WE LOST 8ST AND FOUND

It’s never too late to take stock of your lifestyle and reset unhealthy patterns – and you could reap some impressive health benefits within months, as Zoe Fitzgerald and Charlotte Mountain discovered. They lost almost 8st between them and both reversed t

ZOE FITZGERALD, 32

Zoe is a council employee who lives with her fiancé Dean Martin, 25, a fellow council worker, in Romford, Essex. Zoe lost 4st 6lb in a year and reversed her prediabetes after joining WW. Dropping from 15st to 10st 8lb (she’s 5ft 7in tall), she was also able to come off her medication for high blood pressure. She says:

‘When my doctor told me I was on the threshold of developing Type 2 diabetes in May 2020 it came as a real shock. I’d gone to see him because I was feeling sluggish and tired, which I thought might be due to low iron levels. I was stunned when blood tests revealed I was prediabetic – the real cause was my weight, diet and lifestyle.

‘It was early in the pandemic and I was already anxious about being at increased risk of being seriously ill with coronavirus as it was clear that being overweight was a risk factor. Hearing that I was on the threshold of developing diabetes aged only 31 was terrible, but I saw it as the wake-up call I badly needed.

‘I’d been an eater ever since I was a child – I loved chocolates, sweets and family bags of crisps. I didn’t know how to cook and lived off Mcdonald’s and takeaways. I’d been on medication for high blood pressure ever since I developed pre-eclampsia when I was 38 weeks pregnant in 2014. I was devastated when my baby, a little boy, was stillborn and got into the habit of comfort eating after that. Working from home after lockdown in March 2020 made matters worse. It was so easy to reach for the biscuit tin out of boredom. I felt rubbish and hated how I looked. I was a dress size 18-20 and hid away in baggy dark clothes. But I didn’t know how to get out of my rut by myself.

‘I joined WW after seeing my GP – and lost 5lb in the first week, which was very motivating. I’d tried to lose weight unsuccessfully on my own in the past, but with WW something just clicked in my head. I was cooking from scratch for the first time and was surprised to find I actually liked soups and salads! I couldn’t believe how much food I could eat so long as I didn’t exceed my daily total, because so many food types are Zeropoint.

‘WW gave me a structure to overhaul my health and lifestyle and I found the members’ Facebook pages inspiring – it was like discovering a whole family of people who supported each other with ideas and recipes. I started snacking on fruit instead of biscuits and bought a bike. I cycled for three or four miles every evening after work, and I always came back energised and feeling positive. Last September I did the Thames Bridges Trek Challenge – a 25km cycle ride in London – to raise money for the charity Sands, which supports anyone affected by the death of a baby.

‘The weight carried on dropping off constantly for around a year, and I’m now at a stable weight. I’m a size 10 and I feel great about myself. I’m wearing fitted clothes in bright colours – and particularly love the fact I can now wear short sleeves and not worry about people seeing my flabby upper arms.

‘Best of all, my health has been transformed. Losing weight brought my blood pressure down and I’m off my medication. My blood sugar levels dropped back down to a normal level, meaning I’m no longer at risk of developing diabetes. When I get up in the morning I have aspringinmystep–andi’m looking forward to the future. I’m thoroughly enjoying my life.’

Zoe in 2019, before her weight loss