Bristol Mum’S Secret Blog Helps 4St Weight Loss

Join Claire on the startline of the Simplyhealth Great Bristol 10k. Enter at: Greatrun.org/Bristol10k

A woman from Bristol shed almost four stone before publishing a secret blog that documented her weight loss by taking up running.

Claire Tiley, 42, has lost an impressive four dress sizes in the space of a year.

She turned her life around from being a couch potato who had never taken part in any exercise to being an active mum of two who has signed up to a 10k challenge and joins in adventure sports with her daughters.

Running is now part of Claire and her family’s life and she decided to sign up for the Simplyhealth Great Bristol 10k on Sunday 7 May to take on the event with her husband, Jeff.

Claire attributes her weight loss to the motivation to set a good example for her daughters.

They inspired her to turn her life around along with the blog www.chunkyrunner41.com which she began to pen in secret.

After she took up running and began to lose weight, Claire was finally persuaded by her family to share her blog with the world and was blown away by the response.

She now returns to the previous blog posts that she would write when she was struggling to remind herself of how far she has come.

Claire said: “In December 2015 I attended a lot of corporate events through work and ate and drank a lot, I was a size 22 and never did any form of exercise.

“By Christmas Day, I was genuinely so sick of eating and drinking that I felt ready to do something about it. I started walking and hitting 10000 steps a day.

“My sister, who had run the Bristol half marathon in 2015, spent most of Boxing Day telling me that I could run if I wanted to.

“I started the couch to 5k programme as part of a health kick in January but I kept it secret and wrote a blog as an online diary for me.

“I was finally persuaded by my husband to share it with my Facebook friends and I was blown away by the response.

“Prior to starting running, I ate too much and didn’t do any exercise at all. Crisps, in particular, were my weakness!

“Couple that with sitting at a desk for 9 hours a day and you have a toxic combination.

“My biggest motivation for starting to take up running and lose weight in the first place was my daughters. I wanted to set them a good example by exercising.

“But it had to be a complete lifestyle change and it had to be sustainable in the long term. Diets have never worked for me. Running has given me control. If I’m going out for dinner, I make sure that I squeeze a run in on the same day.”

Claire will join Jeff at the couple’s second Simplyhealth Great Bristol 10k, which takes runners along one of the country’s most beautiful courses, along Avon Gorge and taking in the iconic Clifton Suspension Bridge.

Over 12,000 participants are expected to take part in the event, which also includes the Simplyhealth Great Bristol Family Mile, where children can join their family members to take on the run at Bristol Harbourside.

Claire turned her eating habits around and now enjoys treats in moderation and centres her life on a healthy diet.

She now updates her blog on a regular basis and documents her running progress in the hope of inspiring others to take on a challenge and to turn their life around.

She began to enjoy running so much; she decided to join Jeff for the Simplyhealth Great Bristol Half Marathon in September to mark the next stage of her journey.

Claire said: A typical day in terms of eating now would be porridge for breakfast, then snacks of nuts, apple, yoghurt, soup or salad for lunch, and then a normal dinner.

“I try not to eat bread on a week day and use it as a treat now rather than a staple part of my diet. I love a roast dinner but I try and make sure I run on a Sunday to earn the roast potatoes.

“I like to think that if I can do it, anyone can. Running events like this gives me the motivation I need to keep going.”

Entries for the Simplyhealth Great Bristol 10k and the Simplyhealth Great Bristol Family Mile are now open. Enter at: Greatrun.org/Bristol10k