A nationwide football programme created to help men tackle obesity as part of a team has launched its second club in Bristol. Organised by MAN v FAT Football, the six-a-side football club takes place on Thursday nights at St Mary Redcliffe and Temple School, Somerset Square, Redcliffe, joining the existing Bristol North club in Dorian Road.
The FA-affiliated scheme has 8,500 players participating in more than 170 leagues across the UK, with the total weight lost by its players standing at 510,000 pounds. The programme was created to provide men with achievable weight loss goals by harnessing the beautiful game and camaraderie from playing on a team.
Stephen Bennett has been a member of the Bristol North club since its inception in April 2021 and spoke to Bristol Live about why he thinks the programme has been so successful. Stephen said: “I've been quite heavy for most of my life. After school, I put on weight and was really struggling to get it off."
Read More: Bristol will soon be home to UK’s largest padel centre
Lockdown further exacerbated Stephen's problems with shifting the unwanted pounds despite trying Slimming World and Weight Watchers. He said: "They're good programmes, but when I was going there, I didn't have anyone that I was going with, and I didn't really get on with it.
"And I saw this thing advertised on Facebook. I've always enjoyed football, and combining the two sounded like a good idea.
"The first session was really daunting. But everyone was welcoming, we had a great time, and I've just thrown myself into it."
Although he still feels like he has a way to go on his weight loss journey, Stephen has already dropped 20 kilos, just under 10 per cent of his body weight. But he feels the most significant benefit has been finding a supportive team that cheers each other on. He said: "I get a lot of enjoyment out of everyone else’s success."
Stephen believes that a large part of why the club is so popular is how easily players can incorporate it into their lifestyle. He said: “You have to track your food, which anyone who loses weight will recommend. But other than that, there's not much that you have to do.
“You come for one session a week, weigh in before the session, and then play a game of football. I think the main thing you benefit from is getting put in with a group of like-minded individuals who like playing football and are trying to lose weight and get healthy. You have that team and a group of friends, eventually.
“It also adds competitiveness to it as well. You want to try and help your team out. So you want to make sure that you're losing weight and not letting everyone down.”
Scoring system
That competitiveness stems from the ingenious scoring system that has been developed so that players can score both on and off the pitch. Players with a BMI of 27.5 and above are eligible to join with a target of reaching a BMI of 25.
Those with a BMI above 25 can score goals by losing more than 100g weekly. Weight loss over time is also rewarded, with those losing weight for three weeks scoring bonus goals. Similarly, there are goals for dropping 5 per cent of your body weight, while those with a BMI below 25 can gain points by maintaining it.
All the goals scored on the scales get added to the goals and scored during the game to create a combined score for the match. The 30-minute matches are designed to suit a range of fitness levels with rolling subs to allow everyone to tackle things at their own pace.
Stephen said: “Not everyone in the league is going to be running around, and even the more fit and active people often take more of a backseat role to involve everyone. When I first started, I expected to really struggle, but I seemed to do well."
As well as improving his physical health Stephen said there had been considerable benefits to his mental health. He said: “I certainly wasn't expecting it. I was just looking forward to having something that might help me lose weight.
“But the difference I saw initially with myself was being slightly more confident and making friends along the way. And there are quite a few people within our league; we've noticed a big change too.
"People that have come to their first session and been quiet and timid sat in the corner or stood out on the sidelines. We try to bring them in and make them feel welcome, and you see people start to want to get more involved. Obviously, they've lost some weight, which has also helped them with their confidence.
"I've got great enjoyment out of it. Whenever you're playing, everything else isn’t there. You can just relax and enjoy yourself for an hour.”
Read More:
- Bristol coffee shop owner praises customers for 'amazing kindness' after tip jar stolen
- Bristol man swapped daily grind for a debt-free life travelling the world in an ex-Army truck
- Bristol's history-making forklift truck-driving pageant queen heads to Miss World
- Bristol woman who ranted on Question Time 'made to wait' nearly an hour by BBC
- Great British Menu: Incredible Banksy cake made by top South West chef
