Michelle McManus shares 'dark' journey to nine stone weight loss on Good Morning Britain

Michelle McManus, who won the second series of Pop Idol in 2003, has opened up about her nine stone weight loss journey and the 'dark thoughts' that led to her decision

Michelle McManus, the singer who rose to fame after winning Pop Idol, recently opened up to Kate Garraway and Rob Rinder on Good Morning Britain about her transformational weight loss.

On Friday morning's show, the Scottish celebrity shared her inspiring story of how she shed an impressive nine stone.

She recounted her earlier focus on career over health: "In my 20s and 30s I was so focused on going back to Scotland and having a go at this broadcast career and really making myself a success that I didn't really focus at all on my weight."

The conversation then turned to her personal life, with Michelle recounting how meeting her husband and becoming a mother in her 40s changed her perspective: "They're four and two now. When I had my children, it was like a light switch went off because all of a sudden it wasn't about me anymore."

McManus confessed that thoughts about her mortality began to haunt her as a new mum: "I just started to have seriously dark thoughts about me passing away and not being there for the kids.", reports the Mirror.

The singer, now aged 44, expressed to Garraway and Rinder how her children instilled in her the motivation to better herself and prioritize her well-being.

When Rob probed further on her weight loss method, seeking clarity on whether she used Ozempic, Michelle clarified her situation by mentioning her type one diabetes, and noted the irony of gaining weight while trying to lose it.

She reflected on her internal struggle with self-image by adding: " I was looking at myself in the mirror and I should be thinking, 'Look this body has given you these two kids and your career is going great' but I was really miserable when I looked in the mirror."

Michelle McManus, the former Pop Idol champion, has candidly shared that her journey to weight loss wasn't driven by clothing sizes or scale numbers. She expressed a desire to look in the mirror and feel a genuine fondness for herself.

Exploring every avenue, including the possibility of surgery, Michelle eventually found that a calorie deficit approach suited her well.

Her transformation began to take shape through a combination of weight training, swimming, and a new perspective on eating.

Michelle confessed: "I don't use social media, I'm hopeless on social media and I thought, 'You know, for the first time in my life I'm going to put myself back out there'."

She has historically avoided discussing her weight online due to potential backlash but decided to share her progress this time.

In conversation with Kate and Rob, Michelle revealed the overwhelmingly positive feedback she received from the online community.

She continued: "It's been the most joyous experience on social media, people have been so positive and it's been lovely. I think the message is exactly what you said, it's body positivity."

"It's not because that person before wasn't beautiful, I just couldn't connect with that person in the mirror and now I'm in a place where I look at myself and I really like what I see and I'm really happy."

Good Morning Britain airs weekdays on ITV1 and ITVX at 6am