Chris Govus, 68 from Benfleet, had struggled with his weight for decades. His diabetes diagnosis made it even harder for him to make changes. Joining MoreLife was the beginning of a life-changing weight loss journey.

Chris was referred to MoreLife Essex services through his GP surgery in April 2021, following a review of his BMI.

Chris weighed 18.2 stone and his BMI was 37.8 before he joined the MoreLife adult weight management programme. He explained how living with diabetes for over two decades had impacted his life.

“I have been a type 2 diabetic for over 28 years. When I was first diagnosed, my GP told me it was irreversible. This gave me no motivation to change my eating habits and my diabetic medication steadily began to increase over the years.”

Once Chris joined the MoreLife programme in Essex, he started to gain the necessary skills and knowledge to make positive changes to his lifestyle. He started to monitor his blood sugar levels more carefully – something he rarely did before.

Chris said, “For many years, no matter how hard I tried to lose weight and keep it off, I failed. I was too fond of the ‘wrong’ kind of food and had little willpower to control the quantities that I ate.”

“MORELIFE HAS GIVEN ME THE MOTIVATION AND DETERMINATION I NEED”

The MoreLife programme helped Chris understand more about food. He found the information about understanding food labels particularly helpful. To have food labels concisely explained by his practitioner, Nadine, helped him make healthier habits.

Nadine, Chris’s practitioner, commented on his progress in the programme, “Chris did a weekly food diary and tracked his blood sugars twice a day, this educated him on foods that would spike his sugar levels. Then he would swap that food out for an alternative and have a smaller portion.

He was a pleasure to have in my group he was upbeat and encouraged the other members every session.”

During his time on the MoreLife adult weight management programme, Chris lost over 3 stone on and managed to reduce his diabetic medication by almost 75%.

Alongside learning more about food, Chris was able to get more active too. He found joy in working in his allotment, which benefited both his physical and mental health, especially over the lockdown period.

He said, “I could have really struggled during Covid, but the allotment was my bolthole. It meant I could exercise and enjoy the fresh air. It helped me massively.”

Chris is confident that he can keep the weight off and maintain the healthy habits that the MoreLife team taught him. He said, “I’m so grateful to the MoreLife team and programme. It’s been a remarkable success story for me. I feel much healthier and happier. MoreLife gave me the motivation I needed.”

Having lost 3 stone and reduced his diabetes medication, Chris continues to enjoy working in his allotment and living a healthier lifestyle.