I used the baby gate as a hurdle and baked bean tins as weights': Obese mother who couldn't afford the gym loses TEN STONE by turning her house into an assault course.

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A mother lost 10 stone in 18 months by turning her home in an assault course.
Gemma Howden, 28, was desperate to slim down after ballooning to a size 26.
But the mother-of-three could not afford to join a gym - so she turned her home into a tough assault course.

Gemma Howden, 28, weighed 19st and was a size 26 (left) before she turned her house into an assault course in a bid to lose weight. She now weighs 9st (right) and says she feels 'absolutely amazing'

Ms Howden, who weighed 19st, used the baby gate at the bottom of the stairs as a hurdle to jump over hundreds of times.
She also used tins of baked beans and spaghetti hoops as weights in her strict daily exercise regime.
Her stairs were then turned into a stepping course and she did star jumps in front of her TV.

 

She said: ‘I was absolutely enormous - I couldn’t bear to look in the mirror or to have my photo taken.
‘I hated the sight of myself so much I wouldn’t pose for pictures with my kids.
‘To curb my unhappiness I’d stuff myself with a Chinese takeaway for four and then tuck into a giant slab of Cadbury’s Dairy Milk.’

Ms Howden was so ashamed of her weight that she avoided having her picture taken. She decided to lose weight when she realised there were no pictures of her with her children

Ms Howden could not afford to join a gym so she turned her house into a 'boot camp' - she ran up and down the stairs, hurdled over the stair gate and used food tins as weights

Then one day as Ms Howden looked through old photo albums she realised there weren’t any pictures of her with her children.
It was a turning point and the shame finally gave her the motivation to lose weight.
She said: ‘I felt so sad and I realised I was too ashamed to be in pictures because I was such a fat blob.
‘I am 28 and I felt 65. I was puffing and panting everywhere.

Ms Howden (pictured with her partner, John) said: 'I'd pull the curtains to stop the neighbours seeing me in action - it would have been so embarrassing. But the results have paid off and now I'm ten stone lighter'

‘But I couldn’t afford to go to the gym so I decided to turn my home into a boot camp.’
Ms Howden began a brutal regime of exercise starting by running up and down the stairs in her home in Lampeter, West Wales.
She dug out the baby gate to use as a hurdle.
And while her children watched TV in the lounge she would do star jumps and jog on the spot.
After the children went to bed, Mrs Howden would grab large tins of beans and spaghetti - to use them as weights.

Ms Howden says that before she lost weight she felt like she was 65 and that she was always out of breath. Now she says she is no longer the fat mother at the school gates

She said: ‘I’d pull the curtains to stop the neighbours seeing me in action - it would have been so embarrassing.
‘But the results have paid off and now I’m ten stone lighter.
‘Now I’m no longer the fat mother at the school gates and my kids' friends don’t make fun of me.’
Now Ms Howden weighs 9st and she has swapped her t-shirts for tight fitting dresses.
She said: ‘I feel absolutely amazing. When I tell people I lost 10 stone after turning my house into a boot camp they don’t believe it. But it’s absolutely true.
‘I’m living proof that you don’t need a gym to shed the weight. A few cans of baked beans and a baby gate will do just the same job.’

WHAT CAN YOU DO AT HOME TO HELP YOU LOSE WEIGHT?

Below, London-based personal trainer Sarah O'Neill shares her suggestions with MailOnline. 

• Biceps curls - Hold a small bottle of water or a tin of food in each hand. Stand up straight and keep your elbows close to your torso with your palms facing forward. Keeping the upper arms stationary, raise the weights until your biceps are fully contracted and the weights are at shoulder level. Then, slowly lower the weights back to the starting position. Repeat.
• Overhead triceps extensions - Hold a bottle of water of tin of food in both hands and lift your arms above your head. Lower your forearms behind you by bending your elbows. Avoid allowing the weight to hit the back of your neck. Raise the weight overhead again by extending the elbows. Repeat.
• Sit ups - Lie on the floor with your feet flat and shoulder distance apart. Place a medium-weight book on your chest and put your hands over it to hold it in place. Using your stomach muscles, bring your body up to 30 degrees before lying back down again slowly. Repeat 10 or 15 times before having a rest and starting again.
• Lunges - Begin with one foot on the bottom step of the stairs. Extend your other leg behind you until your weight is on the heel of the front foot and ball of the back foot, with back heel lifted. Lower the back knee straight down towards the floor and then lift up slowly to start position. Repeat 10-15 times with each leg.
• Advanced plank - Place your elbows on the floor then stretch your body out behind you and put your toes on the bottom step of a flight of stairs. Pull your stomach muscles in and keep your back flat. Hold this position for about 60 seconds.
• Running up and down the stairs - This is usually safe as long as you ensure there is nothing on the stairs that you could trip over. It is also recommended that you wear trainers to provide support.
• Jogging on the spot and star jumps - These are also good exercise but it is recommended that you wear trainers to support your ankles.

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