We lost weight without the jabs

Lara Besbrode had been excited to watch herself on The Real Housewives of Cheshire in 2021 as the celebrity matchmaker and in a pandemic love story on BBC News. But she was horrified by what she saw.

“During lockdown and menopause my weight had kept piling on. I was a size 18, prediabetic and morbidly obese. I realised it was time to take action.”

Over the next four years, Manchester-based Lara, who founded award-winning agency The Matchmaker UK, lost nine stone – more than her current weight. “I have three children, I went through a challenging divorce and solo parenting. I hit menopause, we went into lockdown, and I built my international matchmaking business from my kitchen table. Spinning so many plates, I put myself bottom of the list and gained a huge amount of weight.”

She stopped taking medication she no longer needed and embraced a completely different lifestyle. Along with weight-training three times a week, she ate only unprocessed and home-cooked food – rice, chicken, peas, sweet potato, salmon, broccoli.

Lara, 56, says: “I ate healthily but I never went without. I got rid of the low fat/ diet products and ate five meals a day to increase my protein intake and I removed alcohol and any unnecessary sugar.”

Her children gifted her with a six-week shuffle course for her birthday – a dance she had watched on TikTok in lockdown – which she started in January last year. She is now a size six and has 126,000 followers on Instagram, who are learning to shuffle with her. She has set up a free ‘change your life’ channel on Instagram.

Lara before and after her nine stone weight loss

Rachael Sacerdoti was also a mother to three young children and not in a good headspace. In 2007, she weighed more than 14 stone and was finding it hard to do simple things, such as be active with her children.

“My body was giving up on me,” says Rachael, 45. “It was like I had no muscle strength to carry my weight; my feet were bleeding, I had issues with my joints and my back was in severe pain.”

She also lacked confidence and felt ‘lost’. She was snacking and not taking care of herself. Her brother reminded her of how she had been an outdoorsy and adventurous person and suggested she take “baby steps” to improve her life.

She started by walking around the block, slowly increasing the distance and began using a fitness app. Within a few weeks she was able to complete full workouts. She educated herself about nutrition and ate protein, complex carbohydrates, lots of vegetables and fruit, and reduced her intake of refined sugar.

She lost more than four stone in only six months. But she wanted to become stronger and healthier, so she continued working out. Friends asked for her advice so she helped them. In lockdown, she trained to become a personal trainer and set up It’s So Simple, an online body and mind transformation course that attracts clients globally.

“It made me feel like I could do anything I put my mind to. I really do think that giving yourself a bit of time every day, working out, being healthy and in control of your own life does this.”

Vicki Prais, a human rights lawyer from north-west London, lost two stone on Slimming World. The 51-year-old had been suffering from bad indigestion, which she believes was brought on by her weight of 12 stone 9. “I felt sluggish and tired when walking long distances and was generally unfit,” she recalls.

She had only planned to lose half a stone, which she achieved in two months. But during the pandemic, she became concerned that being overweight would put her at risk of complications from the virus, so she continued the programme and walked 10,000 steps every day, which she continues to do “without fail”.

“I feel so much better about myself and I don’t want to go back to being ‘big Vicki’ again,” she says. “I’ve had many people compliment my new look, which has been a big source of encouragement. I feel a lot fitter and am able to do my steps with ease. This journey has shown me it’s never too late to improve yourself.”

Nutritionist Laura Southern of London Food Therapy says the most helpful thing people can do is stop eating early in the evening. “Eating within a 10-hour window gives your body a long time to use up all the sugars and not store them as fat.”

Meanwhile high sugar, ultra-processed foods have a detrimental impact on weight, satiety and cravings and disrupt your blood sugar, Laura explains. “Replace them with good fats such as nuts, seeds, avocado and olive oil which make you feel full.”

Laura also recommends filling up on protein and suggests plant-based versions including chickpeas and peas which are a source of fibre and fill you up, meaning you are less likely to have sugar cravings. “Make your diet as whole food-based and minimally processed as possible and eat three meals a day with no snacking. It will be slow progress, but it’s about making this change of lifestyle stick.”

thematchmaker.uk / @larabesbrode1

itssosimple.co.uk / @itssosimple_rs

londonfoodtherapy.com / @londonfoodtherapy)