Derbyshire mum who ballooned to 20 stone loses almost half her body weight thanks to wrestling

A Derbyshire mum who ballooned to 20 stone has shed almost half her body weight '“ by becoming an amateur WRESTLER.
Katrina Rees, before and afterKatrina Rees, before and after
Katrina Rees, before and after

Katrina Rees, 33, spent years gorging on Chinese takeaways and chocolate desserts, all washed down with sugary fizzy drinks.

At her heaviest, the mum-of-three was munching through up to 3,000 calories a day and tipped the scales at 19.13 stone.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

She decided to take drastic action when she was so bulky she couldn’t even manage to walk two-minutes to pick her children up from school.

Katrina Rees, before and afterKatrina Rees, before and after
Katrina Rees, before and after

Katrina joined Slimming World and joined a wrestling class at her local gym.

Incredibly, in just 18 months Katrina has shed seven-and-a-half stone and now weighs an athletic 12-and-a-half-stone.

She has also dropped four dress sizes from a size 22 and is now a curvy size 12.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Katrina, of Derby, now trains five times a week and competes in wrestling bouts using the stage name ‘Cherry Skye’.

At her heaviest, Katrina weighed over 19 stoneAt her heaviest, Katrina weighed over 19 stone
At her heaviest, Katrina weighed over 19 stone

She said: “I took up wrestling 18 months ago and I’ve never looked back. I’ve never felt fitter and don’t even recognise old photos of myself.

“My decision to lose weight and change my lifestyle started four years ago when I stood on the scales and to my horror saw that I weighed 19 stone 13 pounds.

“In my brain that was the point of no return. I told myself ‘I’m not going to be 20 stone.’

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“I only live a two-minute walk away from my children’s school but it might as well have been a hundred miles.

Since shedding seven and a half stone, she has become an amateur wrestlerSince shedding seven and a half stone, she has become an amateur wrestler
Since shedding seven and a half stone, she has become an amateur wrestler

“One day I felt so out of breath walking to school that I had to ring round to get someone else to pick them up in the afternoon.

“I literally didn’t have the energy to put one foot in front of the other.

“While I drove my car to the school in the end, I was struggling so much physically that I needed to change something.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“I had stopped using my gym membership and just didn’t exercise at all.

Katrina now trains five times a week and competes in wrestling bouts using the stage name Cherry Skye.Katrina now trains five times a week and competes in wrestling bouts using the stage name Cherry Skye.
Katrina now trains five times a week and competes in wrestling bouts using the stage name Cherry Skye.

“I was lazy and would just eat junk like takeaways, meals out and frozen food.

“I never ate any breakfast because I was busy getting the kids ready for school and I’d tell myself that meant it was okay to eat loads of fast-food.

“One thing I did enjoy was sitting on the sofa eating and watching fighting films.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“When I’d decided to lose weight and change my lifestyle I thought how much I’d love to do something physical and wrestling just seemed the perfect fit.

“I love the fighting side and as a film lover it’s great to choreograph my own character, and create plot twists.

“I perform in my local area and I'm going to do a big show soon.

Katrina dropped four dress sizesKatrina dropped four dress sizes
Katrina dropped four dress sizes

“To stand up in front of people in hot pants and a tiny crop top shows how much my confidence has grown.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“I would have laughed at you if you told me I’d be doing that three years ago. Sometimes I answer to Cherry more than Kat.

“Losing weight can be quite scary, but it’s possible and so worth it.

“I just made myself tiny goals every month and my confidence just grew which really helped me keep the weight off.”

Katrina, a caretaker at Roe Farm Community Centre in Derby joined the Chaddesden Slimming World group in Derby, in 2016

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Katrina’s weight loss has been supported by husband Kevin, 33, and their three children Jamie-Leigh, 17, Jessica, ten, and seven-year-old Max.

Slimming World consultant Jayne Duckels said: “I'm super proud of Kat and all that she has achieved. She's an absolute inspiration in group."

Katrina's diet before

Breakfast: Nothing.

Lunch: Cheese sandwiches. Chocolate bar. Fizzy drink.

Snacks: Family-size bag of crisps.

Dinner: Chinese takeaways. Chocolate dessert.

Drinks: Energy drinks

Calories: 3,000

Katrina's diet now

Breakfast: Bananas and apples, and yoghurts.

Lunch: Lean pork or chicken with lots of vegetables.

Dinner: Butternut squash soups. Sugar-free jelly.

Drinks: Zero calorie energy drinks. Water.

Calories: 1,000