Lucy Spraggan has revealed going sober is the secret to her incredible weight loss.
In an exclusive interview with MailOnline, the former X Factor star, 28, said she decided to quit booze nine months ago after daily drinking left her feeling ‘horrendous.’
Lucy stunned fans in March when she revealed she’d dropped three dress sizes after overhauling her fitness regime and has gone onto openly showcase her new physique on social media.
New look: Lucy Spraggan has revealed going sober is the secret to her incredible weight loss (pictured left recently and right in July 2013)
Explaining her transformation Lucy told MailOnline: ‘It was gradual, around last May when I’ve been on some TV bits and some people said ”oh my god you’ve lost so much weight!” and I hadn’t really lost that much weight.
‘But when I stopped drinking, in January I went to Vegas with my mates, and then were hanging out their a****s and I decided to just run, and I’ve been running ever since.
‘I’ve signed up for the Brighton Marathon next year, I love running. The weight loss came when I stopped drinking as the weight just fell off. It’s like a drive to want to do something and feel successful if you do something.’
Challenging: In an exclusive interview with MailOnline, the former X Factor star, 28, said she decided to quit booze nine months ago after daily drinking left her feeling ‘horrendous’
‘I’ve been drinking since I was 12/13 like a lot of people in this country and it’s always been an integral part of my personality.
‘I went on tour, so I was on a tour for a total of 13 months and towards the end of that tour, I drank every day for six months.
‘I’d have a beer after a show, or I’d have a day off and have a bit of a boozy one, I just felt horrendous, and a lot of things are happening in my life, lots of things are changing, obviously breaking up with my ex and I wanted to make sure the decisions I made were conscious and clear.
‘I feel like it’s a real lifetime, but the positives that have come from it are so insane I can’t imagine not being sober.’
Lucy added that part of her weight loss came from developing a dairy intolerance after quitting booze, and despite being in the midst of lockdown she’s never felt better.
She added: ‘When I got sober, I also developed dairy intolerance, which is such a p**s take, get rid of booze and cream and cheese, it’s just so vile.
‘So I don’t eat dairy, I am more conscious about what I eat, not a calorie deficit as I’m not trying to lose weight anymore, but I feed my body what it needs to perform the athletic stuff that I do.
‘You have to eat to be able to do those things. I do not believe in those stupid meal shakes, meal replacement, all this stuff you see on Instagram skinny coffee and stuff it’s all just b*****s, eat the right stuff and exercise.’
Slimmed down: She said: ‘The weight loss came when I stopped drinking as the weight just fell off. It’s like a drive to want to do something and feel successful if you do something’
Despite being holed up at home with her dog, Lucy said she’s embraced her new life in lockdown, and has been passing the time by baking and keeping fit.
The star also revealed that going sober has been a huge help for her chronic anxiety, which she had struggled with for years.
She added: ‘It was awful, it heightened a lot when I was on the show, and it was 8 years ago, and I’ve had a lot of issues with my mental health over the last eight years.’
‘It’s been bad but it seems that sobriety has been the answer to a lot of those questions, and I don’t think you really know how much of an affect alcohol has on that entire brain.
‘I had physical withdrawal in the first month and a half from alcohol. Not like cold turkey vibes, but I felt so uncomfortable, my skin felt horrendous it was horrible. I was really overly-emotional from the alcohol withdrawal.’
Amazing: Last month Lucy revealed she’d dropped three dress sizes after overhauling her fitness regime, and also added she’d developed a dairy intolerance due to going sober
Lucy also admitted she’s found it ‘rough’ going through a divorce, after she split from Georgina Gordon in November 2019.
The announcement came six months after Lucy revealed they had fostered 12 children while undergoing fertility treatment, announced she had gone from being a newlywed to a fully fledged carer for young people in her hometown of Stockport.
Speaking about their split she said: ‘Divorce is a bit rough! It’s ongoing now, so I don’t ever want to say too much as I don’t want to stick a spanner in the works in regards to that.
‘Me and my ex didn’t work, we did fostering for a little bit, I was the sort of breadwinner so divorce is fun yeah!’
Over: Lucy also admitted she’s found it ‘rough’ going through a divorce, after she split from Georgina Gordon in November 2019
Lucy added she’s received plenty of support from fans about her weight loss, saying: ‘Loads of people have got in touch and said I’ve started running because of you, or I wasn’t going to get up this morning.
‘I post a lot about getting up and just getting going, and I’ve got this slogan, it’s not my slogan someone else said it, discipline over motivation, you might not have motivation to do it today, but just be disciplined and you’ll be motivated.
‘You don’t need motivation if you’re disciplined. I want people to feel the way I do to be honest.’
Staying strong: Lucy added she’s received plenty of support from fans about her weight loss, and has been bombarded with messages about her