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A single father of two seems unrecognizable after his incredible weight loss helped him “reverse” his type two diabetes.
Dave Wood, 56, of Croxteth, who at his heaviest weight, 24 kilos, has two daughters: Ellie, 23, and Estelle, 18.
The culmination of life events and the turning to convenience food contributed to Dave’s weight gain and he was eventually diagnosed with diabetes and sleep apnea.
After years of eating junk food, from Mars Bars to bags of potato chips and fried teas, Dave started making small changes to his diet and took up his childhood hobby of Karate in 2014.
But it wasn’t until 2018 that he plucked up the courage to join Slimming World, a decision that he said completely changed his life.
Dave told ECHO: “I climbed up to 24 stones at my heaviest weight. It was 2002 and I was an IT manager in Lancaster at the time.
“I literally got in the car, stopped at a gas station and grabbed a coke, a candy bar, and a bag of chips and was driving up and down the M6 chewing.
“I really wasn’t realizing the damage he was doing to me.”
Dave, who was 38 at the time, said he had stopped exercising due to a knee operation he had to undergo after sustaining an injury while running a marathon.
His weight soon began to cause health problems and he was diagnosed with type two diabetes followed by sleep apnea after making separate visits to see his GP.
Due to sleep apnea, which affects his breathing and causes it to stop and start while he sleeps, Dave had his driver’s license taken away until he was given the treatment he needed.
(Image: Dave Wood / Liverpool Echo)
He said, “My diabetes actually affected my eyesight. They were a little blurry, but I went to see my GP and they did a diabetes test.”
“When they say you have diabetes all of a sudden all kinds of things go through your mind. It’s scary.
“They also told me that I had sleep apnea. I used a mask that breathes air through your nose and mouth when you are asleep.”
After being diagnosed with diabetes, Dave said, “I managed to throw four stones in a few years and went down to 8pm.”
In 2010, Dave became a single father to his two daughters, who were 8 and 13 at the time.
He said it was “a lot of things” that had contributed to his weight gain and his lifestyle became very hectic.
Dave said: “When I became a single parent, I cut back on the amount of trips I made to and from Lancaster and started working from home a bit.
“My lifestyle became very hectic. I was not exercising, it was for convenience and circumstance.
“When he arrived, he fed the girls, tidied them up, and took them to bed. Then he did the housework and ironed the uniforms for the next day. There was no real time to go and do things.
“We had a lot of fast food and fried teas. Now I look back and feel embarrassed. I rarely cooked from scratch because I felt like I didn’t have time.”
(Image: Dave Wood / Liverpool Echo)
Dave said, “My girls are my world. I wanted to be around to see them get married and stay as long as possible.”
“I’m thinking I’m going to die. What will happen to them? That was in the back of my mind.”
In 2014, Dave started losing weight after taking up his childhood hobby of Karate and was determined to work towards his black belt.
Despite losing a few pounds, Dave said his weight still took his breath away and affected his health, prompting him to join Slimming World in 2018.
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He said, “My daughter said ‘I’m going to Slimming World, do you want to come with me?’
“At first I was reluctant. I thought ‘that’s what women do. Men don’t do that.”
“Speaking as a single parent, there is very little for boys in what is traditionally seen as a female role.
“I thought it was going to be a bit like that and people were going to say ‘what are you doing here’, but that couldn’t be further from the truth.
“My daughter said ‘boys too.’ So I went and there were a couple of guys there who were very nice. I walked in and they made me feel very welcome.
“I wanted to remove that extra stone from my black belt that was my motivation.”
But Dave’s weight loss went much further and since he became a member he has lost four and a half pounds.
She now weighs 40 pounds and six months after starting Slimming World, she was told she no longer has type two diabetes or sleep apnea.
(Image: Dave Wood / Liverpool Echo)
Dave said: “My GP said ‘well we can take these blood pressure tablets from him and we can take these cholesterol tablets from him and he is no longer diabetic.’
“It was like someone told you that there is some time. Suddenly, I pressed restart.
“Now I have a good chance to see my daughters grow up and see my grandchildren.
“It’s phenomenal.”
Dave now has his black belt in karate and in January he signed up to be a consultant for Slimming World in Dovecot, hoping to help others.
He added, “If I can make someone else feel like I did when they told me I no longer have diabetes, then it’s all worth it.”
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