A GLASGOW mum who was bullied in primary school because of her size has become an Instagram hit after shedding almost half her bodyweight.

A self confessed “big eater” at her heaviest Stacey Lee, 36, tipped the scales at 23 stones. She feared taking her son to the carnival in case she didn’t fit in the rides and avoided family pictures.

Stacey, a mum-of-two, who is from Baillieston, admits she could put away a multi-pack of crisps before her takeaway arrived and tucked into family-sized pizzas.

She says there are hardly any pictures of her with her son Adam and husband David before her dramatic weight loss.

Glasgow Times:

Now, a trim 10st and size 12, Stacey loves clothes shopping and has learned to like the camera.

The mum-of-two, who works for Tesco, took part in the social media 'decade challenge' showing how she looked in 2010 and racked up 132,000 Instagram likes.

She said: “I was bullied as a child and I remember my dad used to say to me, you just need to lose weight.

“I just never knew how to do it. We were brought up on Findus Crispy Pancakes and convenience foods.

“I’m 5ft 8inches tall and my husband used to say you don’t look that weight, but I’d say to him, “I am that weight, I can feel it.

“One of the things for me was that I was always nervous about going to the carnival in case I didn’t fit in the rides.

“I couldn’t fit on a swing so I could teach the kids how to go on a swing.”

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Stacey, who is married to David, 34, lost ten stones over two years after her neighbour persuaded her to come to their local Slimming World group meeting.

Slimming World was founded in 1969 by Margaret Miles-Bramwell (OBE) and focuses on a diet of Food Optimising, where members are given a list of ‘Syn Free’ food, that can be eaten in unlimited amounts including fruit, vegetables, pasta, potatoes, rice, lean meat, fish and eggs.

It is designed to help people lose about 1-2 pounds a week and around 900,000 members attend each weekly groups across the UK.

Glasgow Times:

In a typical day Stacey, who is mum to Adam 11 and Sophie, 5, now has porridge for breakfast while dinner could be lasagne or spaghetti bolognaise while occasional sweet treats are allowed and she keeps her weight in check by walking her Cockapoo Auggie.

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She said: "When I found out I could east as much pasta as I wanted I wanted I was hooked.

"You can still have burger and chips, you just need to make your own burger.”

“I’m a big eater and I don’t like feeling like I’m on a diet.

“You do need to watch bread and cereal but pasta, potatoes and rice are all free and you can eat as much of them as you like.

“Before, I could sit and eat a six multi-pack of crisps before my takeaway even arrived. I now enjoy cooking simple dishes like spaghetti bolognaise and the kids enjoy it too.

Glasgow Times:

“Before I lost weight I could see that my wee boy was becoming too keen on convenience food like pizza whereas I had just had my wee girl when I started Slimming World, and she loves her vegetables.

“She actually turned round and said to me, ‘I only eat when I’m hungry.’ You have to start young.”

Losing weight gave Stacey the confidence to learn to drive and she now coaches others at the group.

She said: “It’s not a crash diet, it’s just about teaching people how to eat.”