I WAS ADDICTED TO CHIPS!

Feeling sick and tired, Rachael needed a serious change

- RUSSELL BELL

Rachael Buckett, 51

As I polished off a packet of chips, my hubby Stephen, 49, popped his head into the lounge room.

'Another bag?' he asked with a cheeky grin.

'Go on then!' I chuckled, brushing crumbs off my chin.

Chips were my absolute weakness - I was addicted to them and could easily munch through six bags each evening in front of the TV, getting through up to 42 bags a week!

And with my lovely hubby on hand to fetch my late night snacks, I barely even had to lift a finger.

But aged 49, and weighing 120 kilos, my bad habits had well and truly caught up with me.

I hadn't always been like this. As a child, walking to school and playing with my friends kept me slim.

But as soon as I moved out, aged 16, and got a job as a clerical assistant, I fell into an unhealthy lifestyle.

I lived off convenience foods, chocolate, chips and fizzy drinks.

I barely touched fruit and vegies and the only exercise I got was walking to and from the car.

Within a year, I'd gone from a size 14 to 18. While that wasn't huge, I felt it.

When I went on holiday, I wore a baggy T-shirt over my swimsuit at the beach.

From there, it was almost a self-fulfilling prophecy - I felt fat and ashamed of my body. So I comfort ate, steadily gaining weight.

Around that time, I met my first husband, giving birth at 19 to our son. Two years after that, we had another boy, then a little girl.

While I didn't gain huge amounts of weight during my pregnancies, my eating habits got even worse as a busy mum of three.

Putting my kids' needs before my own, I just grabbed chips and chocolate on the run.