{"id":558732,"date":"2026-07-20T08:58:10","date_gmt":"2026-07-20T08:58:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/558732\/"},"modified":"2026-07-20T08:58:10","modified_gmt":"2026-07-20T08:58:10","slug":"i-lost-5st-in-six-months-without-jabs-fad-diets-or-punishing-exercise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/558732\/","title":{"rendered":"‘I lost 5st in six months without jabs, fad diets or punishing exercise’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mum Teagan Hopwood dropped to a size 10, has a six pack and still eats the food she likesNeil Shaw<\/a> Assistant Editor (Money and Lifestyle)<\/p>\n

06:57, 20 Jul 2026Updated 08:34, 20 Jul 2026<\/p>\n

‘I lost 5st in six months without jabs, fad diets or punishing exercise’<\/p>\n

A mum who dropped from a size 20 to a size 10 lost five stone in just six months without weight-loss jabs, detox teas or punishing exercise sessions. Teagan Hopwood tipped the scales at 16st 4lb after gaining weight during pregnancy and continuing to overeat afterwards.<\/p>\n

The 31-year-old says that rather than turning to quick fixes, she focused on building sustainable habits she could stick to long-term. Now she weighs 11st 9lbs and boasts a ripped stomach after eating in a controlled calorie deficit, initially consuming around 2,200 calories per day before gradually reducing that amount as she lost weight.<\/p>\n

By the time she reached her goal weight, she was eating around 1,700 calories a day while still enjoying many of her favourite foods. And it\u2019s a loss she has been able to maintain for years \u2013 unlike weight loss jabs, which carry the risk of piling back on the pounds after stopping use.<\/p>\n

One in four adults worldwide has metabolic syndrome, frogs vs cancer, tucking into a low-inflammation diet can cut the risk of developing dementia, and why you hate other people – all this and more in our science newsletter<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Teagan<\/p>\n

Teagan after giving birth<\/p>\n

\u201cI can safely say I would never have even considered doing that [using jabs],\u201d said Teagan, from Canterbury, Kent. \u201cEven though I was overweight, I knew I could lose the weight on my own. It was staying consistent that I needed to work on.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was never that I couldn\u2019t lose the weight, it was that I wasn\u2019t in the right mindset to do so \u2013 I had to be ready. I have nothing against people taking the jab, but I do wish people would actually try doing it themselves first though instead of thinking they are taking the easy route.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have to learn how to keep the weight off. Yes, I lost my weight quite quickly but that was never my intention. I wanted to lose it steadily in a sustainable way.<\/p>\n

\"Teagan<\/p>\n

Teagan Hopwood in 2022<\/p>\n

\u201cMy body just happened to drop the weight in that time. Maybe I was in too big a deficit for my body however I was still eating a lot and fuelling my body. If you need the jab for a medical reason then fair be it but if you are just taking it because you don\u2019t want to put in the work then I don\u2019t agree with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Standing at 5ft 9in, Teagan was deeply unhappy with her appearance and one small moment during the summer of 2022 became the catalyst for a complete lifestyle overhaul. The barista said: \u201cIt was the first heatwave of 2022 and I couldn\u2019t fit into the only pair of denim shorts that I owned.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was already unhappy with my weight however this was the push that made me change for good. I had just had enough and this time I\u2019d seen so many videos about calorie deficits that I actually understood what I needed to do now.<\/p>\n

\"Teagan<\/p>\n

Teagan put on weight after having a baby<\/p>\n

\u201cThe biggest change wasn\u2019t just physical, it was my mindset. I stopped comparing myself to others and focused on being consistent, even when progress felt slow. Some weeks I wouldn\u2019t see any weight change and some weeks there was a big weight drop.<\/p>\n

\u201cI weigh myself daily to get my weekly average as weight fluctuates so much during the week. You could be weighing in a high fluctuation day when really you\u2019ve lost 2lbs. I prioritised protein at every meal, making smart swaps and still eating all the food I love like Pizza Hut takeaways, home made chicken burgers and I perfected my baked oats recipes.<\/p>\n

\u201cI upped my activity level I did maybe two hiit workouts in my dining room while my daughter napped and did some weights at home. I strength trained four times per week after I lost the weight to build muscle and change my body composition.<\/p>\n

\"Teagan<\/p>\n

Teagan Hopwood now<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is how I look so toned. It\u2019s the result of building muscle through progressive weight training and losing fat through a calorie deficit.\u201d<\/p>\n

The mum-of-one began documenting her fitness journey on her TikTok account @\u200cteags.weightloss, where she shared home workout routines and healthy meal ideas. T eagan says she has completely transformed her relationship with food.<\/p>\n

She said: \u201cI\u2019m happy, way more confident and I can safely say I love my body. Despite the stretch marks and saggy skin from the weight loss I am the most confident I have ever been. I\u2019m more active, made new friends at the gym ns my daughter aspires to be strong like me instead of how I felt growing up wanting to be skinny.<\/p>\n

\"Teagan<\/p>\n

Teagan in 2026<\/p>\n

\u201cI have more energy and a drive that I didn\u2019t have before. I\u2019ve kept a healthy lifestyle since and for me that means balance. Yes, I eat processed foods. I like to go by the 80\/20 rule so 80% of home made good and 20% takeaway and chocolate.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m still human and still want to enjoy my life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Teagan says that large portion sizes and bags of chocolate were her downfall. She said: \u201cI wasn\u2019t tracking anything and would make for fajita wraps but would have about three wraps which adds up. I never really used to eat breakfast but loved bags of chocolates in the evening.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was never much about what I was eating just how much I was eating. I gained the weight through pregnancy and sort of used it as an excuse to over eat since I was going to get big anyway. Then I guess I just continued eat in that way.<\/p>\n

\"Teagan<\/p>\n

Teagan used weight trainig<\/p>\n

\u201cNow I plan out my weekly meals on a Sunday before I do the food shop. I have things like chicken burgers, fajita mince with butternut squash, home made pizzas, chicken skewers with rice and veggies.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love making egg wraps for lunch and filing them with chicken wafer and mustard and lettuce. And I always have light Babybels and kiwi with lunch. I enjoy a sweet treat in the evenings, I make something I like to call a movie night bowl which is 200g 0% fat greek yogurt mixed with chocolate protein powder, topped with mini marshmallows, pretzels, m&ms and chocolate sauce.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt fits my calories so why not.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Mum Teagan Hopwood dropped to a size 10, has a six pack and still eats the food she…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":558733,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[18678,20828,499,103,15463,61,60,236281,9386,2114,69610,8417],"class_list":["post-558732","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fitness","tag-chocolate","tag-eating-disorders","tag-fitness","tag-health","tag-heatwave","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-pizza-hut-inc","tag-pregnancy","tag-weight-loss","tag-weight-loss-injections","tag-weight-loss-success-stories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/558732","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=558732"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/558732\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/558733"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=558732"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=558732"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=558732"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}