Dana and Rob are a married couple in their 50s with two adult children. Dana is a teaching assistant and Rob works in retail. In their free time they like gardening and DIY.
Dana told us how BeeZee Bodies helped the whole family lose weight, by showing them a different approach to eating.
What was your life like before BeeZee Bodies?
We had both hit a wall with weight loss and were wondering where to go next.
We always cook from scratch, with the occasional takeaway thrown in, but our meals were getting a bit boring and our portion sizes needed help. Crisps were a favourite snack in our house.
Exercise was only really while at work or gardening, as we find working life very tiring.
Why did you sign up?
Rob had some sleep apnoea and the GP suggested weight loss via BeeZee Bodies. We both wanted to lose weight and get healthier to live longer, so we joined together.
How has your lifestyle changed?
We have started eating more vegetarian dishes, we have much smaller portions and we bulk out our meals with extra vegetables. Crisps are now eaten much less often.
We did not see this as a diet or something that was hard to follow, the small changes were easy to make. We have both lost weight and we’ll continue with the process.
Our coach was very supportive and did not make any judgements about our lifestyle, she made it clear that small changes would make a big difference over time.
What did you find useful?
The information on portion sizes and labelling was brilliant, we both loved the visuals — such as using a custard cream to show extra calories or showing us a pound of fat. That sticks with me every time I weigh myself.
The recipes were brilliant too. We have found a couple which only take 20 minutes, so on days where we might have reached for the phone for a takeaway, we just make one of those instead.
We both downloaded an app to check our daily exercise, and I always try to do my 10 minutes brisk walking. We know we need to work on motivation for more exercise.
How did you find the home-based format of BeeZee Live?
We both work full time, so it was convenient for us to do the course from home. It was much easier to commit to, as you didn’t have to leave the house or be on camera.
We liked that you could ask questions, the sessions weren’t too long and the on-screen prompts were helpful.
What was the most valuable thing you learnt from your nutritionist?
We think the ethos of making small changes, rather than big unmanageable ones which would be hard to sustain, was a great way to manage day-to-day eating and exercise habits.
The nutritionists were helpful and non-judgemental, and we felt we could ask anything.
How would you sum up your BeeZee Bodies experience?
This programme has changed our lives for the better. We have all lost weight, and we are beginning to do more exercise. We are fully committed to continuing with the changes we have made.
BeeZee Bodies is unlike anything we have tried before. It is informative and educational.
We were sceptical when we first started, but we could not recommend it more highly.
*Not Dana and Rob’s real photo! They did not send us a photo so we have used a stock image.
