After the birth of her third child, Brooke Clerkin found herself grappling with the persistent challenge of shedding the post-pregnancy weight. She quietly resigned herself to the idea that she would always be one of the “bigger mums” at the school gate. The stubborn tummy ‘pouch’ she had developed after consecutive pregnancies seemed to Brooke like a permanent fixture—a constant reminder that dieting and exercise might be futile.

“I knew I was overweight, but I tried to focus on being a happy, kind, and generous person to outshine the weight,” Brooke, a 40-year-old mother from Melbourne, confided to the Daily Mail. Despite her efforts, Brooke lacked physical confidence. She attempted to disguise this insecurity by donning vibrant, fun outfits, hoping they might distract from the reflection she struggled to love. The prospect of losing weight felt daunting, as the amount she needed to lose seemed insurmountable.

In truth, no amount of cheer or colorful clothing could conceal the reality that her weight had soared to 124 kg (equivalent to 19 stone 7 pounds, or 273 pounds). Brooke’s relationship with food had been complicated since her childhood, marked by a tendency to binge eat, which only exacerbated her battle with weight gain.

‘I wasn’t physically confident, but I masked this by wearing really vibrant, fun outfits. I didn’t love who I saw in the mirror, but the thought of losing weight was overwhelming because I had so much I had to lose.’

In reality, no amount of sparkle or good humour could mask the fact her weight had ballooned to 124kg (19st 7lbs, or 273lbs).

Ever since childhood, Brooke’s relationship with food had been difficult and she had a tendency to binge eat.  

She didn’t pay attention to portion sizes, always picked the leftovers off her children’s plates, and didn’t exercise. 

‘I would go for an occasional walk but it was never consistent and I didn’t have a gym membership. It just wasn’t a priority for me,’ she says. 

‘I would eat the leftover nuggets off the kids’ plates because I didn’t want to waste food – but it all adds up.’

To cater to her young family, Brooke often made child-friendly meals that could be prepared in bulk, such as pasta, rice and burgers. 

Other times she would eat on autopilot – adding a muffin to every coffee and nibbling through entire blocks of chocolate without really noticing what she was doing. 

Brooke agrees that mothers often put their family’s needs before their own, which can lead to gradual weight gain.

She would wake up exhausted, struggle for energy all day, and find it hard to keep up with her young children.

Shopping for clothes was no pleasure either. Nothing ever fit, which only made her feel worse.

Brooke’s turning point came in 2021 when she went to the doctor with stomach pain, concerned she might have appendicitis.

‘The doctor explained that being overweight was impacting my health and blood flow, which was causing the pain. When I came home from that appointment, I realised I needed to take my health seriously and make a change for myself and my kids.’ 

Having tried and failed diets in the past, the idea of losing so much weight was daunting, so Brooke broke the task down into smaller chunks.

‘My initial goal was to lose 25kg and get under 100kg because, to me, that was possible,’ she says. 

While Brooke was aware that GLP-1 medications and weight loss jabs were options for someone of her size, she was determined to go it alone.

After Googling ‘how to lose weight quickly’, Brooke learned about the ketogenic diet.

The ketogenic diet – better known simply as keto – is essentially a low-carb, high-fat approach to weight loss. 

Typically, keto restricts carbohydrate intake to around 20-50 grams per day, encouraging the consumption of foods like meat, fish, eggs, full-fat dairy, nuts, oils and low-carb vegetables, while limiting bread, grains, sugary foods and most fruits. 

‘A few family and friends had started keto too and I thought, “This sounds doable, I should give it a go,”‘ Brooke says, adding that the diet appealed to her because she could still eat things like cheese and salami.

In just two weeks, she lost 8kg (18lbs, or 1st 4lbs) – instant results that kept her motivated and proved the plan was working.

‘I was eating whole foods, healthy foods and lots of vegetables. If I did eat carbs it was minimal, such as low-carb English muffins, burger buns, wraps or crackers,’ she says.

She also swapped out chocolate with chocolate-coated almonds, carob chocolate and nuts.

‘Instead of biscuits with dip I’d have vegetable sticks and dip,’ she adds.

By Christmas that year – eight months after starting the keto diet – Brooke had shed a whopping 50kg (110lbs, or 7st 12lbs).

With renewed confidence, she joined a gym for the first time ever and began strength training and running several times a week. 

‘I was going for walks and slowly started to run, even though I’m not a runner. Over time I built up to running 10km on the treadmill, then 14km. The week before the Melbourne half marathon, I got a last-minute ticket,’ she says.

‘I did it alone and it was pure adrenaline. I loved every second. I never thought I would do something like that.’

After learning how to run properly and completing a marathon, Brooke lost another 10kg – losing 60kg in total (132lbs, or 9st 6lbs). 

She had reached her goal weight of 64kg (141lbs, or 10st). 

It was then that Brooke noticed the tummy ‘pouch’ she thought she’d never lose had reduced significantly.

‘I learned that you can’t specifically target fat loss in one area, and my stomach was one of the areas that took longer to change after having children,’ she explains.

‘As I reduced my overall body fat and became stronger, my stomach changed, along with the rest of my body.’ 

In 2024, even after achieving all her previous goals, Brooke committed herself to something she had never done before: bodybuilding.

‘It’s always something I’ve been fascinated with. I had some friends at the gym who were doing it and I was like, “You know what? Maybe I’ll give that a go this year.”

‘It was definitely the hardest thing I’ve ever done or committed to in my life. I was at the gym a minimum of five times a week. 

‘I’d wake up at 4am, be in the gym by 4:30am, then get home by 6:30am when my husband was just waking up.

‘It was all about discipline but I did everything my coach told me to do.’ 

In September that year, she took to the stage and participated in her first competition looking like the best version of herself.

And in December, she flew to Bali with her family for her third competition – even her oldest child couldn’t recognise her in the ‘before’ photo.

Brooke hopes her story will inspire other women to put themselves and their health first by discovering what works for them.

‘Believe in yourself, have patience and love but stay consistent. It’s a cliché, but don’t give up on yourself. It takes time and it’s not easy, but small changes make big results.’

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