WEIGHT-LOSS WIN AMID LOCKDOWN
AWOMAN has lost more than five stone in four months after she remained dedicated to getting fitter throughout lockdown as a part of a “year to change my life” challenge.
Morag Dunbar’s dedication did not waiver thanks to the support of her personal trainer Chris McGugan.
The mum-of-two from Milngavie started the challenge with the Clydebank personal trainer in February and has since lost more than the entire length of a tailoring tape measure off her body, trimming down by a total of 64.5 inches.
Chris started the challenge three years ago as a way “to give something back” and Morag is the third person to be helped free of charge to take the path of “hard-work and determination”.
He created a meal plan for her and throughout lockdown got “creative” to keep her active.
Chris said: “She could not run, she could not do a step up, but now she is running 10k and she is absolutely amazing.
“The inches she has lost in four months is absolutely unbelievable. And the good thing is she has a good spring in her step and every time you see her she looks a lot younger, she looks healthier. She is doing a thing now that she could never do before.
“It goes to show you age is just a number, so it is.
The personal trainer, who works at Warrior Fitness, sees Morag’s story as something positive to come out of lockdown.
Morag, 49, said: “It was challenging during lockdown. We still went out for walks, we did zoom workouts and he was in touch with me every day.
“We turned lockdown into something positive. I was out there three hours a day, exercising and doing things and the results speak for themselves.
The changes to her fitness levels have her truly feeling “amazing” as she is now able to run distances and climb hills that she was never able to.
As a driving instructor, she usually spends a lot of time sitting down, which she could now commit to keeping active –calling it an “ideal opportunity to get a move on”.
But she added there is no quick fix: “It’s just through pure hard work. I’m quite a determined human.“
“Some days it’s hard, it’s really hard. You have to stick at it. At the end of the day, motivation comes from within. You have to want it.”
Having a trainer that believed in her helped her stay committed, she added: “Chris is quite a special kind of trainer and he makes me believe in myself.
“It was the first time someone really believed in me. He really kept me going.”
Her family has cheered her on throughout her journey and her two kids are her biggest supporters: “They’re both really proud of their mum – they keep telling me.
“My mother is also very, very proud of me and it kept her going during lockdown. She exercises every day now because of what I’ve been doing.
“If my story going out there inspires just one person that is a good job done.”
But the work is not quite done for the 49-year-old, and Chris added: “We’re only half-way through, we’re going to keep going.”