Four years ago Maija Bisset was obese, unhappy and barely left the house. Now, 10 dress sizes smaller, she's fit, full of confidence and planning to run 250km…

Even as I was scooping my microwave lasagne onto a plate already piled high with oven chips I was berating myself for eating fat-laden food when I should have been cutting down the calories to lose weight.

"I was Constantly Reaching for Crisps"

It was 2006 and at 29 years old I was squeezing myself into frumpy size 22 clothes. I was constantly reaching for chocolate and crisps to cheer me up, but they only made me feel worse. Four years earlier I was a confident, outgoing 25 year-old with a lively social life, now I was painfully embarrassed about my size and hated the sight of myself in the mirror. I’d have given anything to get my old body and self-confidence back, but since my brother died a few months previously I was so depressed I hardly left the house.

The turning point came in winter 2007 just after I turned 30. I heard that the Bupa Great North Run was taking place on what would’ve been my brother’s 40th birthday. I knew it was something I had to do – it wouldn’t bring my brother back, but I thought it could just be my ticket back to life.

"When I Saw My Running Schedule I Nearly Cried"

My local running shop helped me get the right kit (albeit rather tight as nothing seemed to available in size XXL). And I found a beginners half marathon schedule online. When I first saw it I nearly cried, I couldn’t even imagine doing all that running.

I trained first thing in the morning when there’d be no one around to laugh at me. At first I could only run for five minutes before having to walk for a while, but I stuck with it for hour-long sessions. It was hard, but as the weeks turned to months I found myself starting to enjoy it. Before long I’d fallen in love with running and I was really pleased with the way it was changing how I looked and felt.

"I Felt Like I'd Won an Olympic Gold"

I became more conscious of what I ate and ditched the ‘rubbish’ for healthy meals and snacked on fruit. By September 2007 I was wearing size 18 jeans, a big difference - it was such a liberating feeling to have my pick of things off the rails in shops.

The Bupa Great North Run was tough, both emotionally and physically. It took me 3hrs 27min to finish, but as I crossed the line I felt like I had won an Olympic gold.

"No Way was I Going to Give up"

There was no way I was going to give it up after the race and today I’m a size 12 and so much happier. I have bundles of energy. I run four times a week - still early in the mornings, but because I enjoy watching the world wake up, rather than to hide away.

By autumn 2008, I felt confident enough to return to work. I got a fantastic job as a licensing officer. The old, overweight Maija wouldn’t even have applied. 

This year I set myself a mad challenge – to run 250km in several races.  My aunt and godfather have Alzheimer’s disease so I am running for Alzheimer’s Society.  If you’d like to sponsor me my justgiving page is:

www.justgiving.com/Maija-Bissett.

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