How I Lost a Total Weight of 6½ Stone

AKA "John985" on Weight Loss Resources

About John

I work for a local government. I work shifts which at times can make it difficult to eat healthily but with WLR I can record everything I eat on the food diary so either I enter at work or at home.

I am married to Loraine for 17 years and have been together for 23 years. We have one daughter who is 14 years old. My wife is a size 10 and seems to be able to consume any kind of food but does not put on weight which always baffled me, but now I know about calories I have realised that she actually eats sensibly where I ate and ate loads. My daughter is growing and eats loads but is slim. Since I joined WLR though we are all eating more fruit and veg and my wife and daughter have commented on how my weight loss has helped them eat more healthily.

Weight Loss History

I have never really tried any other diets before WLR apart from trying myself to lose weight by not eating chocolate or crisps for a few days where I then craved them and then ate loads of them a few days later, saying to myself, “diet blown” and then continue to gain more weight.

I managed to lose 2½ stone before I joined WLR calorie counting but it took ages because it was mainly guessing and took ages to lose the weight too.

Trying to lose weight cutting out certain foods never worked for me and over the years I must have tried about a dozen times but never succeeded.

Calorie counting on my own worked but was inaccurate and slow.

How being overweight has affected you…

I was 18 stone 12 lbs at my heaviest and to be honest it made me feel quite down inside. I yearned to be how I was 20 years ago. I found mundane things like shopping quite tiring.

I went to see Little Britain live and out of a crowd of 2500 people Matt Lucas picked me out to get on the stage with him for the Fat Fighters sketch. This made me realise that I must look really fat.

Motivation to Lose Weight

My motivation to lose weight was seeing people around me of a similar age and size get type 2 diabetes and heart problems. I really wanted to live longer and increase my quality of life which, being overweight, was not as good as it could be.

My wife had commented over the years about my size but I really did not have the tools to lose weight until I found WLR searching calorie counting on a search engine.

My motivation increased with each loss when people told me how fit I was looking.

I now have friends and neighbours who have walked past me when they do not see a big belly.

The Best of Weight Loss Resources

I use the food diary on a daily basis to record everything I eat and drink. I also input my exercise calories, which I can then eat.

I enjoy talking on the general chat room as more often than not it is a great place to share everything and discuss non food topics also.

I have contacted the help team on a lot of occasions who always reply so swiftly and always answer any queries. They are wonderful.

Lifestyle Changes

My lifestyle has changed so much since joining WLR. I have joined a gym and swim almost every day. My wife who is slim and never been in a gym in her life has also joined with me.

I have learnt about what calories are in what foods so for example I used to eat 200g of milk chocolate in one go for a snack and now I eat 50g knowing how many calories are in each chunk.

I now have semi-skimmed milk as opposed to full fat and I am eating so much more fruit and veg. Honestly I am enjoying them where before one apple a week was about the most I would eat.

When I went out I was forever tucking in my shirt to try and hide my stomach where now I can wear clothes that fit nicely and I have nothing to try and hide.

Why do you think WLR has helped you lose weight where other diets have failed?

WLR has helped me to lose weight basically because it is so clear to record how much food I have consumed. Before it was all guess work. I used to think that certain foods made me fat. WLR has educated me to eat all foods so I never felt like I was on a diet - I now know it is all about portion sizes rather than types of food.

John's Weight Loss Tips

Always be honest with yourself and record every food and drink in your food diary and weigh everything you eat to start with.

Never think that if you have not lost weight in a week that you have blown it because if you stick with the correct calories the weight will come off albeit some people seem to lose it quicker than others.

The advice and support on WLR Members Forum is great. Everybody is always willing to help and advise. Use it to clarify anything.

"I believe that WLR is so great that when anyone asks me how I lost so much weight I just give them WLR’s web address."

You, like John, can find out the calorie content of the foods you are eating.

WLR Membership Options

 

John's Vital Statistics

	June 08	Feb 09
Weight	18st 5lb	12st 10lb
BMI	37.9	26.6
Body Fat	33.6 (obese)	18.5 (above average)
Chest	48"	41"
Waist	48"	36"
Hips	45"	35"
Blood Pressure	145/92	134/85
Fitness Level	31 (poor)	41 (good)
Cholesterol	6.9 (bad)	3.9 (good)