‘I hula-hooped goodbye to my health problems’
Cheryl Callender, 49, lives in Essex with her husband, Eugene, 57. She has two children.
Height: 5ft 8in Lost: 6st 10Lb
These days, as a size 14, I’m not afraid to have my arms out or show a little leg. I’ve always been ‘big-boned’, but throughout my childhood I was very active. At 20, I moved to the Caribbean, where Eugene and I married and had our son, Keenan. I stayed slim, thanks to all the fresh food.
However, when I was 32, I moved back to the UK and it was a different story. I lived next door to a Chinese takeaway and a fish-and-chip shop. It got to the point where I was a size 26.
In 2003, I visited my mum in Barbados. At one point, she said, ‘Try not to put on any more weight,’ which didn’t exactly sting, but I made a mental note of it. Four months later, she passed away. With her words ringing in my ears, I knew I had to change.
I joined Weight Watchers in the new year and in the first week lost 5lb. I was down to 16st when I became pregnant with Thea, my daughter, in 2005. I rejoined when she was two and started aerobics classes with a friend.
Now, I love keeping fit. I saw some hula-hoop workouts online, and thought it would be a fun activity with real fitness benefits – meaning, a toned waist! It was a few weeks before I could keep it going longer than a few seconds. Now, I do it several times a week, dance music blasting. It’s so fun!