WORLD'S HEAVIEST WOMAN, WEIGHING A WHOPPING 85 STONE 10LBS

[Guest guest]

2 September 2005

I LOST 64 STONE!

I WAS THE WORLD'S HEAVIEST WOMAN, WEIGHING A WHOPPING 85 STONE 10LBS

Marissa And Katy Weitz

LYING in bed lie Bradford began her daily workout - clapping

along to a fitness video.

For as the world's heaviest woman this was the only exercise she

could manage.

But amazingly these small claps were the first steps in her record-

breaking weight loss which saw her shed 64 stone.

Not surprisingly, lie who had been 85 stone and 10lb, was

crowned the world's greatest slimmer.

Now the 61 year old wants to use her experience to inspire others

struggling with morbid obesity.

" I'm not proud of being the world's fattest woman - who would? But

I'm proud that I eventually turned my life around, " she says. " And I

lost weight the old-fashioned way - with diet and exercise.

" Even when I couldn't walk, I clapped along to workout videos. I did

that every day, I did what I could to build up a sweat.

" I know others suffer the way I did and I've got one message for

them - if I can do it then anyone can. It's about taking small steps

towards your goal. You can do it if you really try. I'm living proof

of that. "

lie, from Florida, had all but given up on life after decades of

over-eating and failed attempts to slim, but the US diet guru

called one day and changed her life forever.

" I have to thank for giving me back my self-belief. I may

not be perfect but I'm alive and I live a full and active life. "

lie's problems can be traced back to her habits as a child. When

she was 12, her foster mother died and she turned to food for

comfort.

" It was the only way I knew to make myself feel better. Why does a

drug addict use drugs? Why does an alcoholic drink booze? It was the

same thing for me. I was a foodaholic.

" My weight continued to rise until, at the age of 16, I weighed 21

stone 6lb. Other kids were nice to me, but you didn't have to bully

me to make me aware of my size. One boy offered me his desk one day

because it was the biggest in the class. It was meant to be a nice

gesture but it still hurt. " lie's weight continued to rise, but

it didn't seem to bother her new husband, Bob, whom she met when she

was in her 20s.

" He never minded about my size, and for the first time in my life I

was happy, comfortable and in love. Bob's mum was chubby so my

weight really didn't bother him. He said he loved me whatever. " The

couple had a child, their only son Rob, and stay-at-home mum lie

spent her days cooking, eating, and taking no exercise.

" I was just enjoying my cooking, and I just ate what I wanted. I

didn't give a damn if it was packed full of calories. It's not that

I binged but getting full just seemed to get harder and harder.

" I knew I was getting bigger and bigger but I avoided weighing

myself. When I finally did I discovered to my absolute horror that I

was 42 stone.

" I joined WeightWatchers, took up different diets - whatever they

had going I tried it. When I stuck to the diet, the weight came off.

But I'd get fed up quickly, abandon the diet and end up putting on

more weight. "

lie's problem was exacerbated by blood poisoning in her leg. She

was so large that when she was taken into hospital, they could only

accommodate her by tying two beds together.

lie had 12 operations to repair her leg, but it took 18 months

for the wound to heal and the weight kept piling on to the extent

that she could no longer get out of bed. Bob, who is 6ft 2in and 17

stone, became her full-time carer.

" Giving me a bath took nearly two hours - there was a lot of me to

wash. But the hardest part was watching my son getting older and

being unable to watch him in baseball games or Scout parades. I got

more and more depressed and, of course, turned to food for comfort. "

Soon all family life revolved around lie's bedroom. They even

celebrated Christmas there. Convinced there was nothing she could do

to change her life lie became profoundly depressed.

" I just wanted to die because it would give everybody a better

chance of having a nice life. What good was I? All I did was sit and

watch TV.

" My husband could have gone and got married again and had a little

brother for Rob. "

Things bcame so bad that in 1988 lie tried to take her own life.

" I took a load of painkillers. But because of my size, they only

made me sleep for two days. " It was soon after her failed suicide

bid, and after her weight topped 85 stone, that lie got the call

from fitness guru , who had heard about her from a

concerned friend. " We started talking and he said to me, 'God

doesn't make junk. You were born beautiful'.

" And I said, 'Well I don't think I'm worth the trouble to anybody.'

But just wouldn't give up - he sent me some exercise tapes

and a copy of his healthy eating plan.

" For weeks the boxes sat in the corner of the room, unopened.

Finally, I decided to give it a go. "

lie's new diet started with a breakfast of a fried egg with low-

fat spray oil, half a bagel and an orange. Lunch was soup or a

chicken sandwich and dinner would be turkey or a pork chop with

vegetables. " It was the healthiest plan I ever had - it put me on

about 1,500 calories a day. " Her exercise regime began by simply

clapping along to fitness videos - " It was the only movement I could

do, " explains lie.

But along with the diet, it began to work and the weight started

falling off.

Within a year she'd managed to lose over 30 stones. " It really was a

lot easier than I ever imagined it to be. And once I started to see

the benefits I didn't want to stop. "

A physiotherapist visited lie at home and got her on a programme

of movement - getting her to sit on the edge of the bed, then stand

up, walk to the living room and eventually to the porch outside her

house. When lie got down to 35 stone 10lb she took another

important step. She went to the supermarket for the first time in a

decade. From then on she slowly got her life back on track, until

she finally became a record breaker for the second time.

Because of a damaged lymphatic system that means she retains excess

weight, lie is still heavier than she would like to be. But at

22 stone, she's a world away from her old self and has a message of

hope for other dieters.

" I don't care how bad it's got - and let's be honest, nobody has

ever been as bad as me - as long as you can take a breath you're in

luck.

" Now take the first small step on the road to recovery. I'm proof

that even small baby steps can lead to great big improvements! "

WHAT

ROSALIE ATE..

THEN

BREAKFAST Coffee with 10 slices of cheese on toast and five large

pancakes with bacon and eggs

MID-MORNING SNACK Half a chocolate cake

LUNCH Four rounds of ham and cheese or turkey

sandwiches - with extra butter

DINNER A massive plate of mashed potato with pork chops or roast

beef and veg

SUPPER Large pizza or steak sandwich with fried onions and melted

cheese

NOW

BREAKFAST A fried egg with low fat oil, half a bagel and an orange

MID-MORNING SNACK A banana and an apple

LUNCH Chicken salad

DINNER Pork chops with veg

OBESITY IN THE UK: THE FACTS

Adult obesity in the UK has quadrupled in the past 25 years.

22 per cent of Britons are obese.

The number of obese children has tripled in the past 20 years.

17 per cent of 15-year-olds are classed as obese.

More than 30,000 deaths a year are caused by obesity in England

alone.

It costs the NHS £500million every year.

If you are worried about your health or a member of your family,

visit www. patient.co.uk for helpful information and advice on how

to lose weight.