Northern Advocate
  • Northern Advocate home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Sport
  • Property
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Sport
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings

Locations

  • Far North
  • Kaitaia
  • Kaikohe
  • Bay of Islands
  • Whangārei
  • Kaipara
  • Mangawhai
  • Dargaville

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Kaitaia
  • Whangārei
  • Dargaville

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Northern Advocate

29kg gone in 8 months

By Mikaela Collins
Northern Advocate·
2 Sep, 2016 06:00 PM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

BEFORE: Islay Mcleod weighed 118kg in January. She has lost 29kg and now weighs 89kg. PHOTO/SUPPLIED

BEFORE: Islay Mcleod weighed 118kg in January. She has lost 29kg and now weighs 89kg. PHOTO/SUPPLIED

At the start of the year Islay Mcleod was 29 kilograms heavier and suffered from migraines, nerve pain and a lack of energy.

Now, all those problems have gone and when the Whangarei woman catches a glimpse of her reflection, she feels proud.

The 29-year-old weighed 118kg when she joined Weight Watchers in January. Now she weighs 89kg and has won the Weight Watchers "Healthie" award for Inspirational Story.

"When I catch my own reflection, I feel proud. But I think the energy I have for my life is completely different. You get a feeling of self empowerment and belief - if I can lose 29kg what other goals can I put my mind to and achieve?"

At 19 Ms Mcleod was diagnosed with Crohn's disease - a chronic inflammatory disease of the intestines. She said a combination of the medication she was on and how she felt caused her to gain weight. Then, at 28, she was diagnosed with coeliac disease - an autoimmune disorder that causes a reaction to gluten. Before losing weight she suffered from a lot of health issues.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"I had what my doctors now think was nerve pain in my upper abdomen and it was a daily thing. Since losing the weight I haven't felt it at all ... I also had headaches, migraines, I was feeling fatigued - all of that has gone."

Ms Mcleod, a glass blower, said before losing weight she would feel tired working six hours in a hot room. Now she has much more energy.

She said she had tried losing weight on her own but couldn't manage it so joined Weight Watchers knowing it worked for her when she tried it in the past.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"It was more of a head space. If you're doing it on your own you will treat yourself to chocolate - and the feelings of guilt for me, I would almost give up and it would become a cycle."

Ms Mcleod said before she joined Weight Watch-ers she would eat large meals and treat herself to chips and chocolate. She said the weight loss service changed her attitude towards food and exercise.

"I'm likely to go for a run now to clear my head. It's got nothing to do with whether I can have that chocolate bar."

Ms Mcleod's goal weight is 74kg.

When she lost 10kg she purchased a new pair of boots. She's not sure what she will do when she achieves the end goal but when she reaches her 30kg goal, which she is aiming to achieve by her 30th birthday in two weeks, she wants to sky dive.

"I was over 110kg for a really long time and you can't sky dive over 100kg so it was something I always aspired to do the next summer," she said.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Northern Advocate

Northern Advocate

Far North homes without power after severe gales

Northern Advocate

'Economic growth is key': Luxon discusses Northland's potential with iwi

Northern Advocate

Northland businesses unite for CCTV initiative to combat crime


Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Northern Advocate

Far North homes without power after severe gales
Northern Advocate

Far North homes without power after severe gales

More than 170 customers south of Cape Rēinga are still without power.

17 Jul 08:26 AM
'Economic growth is key': Luxon discusses Northland's potential with iwi
Northern Advocate

'Economic growth is key': Luxon discusses Northland's potential with iwi

17 Jul 06:02 AM
Northland businesses unite for CCTV initiative to combat crime
Northern Advocate

Northland businesses unite for CCTV initiative to combat crime

17 Jul 04:00 AM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • The Northern Advocate e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Northern Advocate
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The Northern Advocate
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP