Kristie Goodwin, 28, Craigieburn, Vic
Lunging forward, I pushed my three-year-old son, Cody, on his trike in the yard. 'More!' he cried.
'That's enough,' I sighed, slumping back into my chair.
At 109 kilos and just 163cm tall I struggled to keep up with Cody and his three sisters - Tayla, seven, Emily, 13 months, and baby Alyssa.
I knew that at 23 I should have lots of energy to run around after them. But three babies in quick succession had wreaked havoc on my body. I'd weighed a hefty 117 kilos when I was pregnant with Alyssa.
While I had lost some of the weight afterwards, I'd found eating helped me cope with being a stressed-out mum.
Taking Tayla to school, I'd stop by the bakery for a doughnut. The sugar fix got me through the morning but soon I was having another doughnut at lunch and an apple cake in the afternoon.
When the babies napped, I did too. And I'd collapse on the lounge all evening. 'I don't have time for exercise,' I'd say.
At the park, I'd sit and watch the kids play and at the annual show, I'd calculate whether I would fit in the seat on the rides.
'No, you can't go on that,' I'd say, steering the kids away.
When they nagged me to go to the pool I always made an excuse. 'I'm too busy today,' I'd say, cringing at the thought of being seen in a cossie.
I could see the disappointment in their little faces and it broke my heart. What kind of mother am I that I can't take my kids for a swim? I wondered. If something doesn't change soon there's no point being here.
Thinking like that terrified me. I had four kids to raise!
And that's when I knew I had to do something. Quickly.
So that week I stopped visiting the bakery and forced myself to only eat when I was hungry. 'You haven't finished your sandwich,' Tayla observed one day. 'That's because I'm full,' I explained.
I joined a gym that had a creche and struggled to plod for 10 minutes on the treadmill. Still, there were some things I refused to do. 'No group classes and no swimming,' I told the instructor.
But within weeks my energy levels picked up and so did my mood. 'Let's kick a ball in the park,' I suggested to the kids. 'That was fun!' Cody said after.
After four months I'd lost 10 kilos. I'm strong enough to do anything, I thought.
Over the following months my partner and I split up but my parents, Janet, 49, and Chris, 54, were amazing.
'You can stay here as long as you need to,' Mum said.
I didn't lose any more weight but with regular exercise, I maintained 97 kilos for over a year. My parents were so proud and I finally felt I could be a proper mum to my kids. I knew I still had more to lose, but I was happy for the time being.
Then I started a relationship with Andrew, now 39, who I'd known as a friend for 10 years. With his encouragement, I joined Weight Watchers.
Want to lose weight and get healthy?
'First, let's concentrate on losing another 10 kilos,' my leader, Coral, suggested.
I realised I was an emotional eater. If anything upset me I resisted binge eating. Scoffing food isn't going to make me feel better, I reminded myself.
I followed the program to the letter and eight months later, I had lost 15 kilos.
The kids had never commented on my being big so I was surprised when they mentioned it now. 'You don't feel fat anymore Mummy,' Emily said one day as we hugged.
As I got slimmer I started making up for all the things the kids had missed out on when I was unfit. We started walking to the local lake to go fishing and I loved taking them swimming.
Then I fell pregnant to Andrew. We were all thrilled and in the weeks after Hayden's birth I kept active by walking. I returned to Weight Watchers when he was two months old, and six months later was down to 68 kilos.
Last Easter we were camping with friends who had a speed boat to pull people along on an inflatable banana. Everyone laughed as each person was flung into the air and crashed into the water. In the past I'd have visualised myself sinking the boat. Now I thought about how much fun it would be.
'I'll have a go!' I said.
'Mum!' Tayla cried. 'You don't do things like that!'
'I do now,' I said, grinning. 
Me and my family today.
Today, I've lost over 40 kilos and I'm aiming to be 60 kilos by September when Andrew and I get married. However the greatest change isn't my dress size but my attitude.
I walk everywhere and once the kids - Tayla, now 11, Cody, seven, Emily, five, Alyssa, four and Hayden, one - are in bed I do 30 minutes on the treadmill.
I don't deny it's been a challenge - I've had my slip-ups. But I don't beat myself up. I just start again and remind myself that I look and feel better than I did 40 kilos ago - and even more so when I've lost more. I want other mums to know you can lose weight no matter how demanding your kids are.
If you have a goal and you're willing to see it through, it will happen. It's worth it. I do so much more with my kids now because I'm fitter, healthier and much, much happier.
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