental health has had a drastic change. From being the sad, anxious and depressed person I was at my heaviest, I have become more confident in my body.”
Prior to her transformation, Ms Higgins said she “hated” going out anywhere that involved dressing up.
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“I hated going clothes shopping, especially with other people as nothing ever fit properly, or I couldn’t go into the types of shops that all my other smaller friends would go into,” Ms Higgins explained.
“I had been playing netball since I was four years old, and it became hard for me to continue to play … I was super unfit and it was just a massive effort to complete a full game.”
Ms Higgins said the biggest challenge during her weight loss journey was changing her attitude towards food and exercise.
“I would dread exercises at the start, until it started to become an outlet for me.”
She went from being a size 18-20 to now a size 10-12, wearing all the clothes “she once dreamt of fitting into”.
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FITNESS REGIMEN AND DIET
Ms Higgins said it’s a mix of cardio and weights sessions that have contributed to her weight loss.
She has since rejoined her netball team, playing once a week and trains at the gym on the other days.
“I was following my own program that I had made up, which I did all the way up until I started using the Tammy fit app in January, which I have been using ever since,” she said.
“I now currently train five times a week and have done the gym-based Full Body Program, Home Booty and Gym Booty V1.”
If she is not following the fitness app’s meal guide, Ms Higgins will intermittent fast having her first meal of the day at 1pm.
”It usually consists of tuna and rice, protein pancakes and oats. Then I’ll have a snack, either a fruit salad, sandwich or a wrap and protein shake.”
For dinner, Ms Higgins said it could be anything – in moderation – from a burger, pasta or chicken salad.
The 20-year-old, who is now studying a Bachelor of Physical Education and Sports Science at Victoria University, said she was still in shock at how far she had come both mentally and physically.
“Some days I look in the mirror in disbelief that I actually did this,” she said.
“I still have a long way to go, I still want to tighten and tone my body, but when I look in the mirror I am so proud of myself.”
If you’ve got a transformation story you’d like to share, get in touch with shireen.khalil@news.com.au