FABULOUS AT 40: Slimming World Leanne’s six-stone loss inspires Leeds family change
Mum of two Leanne Huntington set out to transform her own life after barely recognising herself in a photograph. A year later, she was six stone lighter – and the changes spread through her family.
When Leanne looked at a photograph of herself with her daughter in April 2024, she barely recognised the woman looking back.
Putting everyone else first, family life and lockdown weight gain had taken their toll.
At 18 stone, Leeds mum Leanne felt tired, her joints hurt and she was “existing… but not actually living.”
Then came a target. She was approaching a landmark birthday.
“I want to be fabulous at 40!” she decided.
Leanne, of Tingley, a pastoral manager, gave herself two years to reach her goal. She did it in one.
Today, now aged 40, she weighs 12 stone and has discovered a completely different way of living – with changes rippling through her family.
Her husband Darren lost two stone and her children. Darcie and Spencer, eat better than ever.
University of Bristol research involving Slimming World members found almost half of parents said their children had a healthier diet after they began addressing their own weight, while more than a quarter reported their children exercising more.
Research published in BMJ Paediatrics Open also explored how parents attending adult weight-management programmes could be connected with appropriate support for their children, reinforcing a family-focused approach.
For Leanne, it is real life.
Her children, aged 13 and 17, do not need separate menus. Food Optimising has simply become how the family eats.
Leanne plans meals every week: homemade burgers and sweet potato fries, fakeaway gyros and chips, homemade nuggets, lasagne and spaghetti Bolognese.
Everyone knows dinner from Mum’s weekly meal plan.
This year they even grew potatoes, carrots and onions.Her daughter loves helping in the kitchen and is taking over, following recipes and learning to cook.
“We all eat the same food," says Leanne. “
Nobody ever feels they are missing out. Leanne had tried diets before. They worked, but did not last.
“I felt restricted and, most of all, I felt like I was actually on a diet!“I've never felt like I've been on a diet. I eat when I want, what I want, all on plan, enjoy all my favourite foods and still lose weight!”
Crucially, she started out doing it for herself.Leanne stayed in the group, listened, planned and learned. She still writes weekly plans for breakfasts, lunches and family dinners, so her favourite foods can stay on the menu, making careful use of her SWIPS – Slimming World’s Individual Picks, which have replaced Syns.
Gradually, it became a lifestyle, not a diet.
Then her husband started noticing the difference. He saw how much happier and healthier Leanne was and, in January, began looking at his own eating.
He does not attend the group, but eats Leanne’s family meals and cut back particularly on high-sugar snacks between meals.
He has lost two stone.
The ripple spread further too. Friends at Leanne’s workplace joined Slimming World after seeing her success. She created a family WhatsApp group for sharing food ideas and recipes and posts her Food Optimising creations on TikTok.
Perhaps the biggest transformation is what Leanne can now do.S
he danced as a child and loved adult tap classes, but stopped as her energy and enthusiasm disappeared and her knees hurt.After losing around four stone, she joined a gym, discovering running on the treadmill, fast-paced walking and swimming.
Recently, she completed a 13-mile charity trek – something she says would never have been possible before.Her advice?“Just go for it — not for anyone else, but for you,” she says.
Leanne knows some weeks are tougher than others, but says every step is worthwhile.
Throughout, she has been cheered on by Slimming World Consultant Di Cave, who runs the group at Tingley Methodist Church Hall, in Westerton Road.
Group, Leanne says, is much more than somewhere to be weighed. It is somewhere to learn, share ideas, celebrate success and find motivation among people who understand.
“It's like a family that meets every week. Di has believed in me from the start," she says.
Leanne wanted to be fabulous at 40. She got there a year early and she took her family with her.
That’s worth celebrating at any age.
* Di's Slimming World group meetings at Tingley Methodist Church Hall, Westerton Road, are every Wednesday at 9am, 11am, 5.30pm and 7pm.
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