At the age of 27, Claire Crowthers faced some harsh criticism.
As a midwife, she was assisting a patient when her patient’s husband felt the need to make a comment on her weight.
“I was mortified and although I knew he was right, the fact that a total stranger had passed a comment left me feeling upset, but also determined to change myself,” said Claire.
She realized that she had allowed her weight to get out of control. She worked shifts as a student midwife, which left her busy with little time to exercise or get on a regular eating schedule.
At her heaviest, she was 5’3” and 200 pounds.
She was so dissatisfied with her appearance that she refused to marry her then fiancé, Stephen, until she could do something about it.
She and Stephen signed up for their local slimming club, and she lost 56 pounds. Then the couple signed up for a fitness club.
She then lost another 30 pounds, at which point she felt comfortable saying yes to her fiancé.
“I could finally go buy a wedding dress with confidence, knowing that I wouldn’t look like a ‘fat bride,’” she said.
But that wasn’t the end of their fitness journey. They have a Facebook page and Instagram, where they document their training sessions and nutrition plans. She says the support from Stephen was essential.
“Working to a goal together felt great,” she said. “We can’t believe that we both have ripped abs now when a few years ago we had rolls!”
But of course, she can’t discount her personal accomplisments.
“I have now transformed my body twice, firstly from obese to healthy and now from healthy to athletic,” she says. “I feel amazing, my health is improved, and I no longer hate the person standing back at me in the mirror.”
