Meal planning was key to Zoe's success

Zoe gradually gained extra weight over the years when she started full time work and ate takeaway meals frequently for convenience. She joined the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet to help her take control of her eating habits, and as well as losing 25.5 kg*, she's also learned that healthy food can be just as convenient as takeaway!  

Starting weight: 95.5 kg

Current weight: 70 kg

Total loss: 25.5 kg*

*In 7 months. Individual results may vary. 

Zoe's story 

Describe your life before the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet 

When I was a teenager to a young adult, I was very active, playing in rep cricket teams and captaining a one day team at my local cricket club. When I started working full time and moved out of the area, I was no longer exercising and I didn’t think too much about what I ate. I always gave in to cravings and ate way too much fast food. I slowly put on weight over the years and when my husband and I decided to start our family, I was constantly reminded about my weight by health professionals. I was able to put on minimal weight during the pregnancy as the baby gave me reason to look after and nourish my body. I started the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet four months postpartum so that I could take control of my eating habits.

Why did you choose the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet? 

I chose the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet because it was the only diet that purely focused on food to help better my physical and mental wellbeing. Having a very young infant, I didn’t have time to exercise beyond our daily walk with the dog.

How has your life changed since you lost the weight? 

My life has changed for the better. I am so much happier now! I can play on the floor with my daughter and move with such ease. I can fit into clothes that were way too tight for me beforehand.

What is the biggest lesson you've learned from your journey?

The biggest lesson I learned was about basic food nutrition and how to nourish and look after my body. I feel like my tastebuds completely reset after a couple of weeks on the program and I was able to enjoy healthy foods. I also learned that healthy foods can be convenient as well.

How important were these three behaviours to your success: weighing in regularly, tracking your food and following the meal plan? 

• Weighing in weekly was incredibly important to me as the scales showed me a form of progress. Sometimes if I didn't feel or look any different, the scales were helpful in showing that I was losing weight. I set myself small weight loss goals along the way, as I knew I couldn't reach the end goal within 12 weeks as I had a lot of weight to lose! So being able to reach the small weight loss goals and seeing that evident in the weekly weigh-ins was a great motivator for me.
• Recording my food in the food tracker was very important to me. This is because I could see what food units I had reached for the day and what food units I needed to complete. I recorded indulgences for accountability, which I found very helpful. Before the program, it was so easy to eat anything and immediately forget about it. It wasn't possible to continue with that bad habit on the program, which led to effective weight loss!
• It was important to follow the meal plan, especially for the first six weeks as it taught me about the food units, setting me up for success long term. Following the meal plan also encouraged me to try new foods and healthy ways of cooking!

What advice do you have for others trying to lose weight?

My advice would be to start strong by following the meal plan closely, and to use the tracker!

Zoe's day on a plate 

Breakfast: Overnight oats with banana

Lunch: Italian roast vegetable pasta salad

Dinner: Slow-cooked lamb shoulder with pumpkin feta salad 

Check out some more inspiring CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet success stories.