Operation Transformation review: Marie opens up about dreams of motherhood

Elsewhere on Operation Transformation, the Mocks meant more stress in Wexford while there was a touch of a lovers tiff in Longford

Marie had an emotional heart-to-heart with Kathryn Thomas on Operation Transformation. 

It was an emotional week for our Tipperary participant Marie Clear on Operation Transformation as the 32-year-old opened up about her dreams of becoming a mother.

Marie, who was born with achondroplasia, a condition that affects growth, sat down with host Kathryn Thomas for a touching heart to heart. We learnt that losing weight was the first step in what she hopes will be the journey to motherhood.

“I knew from a young age that I always wanted to be a mom. I’m always around kids,” she says.

But before we get to that, Marie’s mother Angela makes us laugh once again as she tries her best to take a back seat as her daughter gets to work cutting a chicken. “She wouldn’t be great at it,” she says, with her usual blunt honesty.

A bit of Whitney Houston lifts the mood as Angela finally lends a helping hand. If only Alexa would listen to them, they’d be flying it with the motivational tunes.

Marie has been on quite the journey since starting the show. Reflecting on the experience, she says she is starting to accept herself. As she achieves her goals, she is starting to look to the future.

Sitting down with Kathryn, Marie, who is turning 33 next week, says she is “not waiting for no man” and dreams of becoming a mother.

“Time is ticking and it’s one thing I want.” 

Marie was also down one and a half pounds this week on Operation Transformation.

The SNA, who is down one and a half pounds this week, has already visited a fertility clinic. She hopes that her weight loss journey is the first step to eventually getting to the point where she is ready to start a family.

Down in Wexford, the Mocks drama continues in the Dempsey household as Lorraine’s son Jack gets ready for his first week of exams. The school principal had been trying to manage her stress levels but there is no denying the pressure of exam season.

A couple of days in, the only feedback she is getting is the exams went “grand”, so we guess that is a good sign.

At check-in, Lorraine’s visceral fat was down to single digits which Karl Henry says is an important step in long-term health, plus she’s down half a pound too.

Our Longford lovers Thomas Hynes and his wife Eileen get a visit from Dr Eddie Murphy this week. Thomas is afraid Eileen may be at risk of burnout but after a couple of minutes with Eddie, his plan backfires and we’re sure he is beginning to regret saying anything at all.

Thomas Hynes.

Eddie seems to side with Eileen and suggests perhaps Thomas could help her out a bit more during the week with tasks like doing the grocery shopping while Eileen is at work.

“She probably needs to let go of the reigns a little bit,” says Thomas, who works weekends.

“You know what I’ll do with the reigns…” Eileen starts.

With a new planner filled with his daily tasks stuck on the fridge, Thomas is ready to get to work (but not on Mondays, that’s his day off) and at check-in, he’s two pounds down.

Meanwhile, Stephanie Bowden is chuffed with the compliment that she looks “fitter” at her local community walk. The Dubliner says has noticed a change herself and even needs new underwear. In the kitchen, there has also been a lot of improvement. In week one, dinner was taking her three hours to prep but by week six, dinner is on the table by 5.30pm, the pot is on for her vegetable soup for lunch the next day and her kids Jack and Aoife are fed and watered.

Afraid to look at the numbers on the screen during check-in, the mother of two is delighted to see she’s down three pounds.

Finally, in Wicklow, Andrea Daly is also starting to notice a big difference in herself since starting Operation Transformation. “For me to say it, that’s huge,” she says.

Andrea was a full-time carer to her son, Dylan, before he passed away four years ago but now she wants to start exploring career options outside the home and tries her hand at being a barber.

Despite her great progress, Andrea's confidence still needs some work and she begins to doubt that she will be able to run the upcoming 5k, after making the promise to do so from the start. But Karl Henry comes to the rescue as her running buddy and with a few helpful pushes along the way, Andrea runs for a total of 17 mins 35 seconds.

Adding to her confidence, Andrea is two pounds down this week and her homework for next week is to try to believe in herself more.