Extra large True-life
I had to give my partner a brutal ultimatum, hoping he would make a drastic change…
Paulette Earl, 38, from Leeds
Hauling yet another family sized pack of Coke into the car, anyone would have thought we were having a party.
The same could have been said if anyone was to look at our recycling by the end of the week.
As there must have been at least 50 tins of bright red full-fat Coke amongst our household waste. Only, I couldn’t stand the stuff. Our eldest Harry, now 14, and twins Charlotte and William, both 13, weren’t keen on fizzy drinks either. There was another culprit.
As sitting spread out on the sofa, sipping away, was my partner Bryn, now 48.
A sight I had been used to seeing ever since we met at work over 17 years ago, before we had the kids.
Even though Bryn was roughly 15st when we met, pretty fit and active, his love for fizzy drinks conquered all.
‘Not another can of Coke,’ I’d sigh every time that Bryn came back from the shops.
Wherever we went, Bryn had a craving for carbonated beverages.
And over the years I’d got used to his addiction.
Topping up on at least six cans a day, we’d spend roughly £30 a week on the soft drink.
That was before getting a delicious takeaway once a week, too.
From a greasy pizza to an Indian, Bryn’s plate would be piled high.
And the same could be said for the rest of Bryn’s dinners.
‘Can I have curry or chilli?’ he would request. Not a big eater, I didn’t like the same food as Bryn.
So, I’d cook him a variety of huge separate meals while I simply ate what the kids did.
If his portion wasn’t big enough, he’d eat the leftovers from my plate as well as mopping up the kids’ dinners.
However, it didn’t stop there.
While I was out all day with Harry, Charlotte and William, I’d come home to empty wrappers of the worst foods possible in the kitchen bin.
Crisps, chocolate, biscuits – you name it, Bryn had eaten it.
‘You want to lay off all that, it’s bad for you,’ I’d warn him.
However, my advice always fell on deaf ears.
Working back-to-back shifts, I think he had reached a point where he was just bored and damn right lazy.
He was eating everything we had in the house just because he wanted to snack, not because he was hungry. Moody, depressed and even arrogant at times, Bryn wasn’t the man that I had fallen in love with.
I knew that he was gaining weight rapidly, however I had no clue how much he weighed.
But the label in his T-shirt said a huge 9XL.
The whole situation made me feel extremely sad.
His weight was not only putting a strain on his waistline,
