OUR five fat-loss volunteers – Mina Parmar, Diane Haigh, Elizabeth Smith, Emma Jennings and Natasha Maskery – have begun the first stage of a fitness and diet programme designed to help them shed a dress size or two.

The women are being guided by fitness consultant Chris Ball, who runs the Fitness Suite in Elland, and are following his C19 Fat Loss System.

For the first 14 days the volunteers have to live on a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet with protein supplements and added nut and seed oils.

They are allowed to eat lean meat, fish, eggs and certain vegetables. They are not allowed any fruit, processed foods, dairy products, coffee, alcohol or added salt.

Chris said: “It will be tough but it’s only two weeks and if they put the effort in the results will be worth it.’’

Chris, a sports performance graduate from the Carnegie faculty of Leeds Metropolitan University, developed the fat loss system after studying all the latest scientific findings in nutrition and diet.

In essence his plan is based around the fact that when we eat foods high in carbohydrates it triggers the production of the hormone insulin. Over-production of insulin by overeating can have serious long-term consequences, but in the short-term leads to the body storing surplus carbohydrates as fat.

By reducing insulin production through a controlled diet, it’s possible to not just to lose fat, but prevent more being stored.

After two weeks our volunteers will be allowed some complex carbohydrates and fruits. And at the end of a month they will switch to a maintenance plan which means they will stick to phase two during the week and be allowed to eat and drink what they want at weekends.

We’ll be catching up with our volunteers to see how they get on. They are:

Mina Parmar, 51, a senior advertising manager for a business-to-business fashion magazine. Mina wants to drop a dress size in time for her daughter’s wedding in August. She lives in Bradley.

Elizabeth Smith, 42, from Outlane, who works in administration for Kirklees Council, would like to see herself fitting into size 12 clothing as she used to. Currently a size 16, she says her biggest dietary downfall is bread.

Diane Haigh, 49, from Lindley, works at a doctor’s surgery in Elland and is planning a summer holiday to Portugal with her husband and four friends. She weighs 11 stones and would like to look slimmer for this special trip which will celebrate her husband’s 50th birthday.

Natasha Maskery, 34, who works in marketing, is planning to get married next year and would like to slim down from size 14/16 to a 12. She lives in Gledholt. She’s been following a slimming club’s diet plan but wants to try a different approach.

Emma Jennings, 24, from Lindley, wants to slim down a dress size. A young mum with a lively toddler, Emma works part time in advertising and is keen to look good on the beach when she goes on her first ‘girls’ holiday with friends in June.