A NEWPORT woman is a shadow of her former self after shedding the pounds.

Nikki Smith, from the Duffryn area of Newport, decided to join Weight Waters (WW) in March following a trip to Canada.

Throughout the trip she suffered from being fatigue, due to her fitness levels.

Ms Smith said: "My weight was holding me back from doing the things I wanted on this trip. I wanted to be out there, experiencing it all, seeing all the major tourist attractions but I did not have the energy. I was tired and lethargic - my thoughts constantly turned to food to fuel me through.

"When I came home, my fiancée and I began to make preparations for our wedding. Not long after this, I caught sight of myself in a full length mirror. I was horrified. I did not want to look like that on my wedding day."

The 24-year-old then spotted friends on Facebook who were going to WW and was inspired by their success.

After strict dieting and eating healthily, she has gone on to lose more than three and half stone - after having weighed more than 16 stone.

"I used to eat chips, chicken kievs, ready made pizzas, toast with butter and lots of carbs," she said. "It was unhealthy convenience food too, crisps, biscuits and chocolate bars. Basically it was anything that could be thrown in the oven or grabbed off a shelf and eaten mindlessly."

She added: "I love the WW cook book range. There are some amazing recipes which are suitable for all the family, including a hungry fiancé. One of our favourite recipes now is a delicious WW Irish Stew which is full of satisfying zero point foods. It also allowed me to eat healthy food.

Ms Smith said she was particularly pleased that she lost weight in time for her wedding.

She said: "When I saw myself in my wedding dress in front of the full length mirror, I could not believe that was me. I felt so good and so proud of myself - I just could not stop smiling.

"I usually shy away from the limelight but I was so happy in my own skin that day that I just wanted to shout ‘look at me’ to everyone."

And after shifting the pounds, Miss Smith's honeymoon in Rome was a totally different experience to Canada.