We have been TRANSFORMED!

The show’s stars on a year of courage and loss

IT’S been a part of our post-Christmas viewing schedule since 2008, when an idea Gerry Ryan had on his radio show morphed into one of RTÉ’s greatest success stories.

And now Operation Transformation 2021 is coming to an end after a year in which the dangers of obesity have been very much flung into the spotlight by Covid-19.

Those who are overweight are at a greater danger of contracting a severe dose of the virus and are also at a greater risk of hospitalisation and death.

Meanwhile a year without commutes for some, without work or something to do for others, and with focus for the majority is not helping our health as, even with regular exercise, the step count on those fitness bands dwindles.

But thousands of people all over Ireland and, in fact, the rest of the world, have been taking part in Operation Transformation’s 5km since Thursday, showing that the programme is needed now more than ever.

For leader Andrew Burke Hannon, the transformation has been miraculous, proving that it doesn’t take much to shift the dreaded ‘corona stone’ many of us have been left with due to various lockdowns.

‘For me I struggled with weight for quite a while and I was looking to change things but not knowing what to do,’ says Andrew, 33, who started his journey at 14st 2lbs.

‘I’ve tried so many diets and the amount of gym memberships that I’ve had...’ says the Dubliner, who is currently working from home in his job as part of the sales and finance team for food brand Nestlé.

‘Last year was a difficult year for most people in terms of working from home and not getting out as much as we were used to. It resulted in eating a little bit more than we would normally as we were stuck at home and it was a little bit more convenient

‘When the restrictions were slightly lifted we went to a social gathering of a few people in a garden and I remember feeling disgusted with myself because my clothes didn’t fit. When I saw on my phone that the show was looking for contestants I just felt there was nothing to lose so I applied.

‘I really wanted to change because I was unhappy with how my future was looking and now was the time to do something positive for myself,’ he says.

Andrew is married to Jason who also works in the food industry, for the retail sector of Musgraves. Their social life previously would have involved going out for dinner at the weekends, a nice bottle of wine or treats in front of a movie.

But in the last eight weeks, Andrew’s life has changed immeasurably. He is the only Operation Transformation leader to ever be told off for losing weight, which happened this week after he had previously hit his target.

‘I was the lightest male leader they have ever had on the show,’ says Andrew. ‘In episode one I was the most important person as, given the year that we’ve had, the corona stone has been floating around for all of us. But you don’t have to be massively big to follow a programme like this.’

Under the watchful eyes of fitness trainer Karl Henry, dietician Aoife Hearne, psychologist Eddie Murphy and GP Sumi Dunne, Andrew excelled at the tasks he was given and managed to hit his target early.

‘To be told not to lose weight was a first for the show,’ he laughs. ‘The message the experts were trying to get across was that it would have been wrong to encourage more weight loss.’

He had achieved his goals as his BMI was at a healthy level and his waist had shrunk but last week the weight was still coming off and he got into some trouble.

‘I did lose weight and it didn’t go down well,’ he admits. ‘But now I have lost 2st 3lbs in total.

‘It wasn’t like they were saying I did something wrong, I followed the plan and everything I was meant to do but we are in uncharted territory and no one knew how to tackle this going forward. It was a really intense week for exercise so we have revisited now and added more stuff into the diet so my body won’t be eating away at the wrong things.’

It’s not just Andrew who has been transformed — his husband

Jay has also lost weight and he says their relationship has been strengthened with the help of the experts.

‘We have a healthier relationship with food now,’ Andrew says. ‘Now that I have started to educate myself about how much exercise you need to allow yourself those few jellies I understand it’s all about moderation. I want to have a good relationship with food.

‘I have now gone past the weight I thought I would never get past and it’s now about the longevity and making sure I maintain it.

‘I don’t think I could have achieved these results without Operation Transformation, not just what the scales are telling me but how I feel as an individual and mentally how how I deal with things and how I look and feel in my own skin,’ says Andrew who looks altogether happier.

Hazel Hartigan, 47, works as a nurse looking after the elderly in St John’s Hospital, Limerick. She already had gone through Covid when she applied for the show but losing weight for her health was at the forefront of her mind.

‘I was overweight most of my life since the age of 13 and I had considered myself really lucky that weight hasn’t affected my health yet,’ she says. ‘But when I filled out the form I was 46 and I had been thinking, how much longer can I get away with this?

‘I’ve done the slimming clubs and couch-to-5kms all over the years and it never really stuck with me. I felt like I needed professional help. The application came up on Facebook and I passed it by but I went back to it as I thought it could be the help I needed.

‘It sounds so clichéd but I wanted to become a fitter, healthier and happier person at the end of the day.’

But what of all the people who believe losing weight is just a matter of willpower? What would Hazel say to them?

