Some fans suggested weight loss jabs were behind Sue Radford's stunning Lycra selfie, but the mum of 22 set the record straight on her real transformation secretChristine Smith and Hannah Britt08:22, 30 May 2026Since losing a very impressive three stone, Sue Radford has got used to being mistaken for two of her daughters. Just last week, as the famous mum and her family – stars of the Channel 5 series 22 Kids & Counting – headed off in their motorhome, someone commented on Sue's Instagram post, saying: "Oh my Sue you look incredible... pass for one of your girls now! Well done."‌A few weeks earlier, as she dressed up with her husband Noel for their daughter Ellie's 21st birthday, it has been a similar story. "Sue you look amazing, Noel looking great too," said one person, while another added: "Both of you look amazing. Have a lovely time."‌But it was a third comment that posed the question everyone's been asking: "What's your secret for weight loss?" Speculation has been rife that the mum of 22 had used weight loss jabs, after she posted a photo of herself wearing Lycra on Instagram. Yet the answer couldn't be more different.‌Speaking to the Mirror recently, Sue addressed the accusation that she might be using jabs herself, saying: “I think because so many people are taking them now, they automatically assume you are - but no I haven’t.”In fact, old fashioned diet and exercise are behind her transformation from a size 12 to a svelte 8. She said: “I am really proud. I have been really, really good. I turned 50 last year and it was a big turning point. My weight had been creeping up, I was eating too many junk foods and snacks like graze boards in the evening and I wanted to do something about it. I’ve cut out all sugar, pasta, bread, snacks and junk. I’ve been going to the gym every day in the week and trying to be healthy. I have lost three stone since turning 50 last April and I feel amazing. I also feel so much better.”‌Sue explained she also fasts between 7pm and 1pm and goes to the gym every weekday. Being mistaken for daughters, Sophie, 32 and Aimee, 19, has made her really chuffed. She said: “To be compared to Sophie and Aimee is such a massive compliment.”But it’s no surprise to her devoted husband-of-33-years, Noel, 55. He said: “Sue looks fantastic. She doesn’t eat any biscuits, cakes or anything. I don’t know how she resists.”‌While some of her 534,000 Instagram followers speculated about how she’d achieved her slimline physique, Sue says she also received loads of praise. She said: “So many people were very nice.” And she admitted: “OMG I couldn’t believe it when I saw pictures [of me] from a few years ago. It’s crazy when you look at them together, but I am really pleased and now the goal is to keep the weight off.”Of her fasting, she said: “I was never a breakfast person anyway.” She has also been taking vitamins and drinking green tea.But with a massive brood, there are dissenters to the healthy eating regime. Sue admitted: “Take, for example, the other night. Normally we would have white wraps, but we had wholemeal and the [younger] kids pulled faces. But we are getting there.” And while healthy eating is a bit of a struggle for Noel, he has joined her in the gym.‌He said: “It has always been something I have wanted to do but I’ve been too shy to go. You see all these nice, fit bodies in there, but I have joined. We are going to go together until I get used to it.”Enjoying friendly banter, Noel and Sue bounce off each other - even finishing each other’s sentences, they are so close. And there are perks to having such a massive brood, according to Noel, who explained he and Sue have more freedom to go out as a couple now they are older, adding: “We are never short of anyone to watch the little ones.”‌They are enjoying life and love being on telly. Sue said: “We do want to carry on with the TV series. People do seem to enjoy it. The question we get asked most now is ‘when will it be back?’ rather than ‘are you having any more children?’”The couple, from Morecambe, Lancashire, who run their own pie company, take fame in their stride, but are amazed by the situations in which they’ve been recognised. Noel laughed: “We did once get stopped on top of the Empire State Building, which was pretty mad! But we are a normal family."Sue says they would stop doing the show immediately if filming ever upset their children, and explained: “We’ve always said if any of the kids say ‘no, we don’t want to do it’, then that is the time to stop.” For now, though, she insists: “They really love the memories that it brings and long may it continue.”Article continues belowWatch/stream 22 Kids & Counting on 5