Lisa and Pete lose 20 stones between them!
Lisa and Pete Oakley from Fleetwood are celebrating a milestone fat loss achievement after collectively losing 20 stones (280lbs/127kg) in 18 months thanks to their coaching from Transform Hub.
The inspirational couple have completely transformed their mindset, body composition and discovered a love of exercise that has resulted in both changing their careers and now helping others.
Pete, a butcher by trade, almost died from Covid in December 2020 and spent four weeks in intensive care.
Pete almost died from Covid in December 2020 and spent four weeks in intensive care
‘The doctors said I called the ambulance with minutes to spare. Pete’s oxygen levels were so low he was only 30 minutes from death.’ said Lisa.
Luckily, Pete went on to make a recovery but this near-death experience wasn’t the catalyst for the couple’s dramatic shift in their habits.
‘It’s like we went the complete opposite way,’ said Lisa. ‘We had this attitude of ‘You only live once’ so we ate even more and drank a lot of wine every night and just piled on the pounds even more.’
Lisa had tried and failed for many years to sustain weight loss. ‘I was big as a kid and by the time I left school I was a size 18. I hated exercise and I had never set foot in a gym. So I always went on a diet, usually with Slimming World. I’d have success, lose weight, stop going, go back to eating and drinking the way I did before, and I’d put even more weight on than when I’d started. I got to the point where I just gave up.’
A visit to Blackpool Pleasure Beach with their children became the catalyst for change for Lisa and Pete
It was a family outing to Blackpool Pleasure Beach in June 2021 that changed everything for the couple.
‘My youngest daughter, Milena, was celebrating her 10th birthday. The year before she’d been too small to ride The Big One and so the next year, when she’d grown a bit, she was so excited about finally being big enough to ride. Unfortunately, I was too big to ride. The seatbelt wouldn’t reach over my stomach and I had no choice but to get off the ride and do the shameful walk back through the queue. I felt like I’d let my daughter down and I was so embarrassed. I felt like everyone was looking at me and judging me.’
Lisa decided to give Slimming World her all and she went to a meeting the next day. The reduction in what she was eating resulted in weight loss quite quickly. Pete found himself losing weight too as he started eating the same meals as Lisa. A year went by and both lost weight.
The couple knew they needed to make a change to feel better and be able to be more active with their daughters
‘The following summer, we were sat in Wetherspoons of all places. Pete was having a pint. I was talking about Slimming World again. Pete was frustrated his weight was up and down but he wasn’t actually attending the meetings, he was eating the same thing as me from my food plan. In the pub, as he was scrolling on his phone, Pete saw an advert for the Transform Hub in Fylde. He was impressed with the results other men were getting so he applied for the 6-Week Challenge.’
Pete started doing group personal training, getting nutrition support and accountability coaching. He saw results quickly and started to build muscle and get strong.
‘By the end of the 18 months since the Pleasure Beach ride incident, I’d lost 4 stone with Slimming World but it was getting harder and I couldn’t seem to keep it off. I was up and down with my weigh-ins each week and it was driving me crazy. Pete was having amazing success and kept asking me to join Transform Hub but I’d never even been in a gym before, let alone done exercise since school. Finally, when Transform Hub Fleetwood opened, I decided I had no excuse as it was 5 minutes from home.’
At Transform Hub Fleetwood, Lisa was greeted by Debra and Dan, the owners and coaches. Debra had been a member of the Fylde Hub herself before deciding she wanted to help people feel as good as she did and she opened her Transform Hub franchise.
‘There’s a picture of me at the first onboarding meeting from behind when Dan was speaking. It’s crazy comparing that to a picture of me now from the same angle. I was so nervous at that first meeting. I was the biggest person by far and I knew I had such a long way to go compared to others.’
On the left, Lisa at the Transform Hub Fleetwood onboarding meeting in March 2023 and on the right, 9 months later in January 2024 sitting in the same chair in the same jumper
Lisa wearing the hoodie she wore on her first day at Transform Hub Fleetwood showing off her fat loss 9 months later. Also pictured sharing the jumper with Transform Hub Fleetwood owners Debra Phillips and Dan Bittley.
Lisa has developed some incredible muscle tone while losing a vast amount of body fat in only 9 months of group personal training
Lisa had nothing to worry about. Coaches Dan and Debra gave her the personal support she needed in the group setting to get through the session.
‘The first one was so hard. I’d never done a shred of exercise in over 30 years and here I was, unable to sit on the toilet the next day because I was that sore! I had to go up the stairs backwards shuffling on my bum and I cried to Pete that I was too unfit to do it. He talked me around and made me realise that I had to persevere. I was serious about change and I had to stick with it. By the end of that first week, my confidence in my abilities had grown and things became easier very quickly.’
Lisa’s perseverance is what has been the secret to her success. Coach Dan Bittley, co-owner of Transform Hub Fleetwood said, ‘Lisa’s perseverance and her mindset shift has been the reason she succeeded. She’d never been in a gym and had gotten to a point where many people just accept where they are and think they can’t change. Lisa proves that this is not true and when you put your mind to something and stick it out, amazing things can happen.’
