A man who lost more than 13 stones in two years by playing football said he has a “new lease of life” and is making the most of new experiences he could not previously enjoy – including a helicopter ride, a zipline and jumping off the Stratosphere Tower in Las Vegas.
Alex Cook, 46, a technical estimator, said his weight reached its peak after the first two Covid lockdowns, weighing 31st 11lb by November 2021, and decided to make a change by joining the Man v Fat football programme.
At Man v Fat Football sessions, players are weighed before competing in a 30-minute game of six-a-side football, with extra goal bonuses awarded to teams based on their weight loss.
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Weight loss and match scores then contribute to teams’ league positions within a club.
Around the same time that Alex joined the group, his girlfriend Lottie, 31, an A&E nurse, underwent a gastric sleeve procedure and they decided to support each other through their weight-loss journeys by eating the same meals.
Now Alex weighs 18st 8lb and recently he completed a number of bucket list experiences he said he could not get involved with before due to his weight, including jumping from the Stratosphere Tower in Vegas.
Alex, who lives with Lottie in Portsmouth, told PA Real Life: “My life is so much different now. Before I used to struggle walking for 10 minutes, but now I’m really active and play two games of football a week.
“The programme has honestly been life-changing for me and it’s enabled me to make new experiences.”
Originally joining the Man v Fat football programme five years ago, Alex left the group and it was not until after the first two Covid lockdowns that he started to think about rejoining.
He said: “I’d put on weight during Covid and I was at my biggest weight by 2021.
“I’d initially joined the first time because it was something new and quite innovative. Me and a few mates joined because we hadn’t played football for years and we’d all put weight on so it was just a good idea at the time.
“I gave it up after a while and then the Covid lockdowns came into effect and I put loads of weight on, I was at my biggest I’ve ever been.”
In November 2021, Alex weighed himself and, at 31st 11lb, he decided to rejoin the football group.
He added: “I was always out of breath and I was always tired. I was struggling to take the dog for a walk and when I did go for a walk I’d last five to 10 minutes before I was out of breath. I knew my physical state was in need of getting sorted.
“Rejoining the group, everyone was welcoming and I’ve made so many friends now. Everyone helps you and gives you encouragement.”
Taking part in the weekly football matches, Alex also began to switch up his diet, swapping the usual two to three takeaways a week for smaller homemade meals.
He added: “My girlfriend Lottie was undergoing a gastric sleeve at the time and I wanted to be supportive of her too so I decided to eat the same meals as her.
“She could only have very small and healthy meals after the surgery so we both ate together and it was nice to have each other during our weight loss journeys.”
After working on his fitness for the past two years, Alex weighed in last month at 18st 8lb, losing an incredible 13st 3lb.
Based in Portsmouth, Alex occasionally visits his family in Birmingham who he says are always “amazed” by his transformation.
He added: “I don’t get to see my family a lot so every time I do see them they are always shocked and very happy for me.
“It’s nice to get that recognition. I actually think I look older since the weight loss but Lottie disagrees and she says I look better now.”
Since the couple have lost weight, they have been selling their clothes and buying new smaller sizes on second-hand apps such as Vinted.
They now have completely new wardrobes, with Alex selling his 5XL clothes to make room for 2XL.
Earlier this month, Alex and Lottie went on holiday to Las Vegas, a place where Alex had already been numerous times – but he said he was able to do “so much more” on this visit thanks to his weight loss.
He said: “I’ve been to Las Vegas loads of times but I’ve done more this holiday than ever before because previously my weight held me back. There are things like helicopter rides that I could never do because I was too big and zip lines, that we did this holiday.
“I’d had it in my mind when we booked the holiday six months ago that I wanted to jump off the Stratosphere Tower which is a 1,000-foot jump and I knew I had to be a maximum of 120kg for it, which I did.
“We also did a lot of walking, doing over 20,000 steps a day and before the weight loss, we couldn’t have done that.
“So, besides the fitness, life has changed massively. I’ve just got a new lease of life and I am able to have all sorts of new experiences.”
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