From TV weight loss star to obesity campaigner

A woman who shared her battle to lose weight through a television documentary has become an advocate for better understanding and treatment of obesity.

Sarah Le Brocq grew up in Jersey and said she spent many of her teenage years feeling different to her classmates because of her body shape.

She said she tried extreme diets and later spent years in a cycle of losing and regaining weight.

She said she was always trying to be something she wasn't and it was many years later she realised the "body that you're in is the least exciting thing about you".

In 2013, she appeared in Sky Living's documentary Fat: The Fight of My Life which followed her nine month weight-loss journey.

She lost eight-and-a-half stone and completed the Jersey Triathlon while being filmed for the programme.

"It gave me that empowerment to know that actually I can do anything I want to if I put my mind to it," she said.

Despite continuing to exercise and lead a healthy lifestyle, Le Brocq said her weight eventually returned.

"It was some real dark times for me because I was feeling out of control," she said.

Le Brocq said she began researching the science behind obesity and it changed her perspective.

"It was like a light bulb went on," she said. "I was suddenly like, okay, so this isn't actually my fault."

She now works with healthcare leaders, policymakers and charities across the UK and founded the organisation All About Obesity.

She said one of her goals was to challenge the stigma surrounding obesity and help others feel less alone.

"The more vulnerable I can be and the more open I can be, if it can help anyone else, then that's what's important to me," she said.

"The body that you're in is the least exciting thing about you."

After more than two decades away, Le Brocq is now preparing to return to Jersey with her daughter and family.

She said she hoped to play a role in helping the island become a leader in supporting people living with obesity and other long-term health conditions.

"Let's remove the stigma," she said. "Let's own it. Let's talk about it."

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