Prudhoe grandmother's transformation from sweets to summits

Mary Coates, 62, once unable to zip up a size 22 coat, tipped the scales at 14 stone 10lb, excessively consuming sweets, cakes, and chocolate.

Mary said: “I always had packets of sweets in my bag and my grandkids knew this and would always say ‘let’s see what grandma’s got today’.

"It was embarrassing looking back, I was so out of control.”

The retired nursing assistant's weight detrimentally impacted her physical activity and mental health.

“For over 30 years I had been very fit and walked long distances but as I gained weight this became increasingly difficult and less enjoyable,” she said.

“The crunch came when my daughter got me a lovely coat for Christmas.

"I was mortified when I tried it on, and it wouldn’t zip up.

"I was like an ugly sister in Cinderella trying to force the zip shut over my belly.”

Determined to alter her lifestyle, Mary's successful weight loss journey saw her shrink to a size 14, weighing 11 stone 7. Now, she lives an active and healthy life.

Mary joined her local Slimming World group where she was amazed to hear what she could still eat, while losing weight.

“I decided it was worth a try,” she said. “Before I joined, I felt miserable, hopeless. I had no energy and just thought I would never get the weight off.

“For breakfast, I would have two shredded wheat with skimmed milk but then I would pick up the sugar bowl and tip it all over my cereal in a generous haphazard fashion.

“Mid-morning, I would have a cake bar or two and sometimes I would have the whole packet. Then it would just carry on that way through the day.

“Now my favourite meals are roast chicken and veg, salads and cous cous, which I’d never tried before."

She has now ascended Ben Nevis, Scotland's highest mountain, and Scafell Pike, England's highest peak.

She has also conquered Ben Macdui, Scotland's second highest peak, and completed 214 of 1000 Lakeland mountains.