‘Sometimes with all the willpower in the world you are going to come across situations in your life that you’re not going to be able to deal with,’ she says.

‘Something can knock you for six and throw you off your plan. It could be something as simple as you have to work extra hours during the week or it might be something like getting your period can throw you off. A lot of people can hit a plateau and then you think why am I working so hard for nothing? So you give up.

‘How many people out there smoke and give up but end up going back on the cigarettes? It’s the same thing. Life throws you a sucker punch and sometimes you

are equipped to deal with it and sometimes you’re not. I feel now I am better prepared for what might come up in my life and I have something to fall back on.’

As she speaks from her home, the cards and good wishes sent by viewers surround her as Hazel spoke movingly on the show about losing two children.

She has Tommy, 20, and Grace, 14, with husband Richard but they also had twins Niamh and Chloe. Niamh was stillborn while Chloe was later diagnosed with cerebral palsy, global developmental delay and chronic lung disease. She passed away at the age of five when Grace was just one.

Speaking about the girls has helped Hazel and has also helped many other viewers, judging from the response she has had.

‘If you could see the cards in my kitchen that I’ve got from people who have been through similar experiences to me,’ says Hazel.

‘I was only speaking about my own story from my own point of view but I hadn’t realised how it was going to affect other people out there.

‘If I hadn’t spoken about Chloe and Niamh it would have been a disservice to them and to my husband and me for all that we have been through. It helped me understand myself a bit better and clear my head a bit more. It leaves more space for you to be able to concentrate on other areas of your life. It’s not something I would have thought was there every day in my head but it was.

‘Now that I have tidied it, it is still in my head but I now have more room to concentrate on preparing myself for my next day of food and my next day of exercise and not to be as muddled.

‘Talking about them and expressing myself about them has definitely made things clearer and it has for a lot of other people out there as well, which is a huge bonus.’

Being on the show has seen Hazel lose 22lb, which is fantastic, but it’s only the start.

‘What I have really learned from all this is my time management needs to be on point,’ she says. ‘Fail to prepare, prepare to fail. I have to have the time set aside to do my shopping list to go and do

my shopping and I have to be able to get the time to cook. Everything else gets done in between.’

With her sister’s wedding coming up in August, Hazel has the motivation to keep going.

‘But it is more about my health,’ she says. ‘I want to be like my grandmother who turned 100 in January. I want to do that as well and annoy my kids for another few years.’

For Paul Devaney, 41, from Kilconly, Co Galway, the difference the show has made to his life is immediately apparent. He is 27lbs down from his starting weight and is now getting a decent night’s sleep.

‘I suffer from high blood pressure and sleep apnoea,’ he says. ‘Two years ago my wife realised a couple of nights that I was stopping breathing in my sleep and I went to the doctor and was sent for a sleep study. I would have been tired all the time.’

BUT after losing almost 2st, the water regulator for construction sites feels a hundred times better. ‘I am sleeping which I haven’t done for years and all the benefits that comes with losing weight,’ he says. ‘Sleeping is a big thing for me. That is the key thing that I have got from losing weight.’ Like Hazel, it’s preparation that is key for Paul. ‘I like the routine and structure of it, the idea that you bring your food with you to work and you concentrate coming home at night and getting your food prepared for the following day which ensures you’re not going into shops. It’s not that hard to do. If you spend a couple of hours on a Sunday planning and cooking and planning your week, the week is very easy. ‘It makes life easier and living cheaper because you’re not buying food and dumping it out again.’ Paul has even managed to replace his beloved chips with a healthier takeaway as a treat — a grilled chicken sandwich from Supermacs coming in at just 330 calories. ‘I feel brilliant and my health as improved immensely.’ It is indeed a thread that has run through the show. Divorced mother-of-three Sharon Gaffney has lost 17.5lb but more importantly has managed to find herself again. Her transformation managed to reduce the experts to tears as she found her confidence after a few years of feeling lost. And even though she has lost the least of all, substitute teacher and counsellor Susuana Komolafe has saved her own life while dropping 13lbs and getting her blood pressure in check. The show found her blood pressure was at a dangerous level but she has managed to lower it and she has also discovered exercise. ‘For me the change is that it has opened my mind to fitness. It has made me more aware of my food intake, the types of food I eat, the size of the portions and the effect that has on my weight. ‘When I got chosen for the show I told the experts that I love who I am, I love my body, I love everything about me but what I want to get better is my fitness. ‘I am a sexy woman and part of being sexy is being fit and to have the opportunity to have that kind of support system to allow you to do that has been great. ‘From the programme I am fitter than I have ever been in decades and more open minded to doing exercise. ‘Yes. I want to get rid of the excess weight I am carrying around and I am working on it and enjoying the process, doing it at a pace that works for me.’