WHENEVER Chris Penny walked down his street, people stopped and stared.
At 31 stone and wearing a size XXXXXXXXL, he was quite a sight. And with a BMI of 61 and a waist measurement of 54in, doctors classified Chris as super-morbidly obese.
Hooked on snacking, beer and fizzy drinks, Chris never tried to maintain a healthy weight — until he found a cause that changed his life.
When a friend lost her young daughter to leukaemia in 2013, Chris was inspired to do something in her memory to raise money for charity.
His first thought was a sponsored parachute jump, but Chris was told he was too heavy to jump safely.
Friends and family dug deep as they watched Chris deny himself takeaways and stick to strict meal plans.
Spurred on by young Louise Conway’s bravery before she finally lost her cancer battle aged nine, Chris stuck to his diet for two years, shedding 16st 8lb.
In that time he raised more than £4,500 for Children With Cancer UK.
The accountant lost nearly half his body weight and is now 14st 6lb. He also ditched his beard and long hair.
Chris, 36, says: “Family and friends had always urged me to lose weight for my own sake, but I always lacked motivation. I’d never tried to lose weight, but I finally had a real reason to try.
“I stuck to the diet and was actually eating bigger portions than before, but I just ate healthy foods and stopped snacking. The weight fell off and I stopped recognising myself in the mirror.
“When I reached my goal weight I couldn’t believe how far I’d come. I look and feel like a new person — and I’ve raised more than £4,500 for a wonderful charity.
”Chris, from Bexleyheath, South East London, had been overweight from childhood. All-day snacking on crisps and chocolate pushed him further towards obesity.
He says: “Eating and drinking has always been at the heart of my social life. At school I ate junk food and weighed 12st when I was 11.
“When I left secondary school I was about 22st and that quickly increased to 29st by my mid-twenties.
“I was the biggest among my friends and colleagues but I always pushed it to the back of my mind.
”At that weight, Chris was at high risk of heart disease, diabetes, gout, osteoarthritis and gallbladder disease.
But it wasn’t fears over his own health that pushed Chris into losing weight.
He says: “I’d met Louise several times. She was a beautiful little girl, bubbly and chatty, and to hear she was so unwell was very upsetting.
”Louise died on February 9, 2013. Chris says:
“I wanted to do something in memory of Louise, for the charity that supported her family throughout her illness.
“I considered a sponsored parachute jump but because I was so fat, I couldn’t do those sorts of things.
“Then I had a lightbulb moment. I could go on a sponsored diet. I’d never once attempted to lose weight but now I had a real reason.”
Chris set himself a challenge to lose 10st in one year and in June 2013 joined his local Slimming World.
He says: “Normal scales couldn’t weigh me because I was too heavy, but the club had some that could cope. I weighed more than 31st.
“It was tough at first, as I had to swap crisps and chocolate for fruit and cut down on beer.
”But after just a week, Chris had lost more than a stone.
He says: “I couldn’t believe how much I’d lost. The weird thing was I was eating bigger portions but of healthy food.
“And I was no longer grazing all day on snacks between meals.
“When friends and family saw the weight falling off me, they couldn’t believe how different I looked and were so supportive of the cause.”
By May 2014, Chris had shed the 10st and had his head and beard shaved as well to raise extra funds.
He says: “I’d reached my target but I wanted to keep it up to lose even more. I took up martial arts to keep fit and kept up the diet.”
By June this year, Chris had lost 16st 8lb. His new figure has also helped boost his confidence and led him to find love online.
He met admin worker partner Lucy Tucker, 36, on a dating site.
Proud Chris boasts: “When I showed her old pictures of me, she couldn’t believe it.”
And he can barely believe how different his life is now.
He says: “When I started, it was all about the charity and the sponsorship. But once I lost the weight, a whole new life opened up for me.
“Now, I’m so happy. I know I’ll never go back to being overweight again.”
Diet before:
BREAKFAST: Three croissants.LUNCH: All-day breakfast.
EVENING: Shepherd’s pie.
SNACKS: Three packets of crisps, three chocolate bars, a litre of full-fat cola and three pints of beer.
Diet after:
BREAKFAST: Scrambled eggs, grilled mushrooms.LUNCH: Chicken salad.
EVENING: Low-fat homemade beef curry.
SNACKS: Fruit and an occasional glass of wine
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