'I weighed 20st when doctors said terrifying words - then I lost 6st with 2-step method'
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A man who had been overweight since his 20s and had a liver transplant in 2021, wasn't able to keep the weight down but managed to turn things around after joining his local Slimming World. After Dylan Simkin, 49, a maths tutor from Atherstone, Warwickshire, had his liver operation, he hit upwards of 19 stone and knew he needed to make a change. When he joined Slimming World, he was finally able to meet his weight loss goals. At 6ft tall, he weighed 18 stone (6½lb/117kg) but managed to lose six stone 1½lb/38kg since joining Slimming World. Here he shares his account of joining the weight loss group.
I’d carried extra weight since my 20s, eating and drinking whatever I wanted – more focused on having fun than my health. Although I knew I probably needed to lose weight, I told myself I was just a big guy so didn’t need to worry too much. But my lifestyle caught up with me though and I became very ill in December 2019, which was when I received my life-changing diagnosis - I needed a liver transplant.
Trying to take in the doctor’s words as calmly as I could, inside I was reeling. While my condition wasn’t a direct result of my weight, it was a result of my heavy drinking, and I knew I wasn’t helping matters by living an unhealthy lifestyle and being unfit. I ended up needing urgent hospital treatment and eventually had a liver transplant in 2021. While the transplant was what I needed to feel well again, I found the recovery very tough. It was major surgery that kept me off my feet for a long time. As I couldn’t be active post-surgery it made it even easier for me to gain weight – especially as I was cheering myself up with sweets, chocolate, cakes and pies.
