Laurien Perkins, a mum-of-seven from Kent, has shared how she lost 13lbs and dropped one to two dress sizes in six months by making small changes to her daily routine, without giving up her favourite foods.
She credits the Simple weight loss app for helping her become more aware of her eating habits, increase her water intake, and find time for physical activity while managing family responsibilities, baking, and home renovations.
How she did it
Instead of following a restrictive diet, Laurien, who runs the YouTube channel OrdinaryEnglishMum, used Simple to track her meals, snacks, drinks, and intermittent fasting schedule. The app offers a quiz that generates a tailored plan, including food logging and an intermittent fasting tracker, as well as a NutriScanner to help users understand the nutritional content of meals and daily exercise routines such as yoga, pilates, HIIT, walking, and Tai Chi.
Laurien said: "I didn't have to give anything up. I have found that eating throughout my fasting window has just been great for me and I've not changed what I eat. But I do find that it changes you in a really good way - it makes you eat better without even realising."
Results and impact
After six months, Laurien described the transformation as 'amazing', saying: "I've lost 13lbs, which to me is just amazing. It wasn't necessarily something I had to do, but it was something that I really wanted to do for myself and it's just helped me in so many ways. My clothing has dropped between one to two sizes, and it's without even having to put any effort in. Everything just fits so much nicer - that's just that nice feeling of actually fitting your clothes, not your clothes fitting you."
She relies on the app daily to track her food and water consumption, and its AI coach, Avo, helps her find recipes and meal inspiration. Laurien said: "I think Avo's amazing. It's so helpful - with recipes and things. It'll give you some different ideas of meals and I find that really helpful."
Broader benefits
Laurien has also added more walking and low-impact exercises, such as wall Pilates and chair yoga, to her routine. She said: "I would say most of my workouts or exercise are walking based, but it helps me to get up and out to finish my steps for the day. Me and my family love to be outdoors, so it's helpful for that because if I see that I haven't reached my steps for the day, then I will to say to the children, 'Should we get up and go for a walk?'"
Beyond weight loss, she reports improvements in energy and sleep, adding: "I will find my energy levels are so much better than before. I just don't feel bogged down, I always feel just energetic and ready. I sleep a lot better, too." Reflecting on her journey, she said: "It's helped me have a nicer relationship with food and a healthier relationship with food. It's helped my children with that too. It's given me more energy, it's made me realise that dieting doesn't need to be strict, it can be flexible and it can just fit into your life, not your life fit into it."
Simple is currently offering new users 80% off weight loss plans with the discount code REACH. Users have shared positive reviews on Trustpilot, with one saying: "This app is one of the easiest ones to see if your food is on target without counting calories. It also reminds you when your eating window that you chose starts and ends. I must say, it's worth picking a coach. Really positive experience and gives you ideas on how to tweak what you eat to make it better for a balanced meal." Another said: "Absolutely amazing app. I have lost over one stone using this. There is always help at hand when I have my struggles. The app is very easy to use, love it."
