'I lost four and a half stone but I feel worse - I loved being fat and I miss Greggs'
28.04.2024 - 17:59
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
A dad who shed four and a half stone after joining a weight loss football club says he 'loved being fat' and misses Greggs.
Gary Parker, 47, signed up to the group in July last year after his weight left him with pain in his knees.
The programme, which has more than 8,000 players and 150 clubs across the UK, is aimed at men who have a BMI of 27.5 or higher.
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Scaffolder Gary, from the Swinton area of Salford, tipped the scales at 18 stone when he joined the group and couldn’t play for 10 minutes without becoming tired.
But the dad-of-four watched as the fat quickly dropped off – now weighing in at 13st 5lbs after a four and a half stone weight loss.
But despite now being much fitter, Gary says his lifestyle change has actually made him feel worse as he misses his favourite junk foods.
“At the time, I didn’t think I was that big until I looked back,” he told the Manchester Evening News.
“I think I wanted to get back into football first and foremost, but the main reason I did it was because of my knees. I have a manual job and my knees were hurting. I realised I needed to lose a bit of weight.
“At the start I was losing a lot of weight. When I finally realised I was getting fitter was when I could play for more than 10 minutes without feeling like I could pass out.
“A lot of people ask me how [my weight loss] makes me feel. I actually used to love being fat and I used to love going to Greggs every day and getting loads of food and stuffing my face.
“If anything, I feel worse because I’m not eating as much comfort food. If you go past a Greggs, you have to go in.
“I used to drink six bottles of Lucozade a day, eat Mars Bars, get Greggs