A diabetic man from Glasgow who was told he could lose a limb if he didn't start looking after himself has shared his incredible weight loss transformation. At 20st 5lbs, Derek Gray struggled to do everyday things like tie his shoelaces and other basic tasks.
Then, during an annual check-up, the 47-year-old was warned by his GP that he could face losing an arm or a leg by the time he was 50 if he didn't get his blood sugar and weight under control. Determined to get his life back on track, Derek has since lost over five stone after signing up for the NHS' Weight Watchers health referral plan.
He was initially hesitant to join the programme, and was able to lose 1st 1lb by himself. However, he quickly realised that he would need more help if he wanted to see a significant drop in his weight, according to Glasgow Live.
Since starting his weight loss journey in May 2019, Derek has slimmed down to 14st 9lbs and has gone from a 44-inch waist to a 32-inch. He has also dropped five shirt sizes, from a 5XL to an XL.
Derek, from Lenzie, said: "I hated trying to buy clothes as I was limited to what and where I could buy things from and being a size 5 XL made the job difficult. I always had to look for shops online that sold big sizes and only certain shops would stock clothes so big.
"So, although I felt ok, when I think about my everyday life, there was quite a lot of struggles to being overweight.
"My wife and sister-in-law encouraged me to join, and my sister-in-law also said she would go with me as she too was already a WW member. I had nothing to be embarrassed about, and the support from my family has been amazing.
"I had set a goal weight with the WW coach and that was the first steps of my journey with WW and getting me where I needed to be, I managed to reach my goal weight by the November 2019 with the help of WW and its plan, so with this and determination I done what I had set out to do and in the process I managed to reverse my diabetes, and reduce my medication tablets from 10 to just one.
"My lifestyle has changed as I feel more active and better within myself, I don’t struggle to do more physical things as much as I did before my journey started."
Before joining Weight Watchers, Derek would scoff down junk food and takeaways for dinner at least five days a week. He wouldn't think twice about his diet, and would often indulge in sweets, crisps and cakes.
Now, Derek has dramatically changed his eating habits and hasn't had a domino's pizza - a former staple of his diet - in over three years.
He added: "Now I eat low fat yogurt with a few healthy ingredients added to bulk it up slightly for breakfast almost everyday lunch can be the same thing as breakfast or a can of soup and a packet of lower fat healthier option crisps, dinners are home cooked and smaller portions with healthier choices and even more salad on a regular basis.
"I now enjoy shopping for new clothes and seeing a difference in what and where I can shop without difficulty, I feel I can walk and do more activity now and I also don’t feel as lethargic as I did.
"I’m going to Cyprus in August and have to say I’m so excited about going abroad, with my new body, mind, and confidence. My activity level was never great and still isn’t, but I do feel I big difference when I do need to do more, I walk more than I used to and further than I could without need to rest so I’d say all in all it has made a big difference to my health and activity.
"My tips would be to point, track and stick to your plan. Don’t beat yourself up if you don’t get a result every week, just stick in and keep going. WW works so just believe in yourself and you will achieve what you want.2
"A big thank you to the NHS and Weight Watchers for giving me my life back."
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