A husband and wife from Norwich have been recognised after a losing a combined total of 12 stone.
Steve and Jackie Moore were invited to attend the National Slimming World Couple of the Year competition this month after losing four stone and eight stone each respectively.
Mr Moore, 53, who was born with a hole in his heart, suffered two strokes within a day of each other back in 2009 and was rendered immobile, unable to work and confined to a chair.
After turning to food for comfort he gained weight dramatically and in his forties reached a 40 inch waist.
Mrs Moore, 65, also struggled to manage her weight and was 17-and-a-half stone while caring for her husband after his illness.
Last year at a regular GP check up Mr Moore was diagnosed pre-diabetic, with fatty liver disease, high cholesterol and blood pressure.
The GP surgery offered Steve a 12 week free of charge referral voucher to attend a Slimming World group in order to address these issues.
Jackie, as his carer, would have gone with him anyway but the surgery also recognized the importance for her to improve her weight and health so she too received a 12 week voucher.
Mrs Moore said: "It felt so reassuring to be met at the door, we were immediately put at ease and amazed throughout her introductory talk to hear about all the things we could eat.
"I'd presumed we were going on a diet but anyone who joins soon discovers that there's no going hungry at all.
"The most reassuring part of our first morning was on the scales when the group leader very kindly said not to worry about the figure we saw as it'd be the last time we saw it, and she was right."
A year on from joining the Thorpe End group in Norwich, the couple have dramatically reduced their weight and now volunteer at the group each week supporting fellow members and consultant Claire Utting.
The Thorpe End Slimming World Group meets at the village hall on Plumstead Road now with a new group on Fridays at 7.30am as well as the existing groups at 9.30am and 11.30am.
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