‘I was so fat I wore two pairs of leggings, now my partner gets asked who his new girlfriend is,’ says mum who shed 16st
A MUM who was so self-conscious of her 27st body that she wore two pairs of leggings ‘to cover her legs and bum’ has lost a staggering 16st in just 15 months.
Gemma Loveden, 37, was miserable with her weight and was unable to be the parent she desired to her six children.
She called herself the ‘bag mum’ - the one who stood with the kids’ belongings while they went off to play or do things she couldn't.
But now, after her drastic transformation, people ask her partner of two decades, Guy, 43, who his new girlfriend is.
Gemma, from Merseyside, gained weight throughout all six pregnancies and as a busy mum, ate lots of sugary snacks and takeaways, along with extra large portions.
She says: “I wore two pairs of leggings at a time to cover my legs and bum, so I was always hot and sweating.
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“I was way too fat for normal chairs and couldn’t fit on swings or on rides with my kids.
“I felt like I wasn’t being the mum I wanted to be.
“At my heaviest, I was taking painkillers every night because my joints were excruciatingly painful.
“I would cry myself to sleep because they hurt so much, and I was constantly waking in the night and having to physically lift myself over to my other side.”
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Gemma hated the way she felt and looked, but it was a doctor’s warning that pushed her to take action.
After her sixth child, she was told she could die before 40 if she didn’t slim down.
Her weight was contributing to her asthma, high cholesterol, and pain in her joints.
Gemma, who has over 85k members in her family food-inspired Facebook group, said: “I spent years not looking how I wanted, but it took a warning from the doctor, plus the devastating loss of a friend to shock me into doing something about it.”
At school, she was always taller than her friends but as the years passed, she became bigger too.
At 13, she started Slimming World – the first of many diets she’d try during her life.
By 17, she had moved out of home and in with Guy, and the couple lived on takeaways.
At 19, she fell pregnant with their first child, Crystal, during which she craved Ribena and sugary foods.
By the time she gave birth, Gemma was over 20 stone.
After that, she ate “anything and everything”, and when Crystal was six, Gemma and Guy had their second child, Curtis.
Gemma then had four back-to-back pregnancies, and her weight spiralled out of control.
Obese and depressed, she kept trying everything to lose weight, yo-yo dieting, shakes, fad diets, even starving herself. But nothing worked.
She said: “I started my Facebook group Foodie Family Meals in July 2021, to share my nutritious, hearty and affordable meals, and couldn’t believe it when the members just kept on joining.
“I was eating good food and healthy ingredients, but far too much of it.
“Being overweight was horrible. I was so embarrassed to be big. People stared, laughed, and made gestures to me in the street.”
Death of friend sparked motivation
After having her sixth child, the scales tipped at 27st 7lb and Gemma wore a dress size 28.
It was at this time she lost a friend and fellow mum, which altered her mindset.
“I was distraught to lose a friend to cancer, and she was just a few years older than me,” said Gemma.
“She died leaving her two little ones behind due to no fault of her own.
“It broke my heart and I thought, ‘What am I doing?’
“I was carrying all this weight and had health problems to go with it, and it was all down to me and my unhealthy lifestyle.
“My grief switched something in me. I couldn’t leave my children behind. I wanted to change.”
Guy has even had people ask who his new girlfriend is – not realising it’s still me, just less than half the size!
Gemma
When a doctor warned that her obesity could kill her before she reached her 40th birthday, she didn’t wait a second longer.
Gemma said: “I told my doctor I had tried everything to lose weight and that I had six children who I couldn’t be active with.
“Then I asked him if I could have weight loss surgery. I’d always said I was ready to change, but now I actually was.”
Gemma was referred and after going through weight management, mental health checks and being told to lose five per cent of her body weight, she went ahead with the NHS surgery in October 2022.
She says: “On the day of surgery, I was shaking, petrified. I nearly walked out but thankfully, I didn’t.
“I had a mini gastric bypass which involved one cut to the bowel as opposed to two.”
For the first few weeks, Gemma was on a liquid diet. After that, she could barely manage a slice of wafer ham, half a Babybel, or a few sips of milk each day.
But with time, she was able to eat what she cooked for their family of eight, but much smaller portions.
The parent I am today is just everything, it’s a dream come true.
Gemma
Within eight weeks, she had lost four stone. The weight kept falling off and she is now a whopping 16st lighter.
She weighs 11st 7lb and wears a dress size 10-12.
Gemma says: “After losing more than half my body weight, my confidence has grown in terms of self-belief.
“When I had the surgery, I was hoping to lose 7st. So to lose 16st in 15 months is just madness.
“Guy has even had people ask who his new girlfriend is – not realising it’s still me, just less than half the size!
“It certainly wasn’t easy, but I was so relieved to have had the surgery.
“No words can express how I feel to be an active and involved mum.
“I used to call myself the ‘bag mum’, the one who stood with all the kids’ stuff while they ran around or went on rides.
“Now I’m on the rollercoasters and bumper cars with them, asking which ride we can go on next.”
Gemma and Guy are busy parents to their six children, Crystal, 18, Curtis, 12, Cassius, seven, Clayah, five, Creeson, four, and Carmelo, three.
Gemma says: “I still cook for everyone and continue to share meals on my Facebook group, I just have a much smaller portion for myself.
“And if I cook something like sweet and sour chicken for example, I will make a low-sugar version. I love that I can still eat what my family eats.”
Along with Gemma’s body changing, so has her wardrobe.
The mum-of-six has swapped her massive leggings for dresses, miniskirts and pretty blouses.
She has a job in a school and has now gained the confidence to train to be a teaching assistant.
Gemma says: “I am enjoying every minute of life with my partner and six kids. I have some loose skin but it’s not too bad.
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“Before losing weight, I never thought I was good enough to do anything.
“Now I’ve grown immensely as a person. Being the parent I am today is just everything, it’s a dream come true.”
