Lifestyle
‘Horrific’ Photo Made This Dad Lose Half His Weight in a Year without Medication. He’s Since Dropped 220 Lbs.
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A U.K. dad of two was inspired to change his diet and start exercising after he saw his wedding photos, saying he looked “horrific” in the images
Dale Forrest, 38, first limited his calories before walking 10,000 steps a day — and within three months, had lost nearly 100 lbs.
He said he didn’t turn to GLP-1 medication to lose weight because he wanted to see what could be done “naturally”
A father of two lost more than 220 lbs. — without using medication — after his “horrific” wedding photo inspired him to change his diet and begin exercising.
For Dale Forrest, 36, weight has always been a struggle. Ten years ago, he lost nearly 200 lbs. by giving up alcohol and watching what he ate, according to the Daily Mail.
However, the weight piled back on, he said, as he struggled with declining mental health and self-confidence.
SWMRsurgery / SWNS
Dale Forrest with his son Bailey before he lost half his size.
“I was living alone in a studio apartment. All my mates had girlfriends, wives and kids and I was just lonely,” Forrest, who hails from the English town of Bolton, said. “I also didn’t like my job at the time. As soon as I put a little weight back on, everything just spiraled.”
His mental health improved after met his now-wife, Kat, in 2021, and they welcomed two sons, Bailey, 3, and Tate, 1.
But the weight stayed on — until September 2024, when Forrest saw the pictures from his wedding.
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“I thought I looked horrific,” Forrest said, per the Daily Mail. “The first thing I said to my wife was, ‘I need to make a change.’ “
At the time, Forrest started his day with three pasties — a savory meat-filled turnover — and ended it with pizza and beer. But after seeing the photos, Forrest said he threw away all the snacks in the house “so they weren’t there to tempt me,” and limited his caloric intake.
The goal, he said, was to lose enough weight to begin exercising.
“I was so unhealthy to the extent that I couldn’t walk 100 meters [0.06 miles] before feeling tired,” he said. “I knew I wouldn’t be able to exercise until I had lost some initial weight.”
William Lailey / SWNS
Dale Forrest in the pants he wore to his wedding.
A month later, he’d lost nearly 30 lbs., and began walking, aiming for 10,000 steps a day. By December 2024 — three months after he first saw the wedding photos — he’d lost nearly 100 lbs., and began hitting the gym, something he described as “terrifying.”
“I thought everyone was looking at me thinking, ‘Why is this guy here?’ ” he shared. “I was self-conscious of my body, but especially my legs.”
Nearly a year after he started his fitness journey, Forrest is training for a charity boxing match, and now weighs about 210 lbs. — half of what he weighed in September 2024.
Although he said he “did this the hard way,” he explained that he didn’t pursue a GLP-1 medication because “I wanted to see what I could do naturally and what was possible.”
He now shares his continued fitness journey on TikTok, where he said in one video that his sons are “my reason for living, getting healthier, and improving my quality of life.”
SWMRsurgery / SWNS
Dale Forrest before (left) and after his weight loss; He’s now training for a boxing match.
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“Good old fashioned exercise and diet got me here,” he said, per the Daily Mail. And here, Forrest said, is a place where he “can now play with my children. Before I [lost the weight], I used to tell them to play with their mom.”
He added, “It’s nice when they ask, ‘Daddy, can you put me on your shoulders?’ and I can be there for them. It’s the best decision I have ever made.”
Read the original article on People