Postnatal Depression Weight Loss - Jo's Success Story

A single mum whose postnatal depression made her pile on the pounds and left her barely unable to get out of bed has turned her life around - and become a champion bodybuilder. She is Jo Barrett, was "living under a black cloud" after the birth of her third son, Theo, so went to her GP who prescribed her antidepressants. 

But it wasn't until the 39-year-old started pounding the pavements and power-walking her three boys in a triple buggy that her mood and outlook on life dramatically changed - and the weight fell off. Now a personal trainer and body builder, Jo, from Taunton, Somerset, said: "I’d had the standard baby blues before, but this was like a black cloud getting progressively worse.

“My alarm would go off and I’d just think, ‘I don’t want to do this. I don’t want to get out of bed. I owed it to my children to get better and fitness has really helped with that. It’s always been in the back of my mind that I could slip back into that place of feeling lost and drifting, but bodybuilding has given me a focus.”

Regularly riding horses before being struck down with postnatal depression (PND), Jo, a single mum to Finlay, 11, Jack, nine, and Theo, seven, had piled on the pounds during her last pregnancy - making her feel even lower.

She recalled: “For around five days after Theo was born, I was in this happy little bubble. Then, one day, it burst. I’d had baby blues before, as my body reacted to pregnancy hormones. But these were new depths." 

 But, determined to get better for the sake of her children, Jo, who split from her boys’ dad last year but remains on good terms with him, saw her GP, who gave her antidepressants which gradually improved her mood.

A slim 155 pounds before her pregnancy with Theo, after his birth, 5ft 8in Jo weighed 235 pounds making her clinically obese. She continued: “Despite the antidepressants, I was still very anti how I looked. I’d always been fit and healthy, but now my doctor was telling me that I had a body mass index (BMI) of 35.5. Anything over 24.9 is too high for a woman, according to the NHS, so I was classed as clinically obese"

Fed up with feeling dumpy and depressed, as she moved into 2013, Jo vowed to get fit - buying a triple buggy online, so she could pound the pavements, power-walking, while pushing her three then-small boys around the block. She also signed up and followe Keto Diet plan ( You can check it here)

Within months, her excess fat began to melt away - spurring her on to invest in a pile of fitness magazines, so she could read up about healthy living. Spotting the chance to apply for a 12-week transformation challenge, being offered by Bio-Synergy - who produce award-winning sports nutritional products and supplements - she put herself forward.

In just 18 months, Jo has worked tirelessly to sculpt her body, taking home both British and European titles. Now, ahead of her next spate of competitions, she is training seven days a week, twice a day. To ensure her body gets enough fuel, she also eats around seven meals per day. But, a far cry from the fatty takeaways and junk food she used to survive on, she eats healthy protein-packed dishes like eggs and spinach, lean meats and white rice.

Having also become a Bio-Synergy ambassador, she continues to use their sports supplements.

Speaking of her daily routine, she explained: “I hit the gym first thing, before I’ve eaten, to do half an hour of cardio. Then I do another half hour in the evenings, seven days a week.

“I also do strength training six days a week, focusing on a different muscle group each time. I’ve found taking weekly pictures of myself in gym gear or underwear helps, as I can see how much my body is changing while I prepare for competition season. When I’m not training, my routine isn’t quite as intense but right now, I’m hoping I can win some of these next competitions to, hopefully, then progress to the world championships. That’d be a dream come true.”