WHAT a transformation! This York nurse is an inspiration to dieters everywhere - after she lost an amazing seven stone in only a year.

Julie Robson-Niece, from Clifton Moor, shed nearly a third of her body weight after joining a WeightWatchers class 12 months ago.

When she joined in January 2005, she weighed more than 20 stone. Now she weighs a little over 13.

Julie, 38, said: "I was so overweight and unfit, I just decided I needed to sort it out."

Becoming breathless just by walking up and down stairs used to be a fact of life for Julie, who works at York's Nuffield Hospital.

As for clothes shopping, it was a case of trying to find anything that would fit.

Formerly a size 26, the new Julie is now a far more svelte size 14 - and is aiming to slim down even more to a size 12 by this summer.

Over the past year, Julie has religiously attended weekly WeightWatchers classes, and has been eating healthy foods and exercising regularly.

She described how she had gradually piled on the bulk during her 30s by going out drinking with friends and eating regular takeaways.

She decided to attend WeightWatchers' classes after attending the scheme as a younger woman and losing five stone.

But determined dieter Julie said she could not believe she had managed to lose so much weight so quickly. She said: "It's unbelievable. I've got more energy, I'm much happier, I've stopped snoring - so my husband tells me!" Lucy Crux-Walsh, who leads Julie's WeightWatchers' class in Clifton Moor, said the star slimmer had lost weight on a special new programme in which dieters can eat any foods from a list, without worrying about totting up weight loss points. They are then allowed to save up "treats", such as alcohol or chocolate.

Lucy said Julie was now looking "absolutely fabulous". "Even when she's had bad weeks, she's come to the meeting and she's been positive," she said. "She's really trusted the diet plan. She's given inspiration and advice to other people as well."

Updated: 09:24 Saturday, January 21, 2006