“I lost 4st in lockdown & I’m a different person now” WW slimmer:
Amy Brennan felt low about her body, but healthy eating and home workouts have seen her drop from a size 16 to an 8 in six months, and transformed her into a fitness fan
When she found herself cooped up indoors during the first lockdown, Amy Brennan was determined to put her spare time to good use. And thanks to a healthy eating plan and daily at-home workouts, Amy – who didn’t even have a gym membership before the pandemic – is a staggering 4st lighter than she was a year ago.
Amy, 26, says, “When lockdown first began, I was really worried, but keeping fit saved my sanity. I started with gentle walking workouts, which I followed on YouTube, but, within weeks, I was doing HIIT classes and hour-long training sessions in my spare bedroom.
“Not only have I lost four dress sizes, going from a size 16 to an 8, but it’s helped me mentally too. I used to get bad anxiety, but I feel so much better now.”
NO CONFIDENCE
During her teens, Amy was a healthy size 10, but when she started studying for her degree in Occupational
Therapy, aged 23, she neglected her health.
Amy, who lives in
Glasgow with her boyfriend, says, “I used the excuse that I was too busy to exercise or cook, and lived on convenience food. I’d skip breakfast and buy a ready-made pasta salad for lunch, with snacks from the vending machine. Dinner would be a pizza or takeaway.
“In three years, I went from a size 10 to a size 16.
I had no confidence and would wear layers to hide my shape.
“I found it affected my performance at university too, and I’d be so anxious before a presentation. I tried dieting but
I’d deprive myself self and just end up bingeing and gaining even more weight.”
WAKE-UP CALL
But when, in October 2019, Amy visited a patient who referred to her as being a “big girl”, it was the wake-up call she needed.
Amy explains, “I brushed the comment aside, as I knew the patient didn’t mean to be cruel, but I was dying of shame.
“With 2020 around the corner,
I made a promise to myself to make a positive change. Some family members recommended WW (Weight Watchers reimagined), so I signed up.”
Amy went to her first WW meeting in January 2020. She explains, “I was shocked to see that I weighed in at 14st – too big for my 5ft 7in frame. My goal was set at
10st 10lbs and I was determined to meet it. In that first week, I learnt that planning was key, which meant I didn’t have to resort to takeaways at the last minute.
“Instead of skipping breakfast, which always used to lead to unhealthy snacking, I’d have porridge and I’d make time to prepare my own pasta and Quorn salads to take to university, instead of shop-bought ones filled with mayo. And for dinner I’d eat low-fat sausages with potatoes and vegetables. In two months, I lost a stone.”
Then, in March 2020, the UK was plunged into its first national lockdown as COVID-19 spread.
Amy says, “I was nervous that sitting at home all day would lead me back into old eating habits. But I realised I had a choice, and I chose to stay focused. I continued to follow the WW plan online and weigh myself at the same time every week.
“And with lectures now taking place online, I suddenly had much more time on my hands, so I used it to get fitter.
“Every morning, I’d do Leslie Sansone’s walk at home workouts on YouTube – gentle workouts that involve different walking on the spot exercises to music. To begin with, I found them challenging, but over the next three months, I built up my stamina and strength to follow more high-impact routines such as those by
fitness coach Courtney Black.
“I also invested in some hand weights and resistance bands and, after a couple of months, I was exercising for an hour each morning.”
Amy’s new-found love of fitness was so successful that, by June, as restrictions began to ease, she’d reached her goal weight of 10st 10lbs. She says, “I looked and felt like a totally different person.”
FITTER AND STRONGER
And now, as the UK weathers a third lockdown, Amy continues to work out five times a week. She says, “I weigh 10st now, and wear a size 8. I’m the fittest and strongest I’ve ever been.
“I couldn’t even walk up a flight of stairs without getting breathless. Now I can do full push-ups and hold a plank for two minutes. The physical difference is incredible, but the best thing of all is that I no longer suffer with anxiety.
“Friends and family have noticed how much happier and confident I seem. My mum Pauline has been especially supportive and I regularly send her recipes to try out.
“My advice to people trying to lose weight is to first establish a healthy eating plan that suits you. It might not solve all your problems, but it will do your physical and mental health the world of good.”