‘Lisa is like at an athlete level in the way she trains now and it’s important to note that she has only been exercising for 9 months! That’s it! She lost 3.5 stone before coming to us and in the last 9 months has shed a further 6.5 stone of body fat taking her total loss to 10 stone (140lbs/63.5kg).’
‘She hasn’t got loose skin and won’t need surgery either. That’s because she’s been supported to eat a diet high in protein and grow the muscle she already had - not lose muscle tone which leads to loose skin and the need for surgery.’
‘Pete is the same. That’s why the combination of group personal training and being supported to lift weights safely, nutrition support and accountability coaching works so well compared to simply trying to lose weight through diet alone. There’s a big difference between losing weight and losing body fat.’
Lisa and Pete’s new athletic abilities have seen them take up events like Tough Mudder, Park Runs, 5k and 10k races and fitness charity events. Lisa will be leading a team of Transform Hub members at Total Warrior this year.
‘Last year when I joined the Hub Dan was asking for people to do Tough Mudder and nobody said yes, apart from me. I was so worried that I would hold him back or not be able to do it. It was only 3 months after I’d started exercising and here I was trying to run 10k around a mud course. It was so hard but I did it and I felt so proud of myself after. I’ve been consistent with my running training because it was the running parts that were so difficult for me. I can’t wait to be one of the people encouraging others and helping them around, like so many people did for me.’
Lisa’s encouragement and ability to inspire others led to her being asked to be a Transform Hub Ambassador where she would mentor new members and help them through their thoughts and feelings starting the 6 Week Challenge. She’s since gone on to join the team in a part-time support role.
‘Lisa was perfect for this because whatever challenge, thought or feeling a member had, Lisa had been through it. She motivates so many people without even realising it. And she is an animal. I mean it. We’ve had coaches join in some sessions and Lisa’s beaten them all on reps, sets and her stamina. It has been truly remarkable to watch her change physically and mentally before my eyes. I bet the Lisa who started in March 2023 would never have guessed that future Lisa would be a weight-lifting, running, exercise-loving badass. She is a joy to be around. We love her.’
When asking Lisa about how the Lisa of the past would view the Lisa of the future, she said, ‘I never really knew how much weight I could lose. I just knew I’d always been big. I got to a size 20 for the first time since my twenties and thought “This is nice” and then I got to a size 18 which I haven’t been since I left school and thought “Wow” but now I’m a 12 - 14 and I genuinely haven’t been this size since I was like 12 or 13!’
‘My daughters love going clothes shopping with me now. In the past, I had to have things like elastic lace shoes because I couldn’t bend down to tie them or I just covered myself up with baggy clothes. I only wore a dress twice in the last 30 years; once at my own wedding and once at my sister’s. Being able to wear little skirts with tights and feel confident is amazing.’
The couple on their wedding day, one of only two occasions Lisa remembers wearing a dress before shedding 10 stones
Pete and Lisa before and after losing 20 stones collectively
Lisa is enjoying shopping with her daughters for dresses and finding new fashion trends now she feels confident
Pete’s incredible transformation means his style has changed too
‘Pete’s sense of style has completely changed too so we look better and feel better in ourselves. I used to measure his progress by wrapping my arms around him. At first there was a big gap, then I could just touch my hands and now they go all the way around!’
The couple also celebrated their loss by going back to the Pleasure Beach for their daughter’s 12th birthday.
‘In the queue, I was like “I hope it fits, I hope I can get in the seat” and Pete kept telling me to stop worrying. I got in the seat and as I easily fastened the belt I got choked up and emotional. Milena was next to me too and we both just put our hands up in the air the whole way around, feeling the wind rush in our faces. I’d done it. I’d done it for her too and it just felt amazing. I wanted to go on it again and again.’
When asked what advice Lisa would give anyone considering Transform Hub, she said, ‘If you’re thinking of joining, don’t think twice, just do it. You’ll try and talk yourself out of it by saying things like “I’m not fit enough, I’m too big, I’m bigger than other people, I can’t exercise” and I’m proof that you can be all of those things and still succeed.’
“We do so much more with our daughters now. We are an active family.”
‘You might worry about the cost or the time but look at me. It cost me the 6-Week Challenge and a year’s membership which I decided to pay up front. I’ve saved years and years of trying and failing. It took me 9 months and I would’ve paid 1000 times more than this to get to where I am now. I promise that if you persevere, everything will slot into place and you’ll love it.’
‘The support is incredible. You’re supported with everything; nutrition, exercise, mindset, hormones, poor mobility - whatever it is, the coaches can help. They are so understanding, non-judgemental and encouraging. They all make time for you and they’re invested in your success.’
For results like Lisa and Pete, get in touch and let’s chat about you, your goals and how we can help you at Transform Hub.