Burnley couple shed 17st to scoop top slimming award

While Jo Beveridge and John Durkin, who have been together for 30 years, had both struggled with their weight for decades, they found that the lockdowns of 2020 and 2021 changed their eating habits – often relying on takeaways and ready meals.

Jo, 50, who has lost 6st 6lbs, said: “If I’m honest with myself, I’d been unhappy with my weight ever since our first son Alex was born. When Liam arrived a few years later, it became even more difficult to find time to eat healthily. I’d try to lose weight before a big event or holiday, but it would be a quick fix and I always ended up back where I started as soon as I started eating ‘normally’ again.

“Lockdown meant that we sought comfort in food when we were away from our family and friends – sometimes having a takeaway or indulgent meal was all we had to look forward to. It meant we developed some quite unhealthy habits which were then hard to shake even when we came out of lockdown.

“I knew John was feeling the same way and wondered if we might have more success if we tried losing weight together. Our daughter-in-law Jodie had joined Slimming World ahead of her wedding in 2019 and she looked absolutely amazing on the day. She raved about all of the delicious food she could eat and how supportive the group was, so we decided to give it a try for ourselves.”

Fifty-two-year-old warehouse manager John, who has halved his weight by losing 10st 11lbs, added: “We’d always been quite active – I enjoyed cycling and Jo had been a member of the gym for years. We still struggled with our weight though, so we knew we needed some extra help, and it wasn’t just about moving more.

“At the time we’d just welcomed our first grandchild, Abel, and knew we wanted to be fit and healthy enough to be fun and involved grandparents. He really gave us that extra push to lose weight for good. He’s since been joined by our granddaughter Etta – running around with them is the best exercise!”

At their local Slimming World group, Jo and John discovered Slimming World’s Food Optimising eating plan, swapping their diet of convenience food and takeaways for home-made meals.

Jo, who works in accounts, said: “Pre-lockdown, our weekends would often involve a trip to the pub with a takeaway after, so we were a bit worried that we wouldn’t be able to enjoy that aspect of our lives anymore, however with a few simple swaps we realised we didn’t have to miss out. Instead of beer and wine we’d have spirits with a low-calorie mixer and alternate alcohol with soft drinks. We also love experimenting with Slimming World curries which we cook from scratch.”

John added: “The eating plan is no nonsense, common-sense eating – a world away from the crash diets we’ve done in the past. It’s changed the way we think about food. We plan our meals now and eat three balanced meals a day which helps us to stay on track. We often batch cook too, so if we don’t fancy cooking or don’t have time, there’s usually something in the freezer.

“The group support was great too. I was a bit nervous at the thought of joining and wasn’t really sure what to expect, but everyone there was really friendly and welcoming, especially our Consultant Sophie. I worried I might be the only man there or that I’d be judged for being the biggest in the room. It wasn’t like that at all though. We left our very first group feeling like we could really do it this time – so many of the other members had told us about how much they’d lost and how easy it was, we felt sure they couldn’t all be wrong!

“Slimming World has been the missing piece of the puzzle. We learned so much about the best way to fuel our bodies and the Image Therapy sessions opened our eyes to the pitfalls we’d fallen into in the past – like reaching for quick fixes when we were busy and tired after work or snacking in front of the TV when we weren’t really hungry. After a few weeks we really started to understand who we were as slimmers.”

As they were already quite active, Jo and John soon felt ready to embrace Slimming World’s physical activity support programme, Body Magic. Jo said: “Although activity was something we were familiar with, it used to take it out of us when we were heavier, and we definitely felt the aches and pains afterwards. Pairing healthy eating with our exercise made such a difference to our fitness. Our Parkrun times just got better and better – John’s personal best is 24 minutes and mine is 28 minutes, which I’m over the moon with!”

John added: “I properly caught the running bug once the weight started coming off! It felt so much easier. I soon progressed from 5K to 10K, then a half marathon, until this April when I ran my first marathon. I still can’t quite believe that I’ve halved my bodyweight and run a marathon!

“I’m really proud to have run a marathon, but I’m even more proud of the type of grandparents we have become. We’ve got tonnes of energy to keep up with Abel and Etta and that’s exactly what we set out to achieve.”

Now that they’re 17st lighter, Jo and John have a new dream. “We’ve been together for 30 years and wanted to get married before lockdown,” said Jo. “We put the plans on hold though because we wanted to have a big party. So maybe there will be wedding bells soon!”