Countess of Chester Hospital consultant running Chester Half Marathon for her workplace after shedding almost 10 stone
A Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust consultant is gearing up for this year’s Chester Half Marathon after shedding a ‘lifechanging’ amount of weight in less than a year.
Dr Lottie Elliott, 36, has lost an incredible 8 stone since last summer after cutting down on carbs and discovering a passion for exercise, and is actually 10 stone down overall, since being at her heaviest weight when she first started work at the Trust in 2021.
It wasn’t until June last year that Lottie changed her mindset and developed the discipline to commit to a healthy regime after starting the NHS Couch to 5k programme and falling in love with running.
Now she’s taking on one of her biggest challenges yet – running 13.1 miles in the Chester Half Marathon this Sunday, in aid of the Countess of Chester Hospital’s A&E department where she works.
Initially aiming to raise £500 to improve the seating area in her team’s staff room, Lottie quickly surpassed her target and has now raised almost £2,000 – which she hopes will go towards paying for some new sofas and chairs and giving the room a general spruce up.
“We work in a highly pressurised environment, seeing at times the worst aspects of life, but as a team we are resilient and supportive of each other and strive to deliver the best for patients,” explains Lottie.
“The chairs in our staff room are quite old and uncomfortable so we would really love to get some new comfy seating and some new sofas in there. Staff wellbeing can have a huge impact on patient safety so it’s important to have nice surroundings during our rest times.”
Once she has completed the half marathon, Lottie says she will then turn her sights to the 26 mile full Chester Marathon, since she has transformed her lifestyle so much.
Lottie said: “This is a new phase of my life. If you’d have told me I’d have been running a half marathon a year ago I’d have laughed at you, but this last year has been lifechanging for me.
“I see people who I went to university with and they walk straight past me as they don’t even recognise me – it is a good feeling.
“But losing weight is all about finding the right mindset. I have been on diets for years, but it just took a spark of knowing I needed to change. “
She added: “I could see the effects of what being overweight can do and I didn’t feel comfortable giving my patients lifestyle advice and being overweight myself.
“My partner and I have done it together and he has lost a similar amount of weight – I still can’t believe we’ve done it. Weight loss is not easy and you it can be frustrating when you don’t see results straight away but if you stick with it you’ll see results. “
You can sponsor Lottie here: https://www.justgiving.com/
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