A mother-of-three has revealed how she shed seven stone in just a year after being shocked into action when she discovered she weighed more than her husband.
Desperately ashamed of her 19st 3lb size 22 bulk, Kelly Rothery, 32, from Leeds never stripped off in public and even avoided going out because she was so self-conscious.
But when Kelly, of Leeds, West Yorkshire, discovered she weighed five stone more than her husband, Charlie, 31, she knew it was time for drastic action.
‘It was two years ago and Charlie suggested we should both hop on the scales, but I wouldn’t weight myself in front of him, so I waited until he left the room and then did it,’ she said.
‘I was so disgusted to see I weighed more than my husband that I knew I had to lose the weight.’
Kelly now weight 12st 2lb and celebrated her weight loss by going swimming with her children for the first time.
Kelly Rothery, 32, (pictured with her son Max) from Leeds, West Yorkshire has shed seven stone in one year
Kelly (pictured left, holding Max at her sister’s wedding) was inspired to overhaul her lifestyle after discovering she weighed five stone more than her husband Charlie, 31 (right)
Kelly, who has three children – Max, nine, Alexis, seven, and Sydney, 18 months – began battling her weight when she hit puberty aged 11, and suffered cruel jibes from other schoolchildren.
‘The other kids would call me “fatty” and “marshmallow”, and it got so bad, I didn’t want to go to school at all,’ she explained.
‘I became more and more isolated, as I lost all my confidence and I would do anything not to take my clothes off.
‘I hated gymnastics and always got my mum to write me a note so I wouldn’t have to go swimming.’
Kelly (pictured with Charlie and daughter Sydney) recalls having blood test as a child because she was the only one of her parent’s children to have a weight problem
Kelly says she was the only one of her parent’s four children that struggled with managing their weight.
She continued: ‘My mum would take me to the doctor because I was the only one with a weight problem and she was just so shocked.
‘I had blood tests, but they couldn’t find anything wrong. The doctor said it was puppy fat and would just fall off, but it didn’t.’
Kelly who is a billing administrator for a telecom firm continued to gain weight after meeting her now ex-partner at age 17 and starting a family.
‘The weight just kept creeping on.
‘I think when you’re a mum you struggle even more, because you have treats in the house for the kids, and hoover up after them.
‘It’s a vicious cycle because you feel disgusted with yourself, lose your confidence, hide away, become more and more isolated and then comfort eat to make yourself feel better.’
The 5ft 8in mother-of-three, was a single parent for a year when the relationship with her children’s father ended.
A friend put Kelly’s profile on a dating app which gave her the opportunity to meet Charlie.
Kelly (pictured right with Max) continued to gain weight after she finished school when she met her ex-partner and started a family
Mother-of-three (pictured left with Max) was a single parent for a year before meeting Charlie using a dating app
She continued: ‘It was so nice to meet someone who saw past my weight and ever since we met he has been so supportive.
‘But when you’re dating you eat out and share boxes of chocolates, so that made it even harder to manage my weight.’
Kelly became determined to change after discovering she was heavier than Charlie and turned to The Courthouse Clinic, in Wilmslow, Cheshire, in July 2018.
The consultants introduced Kelly to a new medically supervised weight loss and lifestyle programme called MediWeight. The plan, which is tailored to the individual, starts by replacing normal meals with high protein sachet meal substitutes.
Kelly took home five sweet and savoury sachet meals, including chilli, omelette and pizza, and was given a target intake of 800 calories a day.
She said: ‘I was nervous and excited as I drove to my appointment that first Saturday morning.
‘I thought they would tell me I was too overweight and turn me down.
‘It did feel daunting at the start, but they give you all your meal substitutes, so all you have to do is stick to them and not cheat.
‘It is the easiest diet I have ever done, because you’re not trying to work out what you can or can’t eat yourself.
Kelly (pictured before with Max) visited The Courthouse Clinic, in Wilmslow, Cheshire, in July 2018 after discovering she weighed more than Charlie
‘Seeing the weight drop off so quickly – I lost 10lb in the first week – and not go back on, was what kept me going.
‘I couldn’t shop in trendy high street shops when I was fat. I would cry in the changing rooms, as it was so humiliating.
‘But once I lost the weight I could, so I went to River Island last summer and bought two tops and a pretty dress.’
Kelly bought new swimwear and, for the first time ever, took all three of her children swimming when the family went to Tenerife on holiday at the beginning of 2019.
She continued: ‘It was the first time I had worn a swimsuit in about three years.
‘On previous holidays I hid away in shirt dresses. Sometimes I even wore tights – anything that would disguise my body.
‘But in Tenerife my kids loved me being in the water with them. We were swimming every day. It was lovely and so rewarding seeing them so happy.’
Now a healthy size UK 14, Kelly revealed her weight loss has given her a new lease of life.
Kelly (pictured before right with Charlie) now wears a UK size 14 and weighs 12st 2lb, since following a tailored weight loss plan
Kelly (pictured centre with Alexis and Sydney) who is proud of her achievement says her weight loss has helped her to find herself
The bespoke diet plan cost her £250 a week and included weekly consultations, sachet meals and body contouring treatments to tighten the excess skin left behind by such dramatic and rapid weightloss.
‘The weight loss hasn’t just given me back my life, it has helped me to find myself.
‘I’d say to anyone who, like me, has had a long-term struggle with their weight you can do it, don’t give up.
‘Even if you start and lapse, just start again because when you succeed it really will change your life.
‘I used to avoid the other mums at school when I dropped the kids off, because I was so embarrassed to be the fat mum. Now, I talk to them all, I go out a lot more.
‘The other night I put on a really clingy dress to go out to dinner with my husband and my youngest girl told me that I looked like a princess! ‘Mummy you are so pretty,’ she said and this made me cry with happiness.
‘I am really proud of what I have done and how I’ve got my life back.’
For further information see www.mediweight.co.uk