An asthmatic 20-stone father who loved large portions and family-size trifles has revealed how he swapped his unhealthy habits and lost nearly 8st in just 12 months.
Ad van der Rest, 56, from Maidenhead, said his lightbulb moment happened as he watched his daughter run the Brighton marathon last year – while he ‘gasped for breath’ struggling to walk to the finish line.
The married father-of-three had suffered with asthma for 50 years, and it was so bad that in April 2019, he was in hospital to have his lungs ‘washed’ because they were so clogged.
After discovering NHS-backed healthy eating plan Second Nature the following month, 6ft Ad now tips the scales at 12st 4lb. He also runs three-mile (5km) races and hasn’t used his asthma inhaler since last year.
Asthmatic 20-stone father Ad van der Rest, 56, from Maidenhead, who loved large portions and family-size trifles has revealed how he swapped his unhealthy habits and lost nearly eight stone in just 12 months
Ad, a HR consultant, said: ‘I’m tall and I’ve always been quite large shaped, large chested.
‘But when you go beyond the largest shirt size and suit size in the shop, clothes become much harder to find. At my heaviest, I was wearing an XXXL.
‘I had tried to eat healthy myself. But I can’t stand salads, and I didn’t want to starve myself.
‘Then I stumbled across Second Nature on Twitter – it was luck.’
Ad, who lives with his school teacher wife Gill, 56, said before losing weight he enjoyed tucking into crisps, Creme eggs, KFC, sausage rolls, pie and chips – and would devour an entire family-size trifle to himself.
He wore an XXXL in clothes and was ‘appalled’ at the idea of working out, having ‘never stopped foot in a gym’.
Ad said his lightbulb moment happened as he watched his daughter run the Brighton marathon last year – while he ‘gasped for breath’ struggling to walk to the finish line. Pictured: Ad’s daughter Jasmine, who is a keen runner
After discovering NHS-backed healthy eating plan Second Nature, 6ft Ad now tips the scales at 12st 4lb – he also runs three-mile (5km) races and hasn’t used his asthma inhaler since last year
But he has since dropped to a large size and regularly goes running.
Having been diagnosed with asthma as a child, Ad – who has lost a third of his body weight – regularly used an inhaler.
Since losing weight, he has not had to use the inhaler as much.
Ad said: ‘I increasingly struggled with my breathing and used to huff and puff just crossing a car park. I was gasping for breath on a daily basis because of my weight.
‘I’ve suffered with a little light asthma for 50 years, but given my increased weight, my GP prescribed 15mg immune-suppressant steroids every day so that I could cope.
‘In April 2019, weighing 20 stone, I had to go into hospital to have my lungs “washed”. They were clogged. Think of it like jet washing a car.
‘Thanks to losing weight, I’m down to 1mg steroids a day and haven’t used my asthma inhaler at all this year, and will be coming off that.’
Ad, who has three grown-up daughters, said it was when Jasmine, 22, ran the Brighton Marathon last year, that he realised he had to do something about his weight and fitness.
‘I was huffing and puffing, struggling to walk the 1.5 miles from the start line, over to the finish line – and Jasmine was running a marathon!,’ Ad said.
The married father-of-three had suffered with asthma for 50 years, and it was so bad that in April 2019, he was in hospital to have his lungs ‘washed’ because they were so clogged
Ad, who lives with his school teacher wife Gill, 56, said before losing weight he enjoyed tucking into crisps, Creme eggs, KFC, sausage rolls, pie and chips – and would devour an entire family-size trifle to himself. Pictured: The father now regularly goes on three-mile (5km) runs
‘I knew there were plenty of diet sheets I could get from my GP, but it didn’t address sugar or feeling hungry.’
After signing up with Second Nature, which now has 30,000 users and is being trialled by the NHS, Ad was sent smart scales and given access to a health coach on a daily basis.
He said: ‘I typically eat Greek yoghurt with Alpen for breakfast, lunch is chicken with vegetables, and dinner is omelette or fish or meat with a plate of veggies – carrots, beans, sweetcorn and peppers.
‘The first surprise for me was portion control.
‘My go-to snack was cheese and crackers – I would have up to 18 in the past. But my health coach advised me to have two – so that was a big revelation.
‘The weight loss model did the job for me – somebody who can’t cook, doesn’t like dieting, doesn’t like salads – and it works.
‘It’s the science behind it – and finding the clever way of doing it; the foods that allow the weight to come off.’
The programme looks to not only ‘rewire’ unhealthy eating habits, but also focuses on exercise and sleep.
Ad said: ‘I’ve also found I enjoy walking. I grumbled when my steps were increased from 5,000 a day to 6,000 – now I’m up to 8,000.
‘After Christmas, I did my first couch to 5K. I struggled to do a 60-second run. Last week I did three 5K runs in one week.
‘How have I lost so much weight? I’ve followed the rules – persistently. That’s it. And it’s worked for me.
‘If I can do it – anyone can do it.’
Ad lost more than a stone in the first week, and had seen steady weight loss since then.
He said: ‘One thing that has kept me motivated was a visual reminder of how much weight I have lost.
‘I have a washing basket, and each time I lost 1kg in weight, I would put a 1kg hand weight in the basket, and lift it up to feel how heavy it was. It was a wonderful visual.
‘Then, when it got to 25kg, I switched it. I put in the amount of 1kg weights I needed to reach my target weight, and I remove one each time, I lost 1kg in weight.
‘To start with, my family thought “What on earth is he doing? He’ll never stick to this”. But now they’re really pleased. I feel literally 2/3rds of the person I was.’
Ad also revealed he is pleased to have lost the weight pre-Covid-19.
He said: ‘Whilst the chances of getting into serious trouble remain remote, it’s good to feel physically stronger, healthier and under a much lower level of medication.
‘Covid-19 and other diseases will remain a risk. I don’t think there is ever a bad time to be losing a few pounds or kilos.’
Ad with his wife Gill and three daughters before losing weight