Falling in love is great for the soul, but the body can sometimes suffer.
This is something Melbourne-based mother-of-one, Kathleen Jagger, experienced first hand after gaining a collective 80 kilograms with her husband Bryce throughout their 10 year relationship.
Mrs Jagger told FEMAIL when she first started dating her husband she weighed 60 kilograms and he weighed 110 kilograms.
Then, as time went on, the weight crept on too.
Kathleen Jagger (pictured right) with her husband Bryce (pictured left) – the pair gained 80 kilograms over the the course of 10 years
‘You get in the comfort zone with your partner, and if they’re gaining weight it makes it worse,’ she said.
She put this down to a variety of factors including changing from an active job to one where she spent a lot more time sitting.
She also said the couple had started getting into some bad habits including eating takeaways more often and piling up their plates with bigger portions.
Mrs Jagger before (pictured left) and after following her 30 kilogram weight loss prior to her wedding
Mrs Jagger said after she realised she’d put on the weight she took a drastic approach to lose it, and in the process became quite underweight.
However, she admitted because she had little understanding of how to be healthy, her weight began to creep up again and over a four year period, she gained 30 kilograms.
‘A lot of it was laziness with food. We couldn’t be bothered cooking. We didn’t know how to cook healthy meals,’ she said.
Bryce Jagger (pictured left) before at 185 kilograms and after (pictured right) at 135 kilograms
‘But mostly it was a lack of education about food, not knowing what to eat or how much to eat.’
The pair’s wedding in 2016 was motivation for them to both lose weight, and over a 10 month period, the couple shed 90 kilograms between them.
She said the loved-up duo signed up to a program in a bid to lose the weight together and started making changes to drastically overhaul their lifestyles.
Changing their diet meant swapping out easy takeaways for salads and healthy home cooked meals and, of course, working regular exercise into their regimes.
Mrs Jagger now weighs 60 kilograms and her husband weighs 135 kilograms.
Although she’s now a busy mother, Mrs Jagger said she continues to keep a close eye on what she and her husband eat.
Mrs Jagger said her and her husband spent 10 months losing weight for their special day
‘Once you start to get lazy with food it’s very difficult to get back to where you were,’ she said.
The couple’s experience is also backed up by new research.
According to a recent study by Cambridge Weight Plan, more than 75 per cent of Australians gained weight since meeting their partner, with half gaining more than 10 kilograms.
Nutritionist Sandie Dunstan (pictured) said weight can creep on when couples are blinded by love
Nutritionist Sandie Dunstan said in the early days when couples are ‘blinded by love’, it’s easy for the weight to creep on.
‘We can easily lose track of how much we are eating or make less healthy choices when we are in a relationship,’ she said.
Figures from the study revealed that more than half of those surveyed blame their weight gain on changing their eating habits, including eating out more often.
Over half of those who took part in the survey revealed that putting on weight also affected their sex lives, with 22 per cent admitting they felt too embarrassed to be seen naked by their partner.
‘Couples need to look at ways to take the focus off food when spending quality time together,’ Ms Dunstan said.
‘This could be an evening walk after work, a weekend hike, or challenging each other to create meals that are nutritious and bursting with flavour.’