AS a single mother with twins, Ann Gerard was finding it hard to keep up with her children and 'exhausted' was the word she used to describe herself.

Weighing nearly 16 stone, her blood pressure was dangerously high and her GP said she was ‘a dead man walking’.

After changing her lifestyle and shedding more than five stone the 45-year-old is now the star of a new film for the British Heart Foundation online, as she aims to warn others.

“I was told I was on the brink of a heart attack or stroke, that I was a dead man walking, and that really scared me. As a parent, that was a terrible thing to hear. I wanted to see my children grow up so knew I had to make changes,” said Ann, who lives in Clayton-le-Moors.

After having her children, John and Charlotte, Ann’s weight became a problem. Feeling miserable, she was on five different tablets a day.

Ann, who works in credit control at Atham-based firm Micro P, said: “I felt down about my weight for years. I remember my 70-year-old dad being able to keep up with my twins when I couldn’t. Then I got really poorly. I felt exhausted all the time. That’s when I went to the doctor and found out my blood pressure was so high I was in danger.”

So, when she was 40, Ann started making changes to her diet and began to exercise, before realising that small changes made a massive difference.

“I knew it wouldn’t be a quick fix of complete abstinence and major gym sessions. It had to be something I could stick to. Everything was gradual. I started using more vegetables and less meat in meals. I switched from milky, sugary coffees to herbal tea. It all added up,” said Ann, who is proud to be a dress size 12 rather than a size 20.

Ann’s story has already been watched nearly 1,000 times since it was posted on the British Heart Foundation website just four weeks ago and Ann hopes it will inspire more people to make simple changes to their lifestyle to improve their heart health. Heart disease kills nearly 120 people in Hyndburn, each year.

Ann is now fighting fit and takes regular walks. She runs 5k and 10k marathons and managed to pluck up the confidence and register herself for online dating, the result being that she is now in a relationship.

“Now my blood pressure’s come right down and I’ve got so much more energy," she said. "I’ve gone from worrying about whether I had a future at all to being hugely excited about what might happen next. I was at the top of Snowdon last week. My friend and I are talking about doing a sky dive — something I’d never, ever have considered before. I’d encourage anyone who wants to get healthier to take the leap and get on with it, just like I did. It changes your life for the better.”