Cathy’s 5stone weight loss sees her named consultant of Slimming World group at Christ Church School, Middlebeck

After a health scare and watching her husband climb a mountain, a Newark woman is now living her life to the full.

Cathy Burgum has lost 5 stone 2lbs after going on the Slimming World lifestyle, when she weighed 17st 2lbs at her heaviest.

Having previously lost weight with Slimming World before the Covid-19 pandemic, the lockdown meant that the weight crept back on over the years for Cathy.

When she and her husband went on holiday to Dartmoor, she couldn’t climb one of the mountains there and it was a similar story when they went to Snowdownia where she had to take the train to the summit and back down again.

“One day I looked into the mirror and I thought “who the hell is that?” Cathy said, “That’s the awful state I had got into.”

After the experiencing chest pains and jaw lock during a session with a walking group she volunteers with where one of the walkers, who happened to be a nurse, persuaded her to get the symptoms checked and she was diagnosed with angina.

This health scare made Cathy determined to get healthier, and she said that Slimming World suited her best as she wanted to eat the same food as her family.

“I’ve got five grandchildren who I look after a lot and and I want to eat the same food as all of them and still want to go to the pub,” she said.

“It’s all about the mindset — if you’re looking at the syns, then there is some fat in it but you can still have the things you love in moderation.”

The camaraderie at the group in Middlebeck, Cathy said, and the feeling of all the members being in it together is also what kept her going:

“When we’ve had bumps in the road you feel like group is a safe space, and we’re all there for each other,” she added.

In total, Cathy has now lost 5stone in weight, and not only did she and her husband now climbed that mountain but they walked down Snowdownia together in just over three hours, and at the age of 60, she said that she is living her life to its fullest.

When the consultant at her Middlebeck group went away, Cathy stood in and enjoyed it so much that when the vacancy became permanent, she decided to go for it.

“I loved organising the Christmas meal and was so involved that when one of the members got their 7stone award and I missed that meeting, I was gutted and that made the decision for me,” she said, “I want to help other people feel real.”

As a newly appointed consultant, Cathy is relaunching the Christ Church School, Middlebeck Slimming World on Tuesday January 7.

Meetings are every Tuesday at 5.30pm and 7pm. Call Cathy on 07950 924317 to find out more.