'My friend said I need to lose weight 12 months ago and now I look so different'

Weight can creep up on you, which can make it difficult to notice any potential health problems. And that's definitely something 24-year-old Monde Mwitumwa experienced on her own journey.

Speaking to the Mirror, the young Welsh woman said she had "weight blindness" for months. She confessed: "I never had an issue with my weight, but there was an issue I was just so blind to it... One year I gained weight rapidly and I was still wearing crop tops."

However, everything changed when her friend Riley stepped in with some tough love. He took a photo of her and confronted her with the reality of her situation. Monde recalled: "He was my guardian angel and he said I need to do something now. It did not offend me. I would rather my friend be brutally honest and tell me to make a change."

Before embarking on her weight loss journey, Monde embraced her friend's advice. She admitted: "Weight is such an uncomfortable conversation. You have to first acknowledge that you are fat. It's OK to say the word fat and I wanted to normalise it."

In just 12 months, Monde managed to lose an incredible seven stone – without resorting to unhealthy diet restrictions or demonising her favourite foods. So how did she achieve this remarkable transformation?

Like many others on a weight loss journey, Monde faced challenges along the way. Picking a sustainable and realistic plan can take time, but it seems Monde found her groove.

She began consuming nutritious meals throughout the weekdays, which resulted in weekend binges. Consequently, she came to understand that eliminating all her favourite foods wasn't the solution.

She explained: "I would go Monday to Friday eating chicken breasts broccoli and couscous and it would get to the weekend and I would binge. It's impossible to give up everything. It doesn't work."

Rather than limiting the foods she consumed, she altered her eating schedule. Monde disclosed: "Intermittent fasting is golden - that is the number one thing.

"I did 16 hours of fasting, I would eat from 12pm till 8pm. So my heavy meal would be at the start and then at 8pm it would be a smaller meal. I was on a deficit of 1200 calories...

"I think people make the mistake of eating at 10pm and your body is not digesting food. My diet wasn't strict. What I found worked for me was I calculated my calories."

Monde implemented straightforward adjustments, such as consuming plenty of water each morning and switching to sugar-free fizzy beverages including Pepsi Max.

Despite reducing her calorie consumption, the super-slimmer still permitted herself takeaways like McDonald's – provided she remained within her daily calorie allowance. She continued: "It doesn't work giving everything up."

Since she hadn't previously prepared meals at home, Monde discovered that quality, nutritious ready meals from Aldi supported her weight loss journey. Subsequently, she started cooking more frequently.

Monde, who has shed a significant amount of weight, says she now has more energy to exercise. She often hits the gym five days a week and achieving 10,000 steps a day is no longer a daunting task!

'I get a lot more attention now'

Speaking about her newfound confidence, Monde said: "Honestly, it's the best I've ever felt in my whole life. The confidence you get, you feel great. Anything you wear you look amazing, any picture you take, you look great. Right now I am at my goal weight and I feel good within."

She also discovered that "skinny privilege is real". She explained: "After losing weight, I realised skinny privilege is a thing. I never understood it before losing the weight. I've noticed people are a lot nicer to you, you get a lot more attention. When you're bigger, no one really cares."

In an effort to inspire others, Monde has been documenting her weight loss journey on social media. Her incredible transformation has received widespread praise – and she has amassed over one million views on a single TikTok post.

Monde, who admits she is not a diet and fitness expert, believes her story has resonated with so many because she's a "normal" woman from Wales who wanted to make a change. By contrast, weight loss transformations by fitness experts, influencers and celebrities can often seem unattainable.

Despite the largely positive response to Monde's TikTok videos, some have unjustly accused her of resorting to weight loss medications.

Monde stated: "I have not done any weight loss medications. I have no criticisms towards them, there's no shame in that. But I never did it because I couldn't get a hold of it and I have a fear of needles."