Target Sorrento – and
ACOUPLE have revealed how they have lost over SEVEN stone between them – inspired by their son’s dream wedding in Italy.
Andre and Ruth Thompson decided to act by joining Slimming World Southport with Dee together as they looked forward to their son Ashley’s marriage in Sorrento.
In the process Andre has managed to reverse some serious health conditions, including diabetes, which have begun to impact on him after he suffered horrendous life-changing injuries during a collision with a supermarket delivery van.
He was also diagnosed with a fatty liver, narrowing of the arteries and asthma, while doctors had doubled his blood pressure tablets and prescribed him statins.
Ruth has lost an amazing three stone, one and a half pounds, dropping from 12 stone six pounds when she joined to nine stone, four and a half pounds.
Andre has seen his weight fall from 16 stone two and a half pounds to 11 stone, 11 pounds, losing four stone and four pounds, a feat that saw him awarded a finalist for the annual Mr Sleek contest.
Andre said: “We both joined together as a couple as our son was due to get married in Sorrento in Italy.
“It gave us a goal to and the motivation to say let’s do something about how we look.
“At the time I wasn’t 100% keen on it because I thought maybe it was going to be just full of women in there. There was a lot of coaxing done by Ruth!
“We turned up and our Slimming World consultant, Dee, was very helpful in explaining everything.”
Ruth, 57, said: “We started in the middle of June, ahead of Ashley’s wedding on August 30.
“I had never done anything like this before. It took quite a long time to decide we were going. Andre didn’t really want to do it at first.”
Going as a couple, rather than individually, has helped.
Andre, 58, said: “I don’t think that I would have gone on my own without Ruth.
“Doing this together has made it easier, we eat the same foods and enjoy lovely meals, Ruth makes a lovely jalfrezi pie which won a prize in the recent food festival competition we had in group. We love the tasters as they inspire us with recipe ideas!
“There are three lots of couples who have joined our Thursday night group and they all seem to be doing really well.”
But it was difficult to get started. Andre admitted: “I didn’t want to come and sit in a group because I didn’t know what to expect.
“When I joined there were only two other men in the room. I went last week and there were 10.
“People who go are helping each other, and they are all really good.
“It is not judgmental at all. If you go one week and you don’t lose weight, they just tell you ‘don’t worry, you can pull it back next week’.
“The group inspires you to get on and lose weight.”
Starting in Slimming World quickly sparked some real dietary changes.
Ruth said: “My downfall, before I started going, was using cooking sauces like bolognese and sweet and sour. Rice puddings as well. I have a sweet tooth.
“Now I am aware of Syn values for different foods I know where I can make healthier choices.
“We never used to have a really bad diet – we ate some fruit and veg, just not enough, and not as much as we do now.
“I have not had another bag of crisps since I started Slimming World!”
Andre, a former motor vehicle technician, has had many health issues since his accident which have affected his mobility too.
He said: “When I was younger, if I wanted to lose weight, then I just did some exercise. But I can’t do that now because of my back condition. So I just have to watch what I am eating.
“We used to have the odd takeaway. We did like fish and chips, or we’d get a Chinese.
“I’d cook using oil instead of cooking spray. I have cut out eating bread altogether.”
Now they love food such as shepherd’s pie, jacket potatoes and sweet potatoes, and now measure the milk they drink each week.
The health improvements for the couple have been noticeable.
Ruth, a former NHS employee, said: “I don’t have as many health issues as Andre but I do have asthma, which has definitely improved since I joined Slimming World.
“This time last year I had been ill with respiratory infections – I was ill on Christmas Day.
“I suffer from white coat syndrome, which causes hypertension. My blood pressure goes up and down. I was referred by my GP onto the Sefton Council Active8 programme.
“I can now go and enjoy walking, go on the treadmill, and go bike riding. I just want to tone up a little!
“When I was much younger I used to do ballet until I was into my 20s. I am now looking to start adult dance classes, which is another reason to get fitter.
“To go and do something like Slimming World and to have such a positive outcome is fantastic. It has given me such a boost.
“I also went to help Andre. His transformation has been incredible.
“We have gone through an awful lot together!”
Being involved in a serious car crash changed both their lives.
Ruth said: “We were in a bad car crash 10 years ago. Andre ended up with a brain injury which caused him to suffer from chronic migraines.
“I was driving the car and Andre was the passenger. A delivery van pulled out on us at the give way junction and hit us, sending our car into colliding with the chippy nearby.
“The car was a write-off. We were very lucky that we weren’t a write-off as well.
“It really affected both of us. But we are fighters and we kept going.”
Andre’s injuries mean he attends St Mark’s Medical Centre in Southport and the Walton Centre, the neurological hospital in Liverpool, for regular medical check-ups.