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2016 OT leader, Lucy Dillon, 24, from Clonmellon, Co Meath.

Operation Transformation diary 'I can actually go into clothes shops now and buy clothes I want to wear'

Lucy Dillon was an Operation Transformation leader last year. She’ll be writing her weightloss diary for us over the coming weeks and motivating us to stay on track.

Hello everyone

Welcome to my first weekly blog for the Journal.ie. Some of you may remember me as one of last year’s Operation Transformation leaders. My name is Lucy Dillon and I’ll be writing about my experience following last year’s OT plan.

Before we go into how this week went following the plan, I will fill you all in on how the last year has gone for me.

My weightloss journey so far

This time last year I was weighing in at 16 stone 13.5 pounds. That’s only half a pound short of 17 stone. I am 24. I was horrified with the result and couldn’t imagine a future any different as I knew it was going to be hard work.

I have made so many positive changes to my life since last January. My lifestyle has completely turned around for the better. I look back and think where would I be today if I hadn’t applied for the show. I definitely wouldn’t be here sharing my success and happiness with you all.

Being on the show gave me the motivation to keep going and when it finished in February I was determined to keep going. I have now lost two stone and eight pounds in total and I’m down three dress sizes (from size 20 to 14).

I can actually go into clothes shops now and buy clothes I want to wear rather than just what fits me. I am living life to the full and feel amazing.

Exercise and food

Ricotta & Tomato Frittata A typical dinner for Lucy nowadays might be this tomato and ricotta frittata.

When I finished on the show 121 Fitness Navan sponsored me to continue my fitness journey and drop more weight. I work out three times per week. They push me to the max and I weigh in once a week.  I exercise regularly: walking, jogging and playing GAA football with Gaeil Colmcille in Kells.

One of my favourite parts of the day is planning my meals and sharing recipes with all of my followers on social media. You can follow my Facebook blog @Love Lucy x and Snapchat @lucydillon1. I have over 7,000 followers at the moment and I update my meals, recipes and exercise routine every day to help keep myself and others motivated.

Our daughter Molly is now two years old and I would like to think I am being a good role model for her. I grew up overweight and I don’t want the same for her. Myself and Conor always try to fit in a family walk on a Sunday – it’s great for her.

New job

Since I finished on the show I started a new job. I am working with Meath Local Sports Partnership. Our vision is to get “more people, more active, more often” in Meath. At the moment I am working closely with communities helping them become more active through walking.

There are 14 community groups in Meath planning weekly walks in their local areas to coincide with Operation Transformation for the next 8 weeks.

10k Ambassador

Family walks Lucy enjoying family walks.

I went from couch to 10k in the short space of a few months after the show. I was the proud ambassador for the Dublin Women’s Mini Marathon in June and the Cook Medical Women’s Mini Marathon Limerick in October.

From not being able to jog for over two minutes this time last year to being the ambassador for both of these events was such a huge achievement for me. Exercise has become my medication for feeling GREAT.

Week 1 weigh in – 08/01/2017

Everyone dreads the scales after Christmas but the best thing to do is get straight on plan and go for it. I printed off the recipes from the OT website and got my food shopping done.

Week one following the OT plan and I am down 5 pounds, leaving me at 14 stone 6 pounds. BOOM. Roll on next week’s weigh in.

Advice for people following this year’s show

  • You are your only motivation – nobody else will do it for you. You have to make a commitment to yourself to change. It’s never too late.
  • Clear your cupboards from foods you know won’t help with your weightloss.
  • Plan your meals and exercise for a few days ahead and do your food shopping so that you can be well prepared.
  • Once you start to feel better and see results, you won’t want to turn back.
  • The OT plan is very simple to follow and it’s free. You can download the recipes, weekly shopping lists and exercise plan.

Enjoy week two of the plan.

Love Lucy x

You can follow Lucy Dillon’s Facebook blog @Love Lucy x and on Snapchat @lucydillon1. Operation Transformation airs Wednesdays and Thursdays at 8.30pm on RTÉ One.

