I was a proud new mum but hated myself...’YOUNG mum Melissa Parris’ weight left her too embarrassed to face Simon Cowell, but after losing nearly four stone she has got her X Factor back
WHEN Melissa Parris was asked to return for an X Factor audition, her weight stopped her from following her dream.
But now the mum-of-one has lost nearly four stone, won a national slimming competition and has the confidence to contemplate trying her luck once more in the TV talent show.
The 21-year-old, from Barry, went before a judging panel for the hit ITV1 show in a pop group four years ago.
But when they asked her to come back and audition alone she was too scared.
She said: “Back then I had no confidence at all. The other girls were so slim and I was so chunky.
“I knew I had to lose some weight so I didn’t go back. But now I have lost four stone and am feeling so much better about myself, I am thinking about trying again this year."
It is a very different story as Melissa has dropped four dress sizes from a size 16 to a stunning size 8/10 to be named Slimming World’s Miss Slinky 2009.
Every year the national award goes to a member who has lost weight and looks and feels fabulous and Melissa was nominated by her Slimming World consultant Niki Evans.
“I found out I had won on the day before Christmas Eve, so it was the best Christmas present ever,” laughs Melissa.
“The prize was £1,000, so it was fantastic news at that time of year.”
Melissa has struggled with her weight since her teens and tried everything to slim down including a range of diets and even diet pills but nothing worked.
She says: “I have tried this diet and that diet in the past but nothing every worked. It was after I had my little boy Keon, who is now two and a half, in May 2006 that I became really conscious of my weight. At my heaviest, I was 14 stone. I was a really proud new mum and yet I hated looking in the mirror. I hated myself.”
Last January, Melissa’s grandmother Sandra Campbell stepped in and persuaded the single mum to go with her to their local Slimming World group in Barry run by Niki Evans.
“I was nervous in the beginning but as soon as we went inside everyone was so friendly and warm. My group are amazing. I feel so motivated every week and we have such a laugh at the same time,” says Melissa.
She found Slimming World’s Food Optimising eating plan fitted perfectly with her busy life as a young, single mum and a beauty consultant for Clarins at Boots in Cardiff.
She said: “It is amazing how much you can eat. Nothing is banned so I can still eat my favourite foods like pasta and jacket potatoes, and I’m never hungry. I have learned how to cook lots of meals that are really easy and quick too, which is good because my social life is busy, especially now.”
A year later Melissa has lost 3st 12½lbs – and her nan has lost around 2 stones.
Melissa says: “It has changed my life. Now I’m more active so I can keep up with my son, which is a workout in itself, and I’m more outgoing too. Everyone keeps telling me I should start singing again. So who knows, maybe I’ll even go back in for the X Factor and show the judges the new me. I’ve become a totally different person – the person I always wanted to be.”
Melissa is a member of Niki Evans’ group in Barry. For more information contact Niki on 01446 740394 or call 0844 8978000 or visit the website
http://www.slimmingworld.com to search for groups in your area.
