I went up two dress sizes after scoffing doughnuts for breakfast, now I have my va-va-voom back, says Lorraine Kelly

THE thought of walking down a red carpet filled me with absolute dread at the start of this year.

I’ve never really enjoyed posing in front of hundreds of cameras, but doing it while not feeling comfortable with my body was terrifying.

I’d gained two dress sizes in two years and just didn’t feel like me any more.

Before the pandemic hit, I was doing exercise classes like Zumba two or three times a week and ate pretty healthily.

I was a happy, confident size 10, but my self-esteem went out the window the moment we went into lockdown in 2020.

Like millions of people around the UK, my daily routine was turned upside down, and I began comfort eating to cope.

My workouts had been a real stress-relief and suddenly I didn’t have that option. In normal life, 

I would have had something sensible like porridge for breakfast, but I started reaching for doughnuts at the start of the day and spent evenings scoffing platters of chocolate while binge-watching Netflix.

By the end of 2021, I’d put on a stone and a half and was a size 14. My confidence hit rock-bottom – especially as I couldn’t fit into my work wardrobe any longer.

I reckon everyone has had a self-image crisis at least once in their life, but I’d already been there before.

The first time was after I gave birth to my daughter Rosie, now 28, in 1994.

I put on more weight than I should have in pregnancy and looked like an Easter egg on legs by the end of my third trimester!

When Rosie was only a few months old, I remember really struggling to push her pram up a hill.

I thought to myself: “I’m clearly not healthy in this condition and I have to do something about it.” 

I slimmed down by joining WW WeightWatchers and lost a stone going to weekly meetings.

Growing up, I was always pretty confident and didn’t think about my body image much.

We didn’t have junk food to the same extent.

You got a bag of crisps and a can of Coke on a Friday night to watch The High Chaparral or Top Of The Pops.

And there was no fast food, so my mum would just make really good basic home-cooked meals.

I feel so lucky that I didn’t have access to social media – I didn’t feel pressure to look like other girls or drastically change my appearance.

It’s heartbreaking that a lot of young girls feel insecure about their bodies because of what they see online.

GAME-CHANGER

Television is obviously a visual medium, but I was never hired for how I looked – breakfast telly isn’t like that! 

When my menopause started about seven years ago, it left me feeling terribly flat.

I was irritable, struggling with anxiety and was absolutely knackered all the time.

My husband Steve [Smith, 62, a cameraman] is the one who encouraged me to get help, so I listed my symptoms to Dr Hilary, who told me it was probably the menopause.

After that, I started exercise classes and went on HRT.

It was a game-changer for my confidence and I finally felt like myself again.

Since committing to my post-pandemic weight-loss plan in January, I couldn’t be happier to be back to a size 10.

A lot of people are naturally a size 14, but I’m not because I’ve got a little frame – I’m only 5ft 2in! I was conscious of going on a strict diet and then putting the weight back on again, so I rejoined WW WeightWatchers.

I’m doing online exercise classes on top of daily two-hour dog walks with our border terrier Angus and Rosie’s dachshund Ruby.

Not only has it toned me up, but it’s wonderful for your mental health to have that head space. 

When I did walk the red carpet at the BAFTAs last month, I was completely content.

After two years of feeling flat and uncomfortable in my body, I’ve finally got my va-va-voom back.