The diet is dead: ‘Many of us spend far too long feeling unhappy with our bodies’>

“Operation Transformation is not the end of my journey – it’s just the start”>

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    Mute Lisa Murphy
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    Jun 17th 2015, 11:51 PM

    NY Times issued an apology – “I’m sorry if you were offended ….” Not really good enough.

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    Mute Jack Dunne
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    Jun 17th 2015, 11:09 PM

    The dead should be mourned but so should those with life changing injuries

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    Mute Jules Lucas
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    Jun 17th 2015, 11:46 PM

    It was distasteful and really not appropriate for them to criticise Irish students in their reporting. These families are destroyed and it was insensitive at such a tragic and heartbreaking time. There’s a time & a place guys.

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    Mute Jimmy Murphy
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    Jun 17th 2015, 11:53 PM

    Disgusting, irresponsible & soulless journalism.

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    Mute Hazel Walsh
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    Jun 18th 2015, 12:57 AM

    This was a group of young people who apparently made the mistake of being Irish, drunk and standing on a faulty balcony. Are they implying that being drunk, Irish and at a party is to blame for this tragedy? Because that’s what I’m getting from that NYT article. If it was any other nationality on that J1 they would not have written the article from that angle.

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    Mute Celeste Vogel Dillon
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    Jun 18th 2015, 3:39 PM

    Correction — they were drinking —- we do not know if they were “Drunk” or for that matter how many were drinking — as a lot of young people I know do not drink!!! Assumption and presumption is the mother of all F——ups never assume you know or they know what they are talking about —- and presumption — just because they were Irish the NTY made that presumption that they were drunk, is preposterous…. we do not know !!!!!

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    Mute Ruth Durnin
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    Jun 18th 2015, 12:16 AM

    The Irish Mirror printed a supposed interview with a student that never took place.
    Total fabrication .

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    Mute John Reese
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    Jun 18th 2015, 12:06 AM

    Sadly the NY Times a once great institution and like many once great newspapers has long fallen off the cliff into gutter journalism.

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    Mute The Guru
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    Jun 17th 2015, 11:11 PM

    Why is the Journal taking this tragedy and using it to bait the NYT. I thinkone articlein itis enough. It was one line in one poorly judged article. There have been many similarly poor articles published on this website but because the subjects weren’t white Irish it’s all fair game. Do you hire people full time to trawl through American, Australian and UK papers to find things we can be offended by?

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    Mute jane
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    Jun 17th 2015, 11:21 PM

    No way guru. I read the article this morning and it was the tone of the first half of the article that was unsettling. Simply not true to say it was one line. Families deserve better.

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    Mute J. Dunn
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    Jun 18th 2015, 8:43 AM

    Fair share of victim blaming in the commentary of this article from just a few days ago.
    http://www.thejournal.ie/us-shark-attacks-2161970-Jun2015/

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    Mute Patricia Tsouros
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    Jun 18th 2015, 4:07 PM

    We need to remember we were all that age once, looking forward to life’s adventures. They were having a 21st party – pretty normal- they stepped out onto a badly, deadly engineered balcony and fell to their deaths – how could they know they were on a death trap. God love them, the injured and their families. The press in general have been very good with coverage and respect, the exceptions well they are not worth reading.

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    Mute Brian Kelly-Mór
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    Jun 18th 2015, 7:59 AM

    Hight quality reporting can be found no matter how fast the technology. Example:- the Parliament shooting in Ottawa last year was handled with class by the journalist in the CBC.

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    Mute Paul Roche
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    Jun 19th 2015, 1:01 PM

    Once again, we see a tragedy used as a vehicle for promoting an agendist concept.
    Sometimes people are victims due to combinations of circumstances and their own actions.
    How else can these events be reported?

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    Mute fact&ionlydealinfact
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    Jun 21st 2015, 6:11 PM

    I’m bored with this story now, can the next disaster hurry up please.

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