Cheryl Laidlaw, 41, is a web designer living in High Wycombe. After an injury, her life shrank and she gained a significant amount of weight that she struggled to shift. It was only when she prioritised herself again and made choices that fitted her life that she was able to completely transform her body and her health.
In May 2023, I fractured my ankle in two places after falling off a scooter – and my life hit a standstill. I’d previously done kickboxing twice per week and regular dog walks but now I couldn’t leave the house, let alone exercise (my dog went to live with my mum), and became very reclusive.
In the months and years that followed, I avoided exercise and stayed off my ankle – partly because I couldn’t put weight on it, partly out of fear of making it worse – but I didn’t really know about fitness or healthy eating.
I was also in a new relationship with a great guy who supported me, but he leaned into food being my only source of fun. We’d get takeaways all the time together. I gained two stones in a few months.
Originally I was a size 10, at 5ft 3 tall, but reached a size 14 and I refused to buy new clothes. I had just two pairs of trousers that fitted, which I rotated.
I tried every diet going but nothing worked and I’d just turn back to eating whatever I wanted. I knew I had to deal with it, but I kept putting it off. I felt out of control to be honest.
By the time I turned 40 in 2024, I felt stuck. I hated all the pictures taken at that birthday. I decided that 2025 was the year I had to get on top of this.
Ozempic was getting popular and my friends started using it. I have no problem with using these drugs but I knew it just wasn’t for me. For one thing, I didn’t have a high enough BMI to access it without trying something dodgy. Plus, I knew that for most of my life I had been two sizes smaller and this current weight was a result of circumstance and lifestyle choices, not who I was. So I knew in my heart I could be that size again, and I wanted to do it myself.
It was at a networking lunch in August 2024 that my life changed. I sat next to Mei, who turned out to be a Midlife Weight Loss and Strength Coach. We talked about my injury – I’d by then had an MRI that revealed I had three torn ligaments which was why I still couldn’t walk, and had surgery booked in for November.
Mei asked me what I was planning to do for the next few months and I told her, honestly, that I was going to live it up. I had a holiday planned and I wanted to enjoy it, which to me meant eating and drinking to my heart’s content.
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She seemed shocked and told me that that was the worst thing I could do. If I wanted the surgery to go well and to recover quickly, she said I should get as fit as possible. I turned back to that old excuse that I couldn’t because of the injury and I had no idea how to start. And Mei recommended I start strength training and work around the injury instead of avoiding it entirely.
So, that’s what I did. I ordered some dumbbells and a kettlebell and started following 30 minute videos on YouTube three times a week. I would make a deal with myself that I would just start, or just do 15 minutes, and end up doing the full workout nearly every time. It was only starting that was the hard part and I could feel myself getting stronger almost immediately.
Come surgery day I was all prepped and sat in my gown when the surgeon came to talk to me. He examined me and then, to my surprise, he sent me home – in just those two months of strength training I had fixed myself enough to no longer need surgery.
In January 2025 I was more determined than ever to get on top of things. So I signed up with Mei (it was the least I could do) and she worked with me on a plan to steadily transform my health. We worked entirely over Zoom and I continued doing just three 30 minute workouts at home, only this time the workouts were led by her.
I have bounds of energy now and I feel so much happierThey were strength-based sessions focused on progressive overload, squats, lunges, presses, and deadlifts, all tailored around my ankle. I started with light weights to build stability and then gradually moved up to heavier ones.
For the first time in my life, I was also really learning about food. I was honestly intimidated at first, convinced that she’d have me eating tiny meals. I delayed starting the meal plan because I didn’t want to starve.
But I couldn’t have been more wrong. She sent me some suggested recipes and when I actually took the time to look at them, I realised that they were actually proper meals – Greek yoghurt bowls with flaxseed, chia, and fruit for breakfast, three-egg omelettes with salad, avocado and protein bagels for lunch, and chicken or salmon with roasted vegetables, sweet potato for dinner. I realised I wasn’t meant to starve myself – I needed to fuel myself.
After three months, and noticing a lot of change in how my body felt and looked, I did graduate from my living room to the gym. I added in more workouts, and found myself actually looking forwards to them.
I loved my new way of eating – I avoided desserts and drinking, because I wanted to be serious about it, but I felt so good, I didn’t even miss it.
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I have lost two stone and I fit my old clothes again. The biggest change though has been in my energy. I honestly used to worry I had ME because I was so tired all the time. But I have bounds of energy now. I feel so much happier and I love going out for walks with my very active sister. And my dog loves it – she gets three walks a day and has lost weight too!
I started experiencing perimenopause this year and I am so grateful for all these changes I’ve made, as they’ve helped a lot with the symptoms. I still have my curry every week, my Sunday roast, and dessert when I want it. I drink less because of the perimenopause, but still enjoy a drink on a Friday or Saturday.
This is a way of life now. I’m so glad I put myself first and made sure it could work for me. It goes to show that if you find the right advice and right routine, you can do the same.
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