Linwood consultant to run London Marathon after emotional journey

Louise O'Neil is tackling the monumental challenge as part of an official marathon team for Slimming World.

The 51-year-old says that after leaving high school she noticed her weight increase and it continued to do so after she got married and had two children.

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The mum of two, who has lost four stone and seven pounds, admitted that being overweight "massively" impacted her everyday life.

She said: "I just wasn’t happy.

"It gave me a huge fear of judgement and I didn’t want to be seen eating in public.

"I had a sore back and was constantly tired due to my weight."

Louise says that ever since joining Slimming World in 2008 she has noticed her confidence changing and is looking to give back.

She went on to say: "I knew it was the start of something life-changing for me – and it has changed my life in so many ways.

"I couldn’t have lost weight without the help and support of my group, which is why I became a Slimming World consultant myself.

"I want to give back and change even more lives.”

Louise is running for Cancer Research UK and is aiming to increase awareness of how keeping a healthy weight and moving more can improve people’s health and wellbeing and reduce the risk of developing some types of cancer.

Links to her donations page can be found HERE

The 17-strong group tackling the marathon on Sunday, April 21, contains members, consultants, and head office staff who come from across the UK and Ireland and between them have lost more than 105st.

Now, as she prepares to run just over 26 miles around the streets of London, Louise says it is a far cry from her life before as she did very little exercise with no motivation.

She said: "Before joining Slimming World, I did little to no physical activity.

"My joints ached far too much, and I didn’t have the motivation.

"I implemented gradual changes to my routine, like taking the stairs and tracking my steps. I went from not doing any movement at all to enjoying runs and hitting the gym.

"I still can’t believe that I have gone from having no motivation to exercise to enjoying pounding the streets running daily.

“I want to raise as much money as possible by running the London Marathon in aid of Cancer Research UK.

"As a consultant, I have been heavily involved in fundraising activities for CRUK such as the Big Slimming World Clothes Throw and Race for Life and can’t wait to push myself further with this challenge.”