A family who lost 12 stone are reaching out to others struggling to shift the pounds to give them hope and inspire them to keep going.

Jasmine Smith, her daughter Shauntelle and son Andrew recently scooped awards at a Slimming World in Leyton for their “inspirational” weigh loss journey.

The trio who live in Leyton say cooking healthy meals as a family and taking long walks together has helped them support one another on their paths to their goal weights.

Shauntelle, 35, who lost 2 stone five pounds said: “When we first joined Slimming World we couldn’t believe how much food we could eat and still lose weight.

“Making small changes to the way we cooked our meals meant we could still enjoy all of our favourite meals like jerk chicken and rice.

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Shauntelle pictured before and after her weight loss journey.

“We enjoy spending time in the kitchen together and love sharing our new recipes with family and friends.

“They taste so good and people can never believe we can eat all the food we do and lose weight.

“As we’ve lost weight we’ve enjoyed being more active too, which means we do more together like getting out and about and enjoying long walks.”

Andrew, 25, lost 6 stone 9 pounds after he was persuaded to join the groups by his mother and sister.

As well as improving his skills in the kitchen, he said the all-round transformation has improved his confidence.

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Mum Jasmine pictured before and after she lost 4 stone. 

“I was really nervous for the first few weeks but I needn’t have been because everyone is welcoming and supportive,” he said.

“Now I really enjoy talking to and getting to know the new members and giving them little tips on how to have a great first week.

“I cook more and my confidence has shot through the roof.”

Consultant Sarah Andrews, who mentored the family on their journey, said: “The Smith family have been real superstars and are living proof that slimmers are more successful when they lose weight together and get support and motivation from others along their journey.

“Seeing their weight come down week after week has been a joy.

“They’re a real inspiration to the rest of the group, including me.”

Jasmine who lost 4 stone said: “I don’t think we could have achieved all we have without the support of our consultant Sarah and the rest of the Leyton group.”