A CHARITY boss has told how he was inspired to lose weight in lockdown – after he realised he was on the cusp of being ‘morbidly obese’.
Andrew Irvine, 55, was 17.5 stone at his heaviest after indulging in takeaway fast food for lunch, and sweet treats at night.
But when lockdown hit, and his BMI was nearing a dangerously high level, he knew something had to change.
He said: “At the start of Covid, with the lockdowns, I thought it was an opportunity because I had wanted to lose weight, primarily due to concerns about my health.
“I was getting into my mid-50s, so if I continued to carry weight at that stage of my life, there was a real probability it would cause medical issues down the line.
“I was on the very edge of being morbidly obese. If you go online and you calculate your BMI, I was on the edge of being morbidly overweight.
“I had realised statistically I was in the danger zone, but when you read ‘morbidly obese’, it’s jarring.”
Andrew started to see his weight spiral after overindulging in takeaways, working as chief executive at the East Belfast Mission charity.
He said: “My difficulty was during the day at work, in the city centre all day, I would typically choose something unhealthy, around lunch time like a McDonald’s or KFC.
“And if I was at any meetings, with biscuits, scones or traybakes, I would definitely be partaking.
“The only thing I can’t avoid is temptation. Then after the unhealthy lunches, at night, I would probably have chocolate or biscuits.”
When lockdown hit and his favourite takeaways were forced to shut, Andrew took action however, and decided to sign up for Noom.
The app, is designed by behavioural psychologists and focuses on making easy, sustainable lifestyle changes rather than making dramatic and “restrictive” changes to your diet such as cutting out specific food groups or nutrients.
Users receive in-app health coaching from a personal trainer, and track their foods.
Andrew said he was surprised to see that many of his food choices he thought were healthy, were actually extremely high calorie or high in sugar.
UNHEALTHY CHOICES
He said: “ Everyone knows you shouldn’t be eating KFC every day but there were hidden things, like I hadn’t realised that granola was a problem. I used to have granola every morning.
“I thought because I was eating cereal that it was a healthy choice, but once I put it into Noom and realised how many calories was in my bowl, I was shocked.
“In the Noom app, it rates foods as green, amber and red and when I put granola in, it went red.
“There were other subtle things, like if I eat an orange it goes in green, but if I squeeze it in a glass, it goes amber, because it’s processed and is more sugary so those subtle changes made a big difference.”
Andrew, from Ballyclare just outside Belfast, cut out fast food and made small changes in his diet, and in doing so, he lost a whopping four stone.
His self-confidence has had a massive boost as a result.
He said: “I think I have always been an optimistic person, and I present myself as being a quietly confident person, but I think probably before the weight loss, there was an underconfidence inside, which I kept the lid on. I think weight loss has removed some of that.”
He also noticed a positive change in his energy, mood and efficiency at work.
ENERGY IMPROVED
He said: “Looking back, I would have found it hard to get out of bed, whereas now, I jump out of bed.
“I would have had indigestion in bed at times as well, I would have woken up at 3am with heartburn, but it has not happened since I started.
“I work on the second floor of the building, and very quickly I actually started to enjoy going up and down the stairs.
“Even my mental energy at work improved, I have to say I punched through a lot more work than I would have before.”
Now that the world has opened up again, Andrew said it is a work in progress keeping the weight off.
But at a slim 13 stone, he is determined to try his best to stay healthy.
He said: “It’s back to in-person meetings with buns, now and I had an 8am briefing with politicians this morning and we had bacon baps.
“I’m not going to lie, it is difficult but I am now using Noom as my primary way to hold on to the weight loss.”
