A man who piled on the pounds while caring for his dying husband has lost 4st by eating 'yellow sticker' discount foods - saving himself hundreds of pounds. Dean Simpson-Humphreys, 46, became a full-time carer to husband Gary, when he was diagnosed with a tumour on his spinal cord.
Initially, hospital visits on top of his full-time job took their toll on Dean, and he coped with his new schedule by turning to fast food. He'd have takeaway for breakfast and dinner - with a lunch from the hospital canteen, and ballooned to 18st.
But when he realised he had to care for himself and Gary, he joined Slimming World in 2018, and lost 4st, and now weighs 13st 12lbs. Dean lost weight by picking up food once a week from the bargain 'yellow ticket' sections at his local supermarket.
He would mainly buy fruit and vegetables from the yellow sticker aisle, which he used to make fakeaways, salads and soups. He also discovered food waste initiatives such as Liverpool Zero Waste and Too Good to Go, which connect people to unsold food from shops and restaurants in a bid to save it from being binned.
Gary died in June aged 40 - but Dean is continuing to be healthy for himself. Dean, a former recruitment manager in the NHS, is now training to become a Slimming World consultant and often cooks bargain meals for his two elderly neighbours too.
Dean, from Liverpool, Merseyside, said: “We had to go on to benefits and money was a lot tighter than it had ever been. I couldn’t just go to the shop, buy anything and not think about the price anymore.
"At first I felt ashamed putting the yellow sticker foods in my basket, but then I realised someone was going to buy them and it was better than it all going to waste. I would get a joint of pork for £5 in the yellow label section, freeze it and then every Sunday I’d make a roast for eight of us with meat, roast potatoes and loads of veg and it would cost less than £10 in total."
Dean and husband Gary Simpson-Humphreys, who was a nurse, first joined Slimming World in 2010 to lose weight ahead of their wedding in 2011. Dean lost 4st and maintained his target weight successfully until Gary fell ill in February 2016.
He was diagnosed with a tumour on his spinal cord and left with chronic liver disease and organ failure too. Dean said: “I wasn’t sleeping or looking after myself at all – I’d have a drive-thru fast food breakfast, lunch would be something from the hospital canteen and I’d grab a takeaway for my tea on the way home from the hospital.
"It’s no surprise my weight went back up and I ended up on anti-depressants too. I knew I had to start looking after myself or I would never be able to look after Gary.”
Dean had always enjoyed being creative in the kitchen and soon found he relished the challenge of whipping up a healthy meals. He began sharing his recipes and ideas on his Instagram channel, where he now has more than 2,500 followers.
He said: “I’ve always loved my food and I’ve always had this thing for dissecting dishes and seeing how they’re made and how I could make them myself. When I joined Slimming World, I turned this into a challenge of how I could make Slimming World versions of meals I enjoyed – like chippy teas, curries and roast dishes.
“It amazed me that there wasn’t anything you couldn’t have and often we’d have dinner parties and no one would have a clue they were eating a Slimming World-friendly dinner."
Dean's diet before
Breakfast - Drive-thru double sausage and egg sandwich and hash brown with orange juice
Lunch - Beetroot and goat’s cheese ciabatta
Dinner - Chinese or Indian takeaway
Snacks - Two packets of crisps, one chocolate bar and a cupcake
Dean's diet after
Breakfast - Cooked breakfast of scrambled eggs, mushrooms, tomatoes, lean bacon, Slimming World sausage patties, beans and wholemeal toast
Lunch - Chicken salad with lettuce, tomato, cucumber, pepper, red onion, beetroot and low-fat cheese
Dinner - Spaghetti Bolognese with a couple of garlic bread slices
Snacks - Fat-free cottage cheese with apples, Bepps Black Eyed Peas popped snacks, fresh fruit
