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‘I lost 2st eating my favourite carbs!’

Showing off her trim waist and toned stomach in a bikini, actress Danniella Westbrook oozes body-confidence. And no wonder – the 5ft 3 former EastEnders star has dropped two dress sizes, going from a size 12 and 10st to a size 8 and 8st, in less than three months. And Danniella – who gained weight by comfort-eating when she moved back to the UK in November 2011, after two years living in the US – couldn’t be happier with the results.

She says: “I love how toned my body looks, especially my tummy. I’ve discovered I can lose weight while still eating some of my favourite foods!”

The self-confessed carb lover admits her weight went up to to 10∂st – giving her an unhealthy BMI  for her height – after she swapped her Californian lifestyle of juicing, exercising and eating at vegetarian restaurants for stodgy British foods like sausage rolls, roast potatoes, pies and takeaway curries.

“It’s hard to find that sort of food in Orange County, so I ate loads of it during the first three months back in Essex. I was hardly going to eat salads when I hadn’t been able to get my hands on Cadbury’s chocolate or Walker’s crisps, was I?” she laughs.

Coming home to the colder British weather also meant Danniella – who married businessman Kevin Jenkins, 44, in 2001 – ditched her exercise routine, which had involved running, boxing and martial arts. It meant the star lost the slim figure she’d achieved while competing on Dancing On Ice in 2010, when her weight hovered around 8st-8∂st.

“You forget how cold England is during the winter. You don’t want to go outside so you stay indoors eating,” adds Danniella, who’s mum to son Kai, 16, from a previous relationship, 10-year-old daughter Jody B with Kevin, and stepmum to Kevin’s daughter Jordan, 17.

In February, however, the actress was prompted to shape up by a worrying health scare. After having a boob job 16 years ago, she feared one of her implants had ruptured when she felt a sharp pain on the side of her breast.

Thankfully, her implants were fine and tests proved the pain was benign, but she admits: “It was scary, and it made me reassess my lifestyle – I wanted to get healthier. I hated my flabby tummy and was finding it hard to fit into some of my dresses. But I love carbs – so I just wanted to find an eating plan that was healthy, but not too restrictive.”

To help, Closer suggested that Danniella try the Carb Lover’s Diet, a plan that works on the principle that certain carbohydrates can boost your metabolism. Far from being the enemy, foods such as sweet potatoes, bananas, brown rice and wholegrain bread contain an ingredient called “resistant starch.” As well as suppressing the appetite, foods high in resistant starch help the body to burn fat faster and boost lean muscle mass.

“I found the diet easy to follow and never went hungry, as foods like brown rice and wholegrain bread fill you up for longer,” Danniella says.

The plan begins with a seven-day kick-start phase, which allows 1,200 calories a day in the shape of four small meals, to eliminate bloating. Danniella then followed a 21-day plan of 1,600 calories and five meals a day, which had a greater flexibility of food choices and allowed the occasional glass of wine.

Danniella has also been hitting the gym five times a week, doing a 20-minute run,  a 20-minute cycle and a 20-minutes row before an hour of weights, focusing on arms and legs, and floor exercises such as sit-ups and planks to tone up her stomach.

She adds: “The diet really complements my training. After a workout, I know I can have a slice of bread or a banana to boost my energy up again.”

Danniella, who says she would love to return to EastEnders or land a role in Benidorm, is also impressed with the muscle definition she achieved thanks to her new health regime.

She says: “I now feel much more toned all over, especially on my arms and stomach, which is great!”
Danniella has vowed never to return to the tiny size 4 frame she had during her addiction to drugs in the ’90s.

She says:  “I don’t want to be any smaller than a size 8. When I was really ill with drugs I weighed around 7st. It used to hurt just getting in and out of the bath, because  I had no flesh on my bones. I don’t want to live like that.”

And the star says she’d never change herself to please someone else. She reveals: “Kevin loves me whatever size I am – he’s not the kind of man who wants a perfect beauty queen. I do care about my figure and appearance, but as you get older you realise it’s far more important to be healthy and happy in your own skin.”

Do you want to kick start your body into shape in time for your summer holidays? Then why not head over to www.closerdiets.com now where you can drop a dress size in just 10 weeks!

Click here to try Danniella's carbalicious diet!