‘It’s because I was having a fucking milkshake instead of breakfast and lunch isn’t it?’ exclaims Jenny Green, a model who appeared in a late 90s advertising campaign for the Slim-Fast range, which featured the tag-line ‘I don’t know how it works, but it does!’.
Jenny had been trying to put it together for 13 years, but finally clicked when reading government advice that eating less and exercising more could help you lose weight.
‘I always thought it was some kind of magic ingredient in the powder, I had no idea how it worked but I was losing weight. Before I discovered Slim-Fast I would eat a full English breakfast every day, with 6 slices of fried bread and extra black pudding, then maybe a mixed grill or pizza for lunch, and some ice cream before dinner. After I started substituting those for 2 strawberry milkshakes the weight was dropping off, but I really didn’t understand why.’
Fearing witchcraft, Jenny had made the switch to Weight Watchers several years ago, ‘For the bargain price of £6 a week for the rest of your life they give you this little book that converts calories and fat-content into some incomprehensible points system. Then you just look up everything you’re eating and add up the points. It’s so much easier than looking on the back of the food packaging.’
