‘Dieting together helped us shed a whopping 12st!’ A nightly takeaway habit saw Bex Topping, 48, and partner Beth Rocha, 38, of Newport Pagnell in Buckinghamshire, pile on the pounds. But a new diet and teamwork helped them drop the weight
PHOTOS: PA Real Life
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rudging through the front door, I let out an exhausted sigh. “I’m home – and I’ve got us fish and chips,” I called out to my partner, Beth. For many people, eating a takeaway is an occasional treat, but it had become a nightly ritual for Beth and me over the nine years we’d been together since meeting in a Facebook neighbourbood group. We both had busy jobs, Beth in financial services and me in communications, so cooking dinner from scratch was the last thing we wanted to do when we got home. We’d eat out or get a Chinese, Indian or pizza and curl up in front of the telly. We tried to slim down a few times on various diets and eating plans. Usually we’d just count calories and hit the gym, but after a while the weight would creep back on – and then some. When my son Tom, 28, married Frankie, also 28, in 2017, I was determined to lose weight for their big day. But I didn’t drop as much as I hoped and, stuck at about 15st, I wore a floaty top and trousers. I was a bit disappointed with myself. “I’ve been this way for so long that I can’t imagine ever being a healthy size,” Beth would say. “I know what you mean,” I’d agree. For ages I’d suffered from a hormone imbalance which made my hair thin, but in August 2018 it started coming out in clumps. Worried, I went to my GP. “There’s no easy way to say this, but being overweight is making your hormonal issues worse,” she told me. “Perhaps if you managed to lose a little you’d notice a difference.” Leaving the doctor’s surgery, her words echoed in my mind. Deep down, I knew she was right. With me at 16st 3lb and a size 22, and Beth at 16st 8lb and also a size 22, we were both classed as obese. We’d both been about a size 16 when we met but for too long we’d been turning to junk food and unhealthy snacks to fuel our busy lives. Something had to give. So, acting on my doctor’s advice, I looked into what I could find locally and came across the 1:1 Diet by
Bex (left) and Beth took up running
a Cambridge Weight Plan consultant called Genine Herdman-Smith, who was working in my local area. Although I’d tried slimming plans before, this one felt different. I knew I had a long road ahead of me, though – a road that would be easier if Beth and I walked it together. “What do you think about doing it with me?” I asked her one evening. She thought it over and decided to give it a try. The consultant came to our house and spoke to us one to one. That was great. I’d been to groups like WeightWatchers in the past, but I hated being weighed publicly. The diet plan is personalised and was surprisingly easy to follow. In the early stage it takes total control of what you eat, offering meal replacement products including shakes and soups, plus meals such as spaghetti bolognese. That was ideal because we felt we lacked self control. It was flexible, too, so
‘Takeaways had become a nightly ritual for us’
when we took a trip to Edinburgh, we had the meal replacements in the day and then ate out at night, so it felt like a proper holiday. As you move through the steps, you start incorporating “real” food back into your diet, so you cook meals at home – chicken or fish and plenty of vegetables. Beth’s a good cook and we started to enjoy planning our food. We saw results immediately – I lost 9lb in the first week. And because of that, we were spurred on to stick at it. “Another pound gone,” Beth grinned, as we weighed ourselves. “Well done you,” I said, smiling back at her. Seeing our bodies transform in front of our eyes was so motivating – we were supportive, but we were also a bit competitive and that was all part of the fun. It wasn’t just about the weight though – it seemed every area of our lives was improving.
SELF-CONSCIOUS We had more energy than ever before and more confidence. My hair was falling out less, and that cloud of fatigue that’d been hanging over us both for so long finally lifted. As we got more in shape, something unexpected happened – we fell in love with exercise. Beth had been into cycling when she was younger, but it had fallen by the wayside in recent years. She didn’t have the energy and felt self-conscious in Lycra. I understood. People can be cruel and you’ll get a lingering stare here, a passing comment there. It all chips away at your self-esteem. So, when Beth took up cycling up again, I was thrilled for her. We discovered running, too, and would often head out jogging together on evenings and weekends. We joined a proper running club and began taking on 5km, 10km and even half marathon races together. Beth did a half marathon in September and she cheered me on as I crossed the finish line when I ran mine in December. By mid-2019, we had both reached our goal weights – I’m now 10st 7lb, while Beth is 10st 6lb, and we both wear a size 10 to 12. These days, it’s more about maintaining our new bodies than losing any more weight.
