‘I Lost 2 Stone and Gained a Career!'

After struggling with her weight for years, Lisa Henderson, 32, dropped three dress sizes, became a personal trainer and is now inspiring others

- Claire Fox

At 9am on a freezing cold Scottish beach I recently found myself in shorts and a sports bra. People were out walking their dogs while I was posing for a friend’s photo shoot. It’s something I’d never have dreamt of doing until a few years ago and it struck me how much my confidence has grown.

At school I was bullied because my ears stuck out. I would run home at lunchtime to avoid the mean comments in the playground. Aged 14 I had my ears pinned back, but by then my confidence was already in tatters. Ever since then, I’ve always worried what people thought of me.

The weight crept on in my early twenties. I was a member of a local hockey team, but wasn’t playing enough to keep me in shape. Plus, I worked long hours as a bar manager, so I grabbed food at work – burgers, chips and fizzy drinks – and drank pints of cider with my colleagues after hours.