We can weigh in on family life now we’re 17st lighter..
Couple ditched drink & dropped stones due to rethink in Covid
A COUPLE who were so overweight they felt their life was stuck in a rut have lost 17st 9.5lbs between them to be named Slimming World’s Couple of the Year.
Nicola and Chris Guilfoyle, from Tipperary, used to booze or sit down while watching their three kids play, but now live family life to the full.
Nicola, 36, told the Irish Mirror: “We were the type of parents who’d sit and drink by the bar while the kids were playing in the pool.
“We’d bring our children to play centres and we’d sit and watch them play.
“When we stepped on the scales, we had health issues, when I’d lie down I’d vomit with the acid reflux, we couldn’t exercise.”
Starting Slimming World in January 2020 was daunting and Nicola admits she had mountains to climb.
Nicola, who lost 12st, said: “When I started I was 22st 8lbs, I was by far the biggest in the room but the people were so encouraging, so supportive.
“We had decided we wanted to make lifestyle changes, so we eliminated alcohol from our diets.
“People would say, why would you pay €10 to get weighed but it’s the encouragement and support and motivation you get from the group that spurs you on.” Battling the bulge over lockdown brought their family closer.
She added: “During Covid all you have is your family, our whole outlook on life shifted.
“We realised material things don’t fulfil you, it’s time and people.
“Slimming World saved us, even the support for Chris, we’ve made friends with older ladies, and middle aged people.
“We had gone on a journey, happiness is not a destination, we had started that journey before our physical one.
“Our dynamic totally shifted when we joined Slimming World, we could be parents, really involved with our children and educate them on a healthy sustainable lifestyle.” Nicola said: “I have battled my weight my whole life especially in my teens.
“When the kids were younger it was so easy for us to forget about our own health and reach for takeaway menus once they had gone to bed.
“Our youngest daughter was diagnosed with autism when she was two and a half years years old. She’s doing fabulously now, but it was difficult to begin with, and Chris and I used food as comfort.
“I remember taking my daughter to Drayton Manor and being asked to get off a ride as the safety bar wouldn’t fit over my stomach.
“I laughed it off at the time – but on the inside I was distraught that my young child had to ride alone and that I was missing these precious moments with her.
“I was at the heaviest I’ve ever been when I joined Slimming World, and I used to find even minor things that people take for granted difficult, such as tying my own shoelaces,
“So I’d wear sliders as my feet were so painful and swollen.”
“I used to suffer from constant heartburn and acid reflux to the point where I would vomit when I lay down but that has gone away since I lost weight.
“Due to lockdown people hadn’t seen me for months, but once restrictions started to ease, the other parents in the school yard didn’t recognise me at first as I’ve lost so much weight. I feel a lot more confident in myself now.”
We were the sort of parents who’d sit and drink by the bar while the kids were playing NICOLA GUILFOYLE ON HERSELF & HUSBAND’S FORMER LIFESTYLE