Jola, after losing six stone, receives her Slimmer of the Year title from Rosemary Conley.JOLA Allaway is not half the woman she once was after losing six stone over the course of a year.

But it is the rise in her fitness, self-esteem and confidence that Jola values above the drop in her dress size.

Her dramatic weight taking her from a dress 22/24 to a slimline 12 earned her a Regional Slimmer of the Year title from Rosemary Conley Diet and Fitness magazine and a pat on the back from the svelte Miss Conley herself.

Jola has taken up tap dancing and was delighted when she received a pair of rollerblades for her 42nd birthday recently - both activities that she could never have contemplated when she tipped the scales at 17st 10lb two years ago.

"I celebrated my fortieth birthday in November 2001 and felt old, fat and ugly, especially when I saw the photographs."

Jola, who works for West Hants NHS Trust as chief financial accountant, realised their was nothing she could do about her age, but other things could change.

"I've always struggled with my weight - my mother used to meet me with a cream bun at the school gates when I was in first form," she says, half joking.

"I've been on diets before and had lost all this weight once before, but it all went back on when I was pregnant with my daughter Holly, and I wasn't able to lose it after she was born.

"I tried fitness classes but was not successful."

This time, she joined a Rosemary Conley Diet and Fitness class run by Suzanne Rawle in Salisbury, having learned lessons from the past.

"I think mentally something's got to click in your mind," says Jola, who lives in Ford with husband Dave and Holly, who is now five.

"I knew that if you don't stay focused, the weight will creep back on.

"That's hardest - keeping the weight off once you've reached your target weight.

"Your mind set has to be right."

She said that support she got from the group and her family were great.

"Getting on the scales for the first time and admitting how bad it is the first step, but you are all there for the same reason."

At 5'10", she achieved her target weight of 11st 10lb by meeting bite-sized weight loss goals, set by Suzanne.

"It's easy to follow," says Jola.

"You stick to low fat foods and now I find I don't miss high fat food at all.

"Occasionally you feel hungry, but the classes give you loads of strategies to cope with that like making sure you've got something low-fat to nibble on."

Although she has reached her target weight, Jola plans to keep attending the classes to maintain her weight.

Jola Allaway before losing weight."It's extremely important to keep going because I know I'm going to get on the scales each week and that keeps up a positive mental pressure.

"It's also good to be able to encourage others who are just starting their diets."

Now she has joined Holly at dance classes and will be on stage tapping away in February for the Colton Dance Academy's annual show.

"I've still got an old coat which shows the way it was," she says.

"Dave and I can both get into it with space to spare."