Mikyla lost a stunning 10 stone and changed her life for the better
Thursday, January 1st, 2009
As a child Mikyla Dodd was a cheeky and loveable child and by her own admission greedy with a sweet tooth. She would regularly be offered treats and served adult size portions and as a result she developed an unhealthy overeating pattern steadily increasing her weight every year until she finally reached 24 and a half stone and a size 28.
Mikyla gets very emotional when she sees an over weight child, "Children need boundaries" she explains "parents are in control of what they feed their children, they should take more responsibility in learning about the food they feed their children".
If she were to campaign for anything it would be home economic classes and more education about the quality and ingredients of our processed foods. When she started to learn about food she was shocked at the salt and sugar contents of foods that she once thought were healthy "I used to eat a bowl of pasta and pesto not realising it was full of sugar."
Mikyla now cooks from scratch and even makes her own soups, the only time she needs to look at food labels is to buy things like ham, salads or sandwiches when she needs to grab something on the run.
"So many people think eating healthily is more expensive but it's possible to cook healthy meals on a budget." At first she worried that she would not be able to cook, and would get the recipe wrong but now she has learnt to be creative and doesn't worry about what she adds to her meals, "I hate to waste food so if there is broccoli in the fridge and I'm cooking mushroom soup, it goes in as well."
She worked with nutritionist Graeme Marsh, who set out rules for her to follow and is now able to make good food choices. She felt it was important to focus on food as much as fitness and insisted on an interactive nutrition section on her ‘Lose Weight Workout', DVD.mShe admits that even now her relationship with food is never going to be OK, but she commented, "At least I've learnt the weapons to fight the battle"
Asked what motivated her to lose the weight and she bravely admits that when she got on a plane she would always worry if the seat would be big enough, or if they would have to get out the seat belt extension, and the embarrassment of how everyone would then look at her. She also recalls having to regularly stand up on the London to Manchester journey because the train seats were too small, being out of breathe at the top of the stairs or not being able to find clothes to fit. As an actress in Hollyoaks I asked her if the media had put pressure on her to lose weight, but she explained that by the time she was in Hollyoaks she had already managed to lose 5 stone, too intimidated to join a gym, she exercised in her bedroom to fitness DVDs and gradually started to lose the weight.
By the time she has reached 19 stone she had started to face her demons. Seeing herself on TV had an impact on how she saw herself. She only had 2 photos of herself before she lost the weight, whenever the camera came out,mshe would always make some joke and end up grabbing the camera so that she was never in the photo. Seeing herself on the TV was coming face to face with the personmshe usually hid from.
Mikyla then lost a further three stone on Celebrity Fit Club, which she started to put back on soon after she finished their strict regime. At the age of 30 she decided to make the commitment to get to a healthy and happy weight and has now lost a further 3 stone using her plan featured on her ‘Lose Weight Workout' DVD. A big part of her weight loss was getting the balance right between eating correctly and also becoming physically fit, when she first started she couldn't do a single press up, she now proudly tells me that she is able to do a dozen press ups from her knees and one full press up, something she didn't think she would ever be able to do. When asked what her favourite exercise was she quickly said it was boxing, which she has included on the DVD, "Boxing is high intensity and each time I'm punching, I'm punching away the cakes and chocolates that made me fat" "The great thing about getting fitter is that the more calories I burns the more food I am able to eat", she still loves her food. Getting fitter and eating well means that she much more balanced and has become emotionally stronger.
‘Lose Weight Workout', devised by Mikyla's personal trainer Steve Rich is split into four Express sections focussing on Cardio Vascular, Boxing, Circuit and Core exercises as well as Warm Up and Warm Down so that even if you live a busy and hectic life you switch between sections. "Not everyone has the time to pack an bag, get to the gym and do a full hour work out so the DVD is a great way to fit in before or after work, or between the school run for busy mums."
The DVD offers varied exercise so that it keeps it interesting and fun and hopefully it's something that anyone can follow no matter how much weight they have to lose. I asked her what piece of advice she would like to offer to anyone who is about to embark on losing weight, after some consideration she decided that a little bit of exercise and a few adjustments to diet were the best way forward "Don't go the extreme" she warns, "suddenly starving yourself or going to the gym 5 days a week is not the way to go, gradual changes adjusting both diet and exercise a little at a time will help you build strong foundations."
Having lost a stunning 10 stone in all, Mikyla has found that at the age of 31 her life and health has changed for the better.
I feel fitter, stronger, more energised and for the first time in my life I can shop anywhere on the high street because the clothes fit me! Mikyla Dodd
