Obese woman, 26, who gorged on takeaways and family-sized bars of chocolate sheds eight stone… by working in a CHIP SHOP
Ashton McHugh, 26, from West Bridgford, Nottingham, swapped her beloved junk food for salads and dropped from a size 22 to a size 12 in less than a year
A WOMAN who gorged on takeaways and regularly scoffed family bars of chocolate in one sitting has dropped eight stone - by working in a chip shop.
Ashton McHugh, 26, from West Bridgford, Nottingham, tipped the scales at 18 stone and was a size 22.
But in July last year she decided to overhaul her unhealthy diet, after losing one-and-a-half stone without trying when she took over her dad's chippy.
Ashton swapped her beloved junk food for salads and resisted snacking on tit bits at work.
In six months she lost six stone, and has since shed a further two and slimmed down to a size 12.
Ashton explained: "Customers asked me what my secret was, and I told them, 'Working in a chip shop!'
"Being surrounded by food was tempting, but it also made me more determined to succeed."
She told how in May last year, having just started at the chip shop, she would often grab a handful of chips and sneak out the back to munch them.
Throughout the day she'd continue to pick - a fishcake here and a cod bite there.
"Sometimes I'd help myself to a carton of curry sauce to dip my chips in," Ashton admitted.
"I'd often take home a kebab with all the trimmings.
"After making food all day, cooking a healthy tea was the last thing on my mind, so me and my partner Matt (35) would often order a takeaway, which I'd finish off with a family-size bar of Dairy Milk.
"It added up to thousands of calories, but I justified it by telling myself I was on my feet all day, probably burning it off.";
Ashton confessed that she hated buying clothes in a size 22, despised having her photo taken and avoided full-length mirrors.
She said: "Although I was confident and sociable, I secretly wished I could be slim.
"But I struggled to lose weight."
Last summer Ashton hopped on the scales, expecting to have put on weight working at the chippy.
But she was stunned when they showed she was one-and-a-half stone lighter.
"Going from an office job to being on my feet made a big difference," she said.
"I thought, imagine what I could do if I really tried?
"Suddenly I was on a mission. I stopped snacking on chips and cut out chocolate.
"At lunchtime I ate chicken with pitta and salad. At dinner I'd have a big fresh salad again."
"In a few weeks I lost more weight. I felt proud of myself for the first time in ages."
Ashton carried on with her strict regime, limiting herself to 1,200 calories a day.
In three months she lost three stone - after which she set herself half-stone loss targets.
Ashton also began doing exercise DVDs before work, and by December she was down to 12 stone.
"It felt amazing," she admitted. "But I knew I could do more.
"Since then I've lost nearly another two stone and weigh 10st 2lb. It's a fantastic feeling to go into any high street shop and comfortably fit into a size 12."
MOST READ IN FABULOUS
Ashton and Matt are engaged, and rather than dreading seeing the photos, the bride-to-be is excited.
She said: "I still enjoy the odd portion of chips, but I only ever have five or six chips at most.
"I'm not going back to my old ways. Being slim has made me happier than fish and chips ever could."
Earlier this week Coronation Street star Catherine Tyldseley revealed the secrets behind her incredible five stone weight loss as she busts fat myths on new documentary.
In July we told how a single mum who weighed in at 17 stone lost more than eight stone… and put it down to guzzling green tea.