Wednesday, 20 December 2006

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Sarah Beeny: I'm happy when I'm slim

Since her second pregnancy she's ditched the junk

Property Ladder presenter Sarah Beeny says that pregnancy certainly had its pros. 'The best thing was all the guilt-free eating,' she laughs.

'I think it's the only time in a woman's life when you don't feel even a small twinge of guilt when you stuff your face with a Big Mac or Mars bar. The downside is that you can't drink, you have to waddle around and you get terrible indigestion – oh, and giving birth is pretty horrific, too.

'I'm very lucky because I haven't felt ill with either of my pregnancies, although I did get carpal tunnel syndrome in my hands, which made them swell up and I couldn't feel anything.'

I still have some weight to lose

However, all those Big Macs meant Sarah, 34, had a lot of post- baby weight to shift. 'I did put on quite a bit of weight, but I started trying to shift it almost straight away,' she says. 'I've still got about a stone to lose, which I'll do when I stop breast-feeding. I really want to get back into all my old clothes – that's my goal.

'I think if you make a concerted effort straight away you can lose it, but if you leave it for a while it's much harder because you get used to how you look. I get frowned on for saying this, but I feel better when I lose a bit of weight. It gives my self-esteem a boost.'

Sarah says having someone to share her weight loss with has helped her to stay off the sticky buns and avoid temptation. 'A friend and I have gone on a diet together and it's easier having someone sharing your pain and to spur you on,' she says.

I don't miss chocolate anymore

'Essentially it's just healthy eating, which we all know how to do, but sometimes forget when the chocolate cake's passed around! I make sure I have lots of fish and vegetables in sensible portions and I skip dessert now. I've also cut out chocolate, which was hard at first, but after a few weeks of going without I really didn't miss it.'

Rather than sweat it out in the gym, Sarah prefers to get out and about for her exercise. 'I don't have a scary fitness regime, but I do find running really helps,' she says. 'I try to run about twice a week. I enjoy it because it gets you outside. I had backache a while ago and I'm sure running helped cure it.'

Although breast-feeding uses up to 500 calories a day, Sarah still wasn't keen on the effect pregnancy had on her already ample bosom. 'My boobs were big anyway – I can't possibly say what size, it's too embarrassing – but add being pregnant and then breast-feeding and you've got big 'uns the size of your head! Running for the bus was just not an option,' she laughs.

'It does make it hard when you're not feeling your most attractive and you can't even get a nice bra to fit – you can only get ones with huge straps that your granny would wear.'

I don't believe in fad diets

While a lot of celebrities try some weird, wonderful and downright dangerous diets to quickly lose the baby pounds, Sarah refuses to leave herself hungry. 'Fad diets just mean you suffer for a few weeks and then you put it straight back on again,' she says.

'If you're going to do that, you may as well just enjoy eating for those few weeks and forget about it. The only way to keep weight off is to change your eating habits permanently.'

Karen Dunn