Here\u2019s how one photo meant to capture a lifelong memory with her daughter, instead filled this Sydney mum with the determination she needed to change her health habits for good \u2013\u00a0and how exactly she did it.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n
When Gabbie Radley, an AR Officer from Campbelltown, received photos taken of her and her daughter on a Disney Cruise, she was forced to reevaluate her lifestyle.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI was so excited to take her that I even paid an additional $175 to get to keep every photo taken of us while we were there. Looking at those photos, I couldn\u2019t share one of them,\u201d she recalls.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMy daughter is so beautiful and looks amazing,\u00a0 but all I saw was how big I had gotten and how ashamed I was of that.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
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The 43-year-old mother of one\u2019s life before her inspiring weight loss journey was stagnant, full of unhealthy food choices and a barely-there approach to fitness and exercise.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Trying her best to accommodate for a fussy 7-year-old, Radley found herself constantly doing what she could to guarantee her daughter would eat \u2013 even if it meant only serving foods like pasta, rice and bypassing healthier options.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI would make double or triple what was needed for that night, and then just take leftovers in for my lunches at work,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
But it wasn\u2019t just unhealthy food choices that contributed to Radley\u2019s steady weight gain, \u201cSoft drink was also a big part of my daily life. I tried many times to ‘give it up’, but always ended up drinking it again,\u201d she says.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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As for exercise, the Campbelltown local says her routine was basically non-existent. \u201cI would occasionally walk to work from the train station, but drove often, and once I was in the office, I was at my desk until it was time to go home,\u201d she says.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI went to work, came home, and that was about it. I would go to events and sports for my daughter, but I definitely didn\u2019t do anything for myself.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI had gone from a job where I\u00a0 was active almost constantly to a job where I was seated at a desk all day, and my diet never changed,\u201d adds Radley. \u201cOver the years, the kilos began to pile up and I didn\u2019t notice.\u201d<\/p>\n
Couples with a bad breakup, a poor diet and non-existent exercise routine, Radley\u2019s weight gain throughout the years began to increase, leaving the mum-of-one feeling like there was nothing she could do to change the course of her health.\u00a0<\/p>\n
At her heaviest weight, Radley weighed 142 kgs.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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With her cruise photos acting as a wake-up call for Radley, the Sydney mum was determined to take action.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI stumbled across an article on Body+Soul about 28 by Sam Wood and how Sam was running a free Health of the Nation program, to try and help Australians lose weight, in Feb 2024,\u201d she recalls.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI was in my feels about my weight (thanks Disney Cruise), and I thought, ‘It\u2019s free, worst that can happen is nothing changes, I haven\u2019t lost anything\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
Radley joined expecting that she\u2019d just tweak her daily meals, but was surprised to find the guidance and simple recipes provided by the 28 team helped transform her life far more easily. <\/p>\n
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In the first few weeks of the challenge, Raldey leaned on support from her family and the 28 community, finding encouragement from other Aussies going through the same journey.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought it would be hard to change, but the hardest part was changing my mindset. I could do it, I just had to believe I could do it,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
Now, Radley is proud to have lost 56 kgs, an impressive result of 20 months\u2019 hard work and determination.<\/p>\n
A typical week of exercise for Radley now consists of lots of walking.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI walk to work every day, and then I go for a walk in my lunch break to keep my body moving. I also have been enjoying Pilates and Dance Fitness with Lucy!\u201d <\/p>\n
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Breakfast:<\/strong> I typically have a Smoothie for breakfast (my current favourite is the Gingerbread Smoothie \u2013 it\u2019s like drinking a Gingerbread Cookie!)<\/p>\n Lunch:<\/strong> I will have a salad or fritters for lunch (this week it\u2019s Zucchini and Feta Fritters).<\/p>\n Dinner:<\/strong> Every night is different, and it\u2019s a little bit like eating take-out \u2013 only I made it! But every Tuesday we have Slow Cooker Butter Chicken or a Thai Red Chicken\u00a0 Curry \u2013 They are alternating weeks and my (now) 9-year-old LOVES them!\u00a0<\/p>\n Dessert:<\/strong> I don\u2019t generally feel like snacking or dessert most of the time any more, but when I do, it\u2019s often a high-protein snack\u2026 plus my morning coffee! <\/p>\n For Radley, understanding just how crucial exercise and healthy habits are to support her mental health has been a game-changing realisation.<\/p>\n \u201cIf your mental health is in a bad place, it can be hard to do something about the physical challenges, but by doing something about the physical challenges, it can help your mental health!\u201d She says.\u00a0<\/p>\n And like any good mental challenge, transforming her health required her to constantly hold herself accountable, \u201cIt was definitely a mental battle. I needed to understand that if I put my mind to it, I could do it,\u201d she shares. \u201cI needed to stop using my child as an excuse to not do anything about my weight and put my health first.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Her final words of advice for others?<\/p>\n \u201cYou can do it! I know it sounds silly, and everyone says that, but it\u2019s true. If it\u2019s something you WANT to do, you can do it, you just need to find the program or system or meal plan or whatever you need that works for you,\u201d she says. \u201cDon\u2019t do it for anyone else, do it for you.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Here\u2019s how one photo meant to capture a lifelong memory with her daughter, instead filled this Sydney mum with the determination she needed to change her health habits for good \u2013\u00a0and how exactly she did it.\u00a0 When Gabbie Radley, an AR Officer from Campbelltown, received photos taken of her and her daughter on a Disney […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1130,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[101,105,103,104,102,100,69,106],"class_list":["post-1129","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-weight-loss","tag-28-by-sam-wood","tag-28-by-sam-wood-transformation","tag-disney","tag-disney-cruise","tag-health-of-the-nation","tag-sam-wood","tag-weight-loss","tag-women-weight-loss"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.healthyvate.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1129","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.healthyvate.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.healthyvate.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthyvate.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthyvate.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1129"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthyvate.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1129\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthyvate.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1130"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.healthyvate.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1129"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthyvate.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1129"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthyvate.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1129"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<\/p>\n
Gabbie\u2019s advice for others looking to make a change<\/h2>\n