Kent man goes from takeaways to marathons after losing 40% of his body weight

A 143kg man who swapped multiple daily takeaways for an addiction to running, completing half marathons every other day, has lost more than 40% of his body weight in two years and is now "getting to know himself again" after the "overwhelming change".

Jay Huntley, a 34-year-old production manager who lives in Broadstairs, Kent, realised he needed to lose some weight in December 2021, after seeing a photo of himself at his work Christmas party at the time, he was 22st 7lbs and often having takeaways for each meal of the day.

Jay, who is 6ft, single and childless, began calorie counting, and lost around 13kg in three months he then joined his local Man V Fat club in Margate, a football weight loss programme for men, and went on to lose an additional 19kg in six months.

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After Jay noticed a steady reduction in his weight, he wanted to work on sustainable lifestyle changes, rather than a short-term solution, so he began having therapy, which made him realise he needed to prioritise himself.

On top of Man V Fat, he started eating prepared, balanced meals, running and participating in walking challenges for charity in April 2024, he even took part in Brighton Marathon, which is something he never thought he would be able to do.

Jay now weighs 85kg (13st 5lbs), having lost 58kg (9st 2lbs), and has gone from a size 4XL to medium.

He continues exercising and making healthier food choices and has said he cannot ever see himself going back to the life he had before.

Jay told PA Real Life: "It's been such an overwhelming change for me, I'm having to get to know myself again and that's been quite weird. I take myself on solo dates, go on holiday alone, to love myself and I'm just a very different person now in a very positive way.

"I'm by no means fixed but I'm a lot less broken. I'm still working on myself every day and have adopted a continual improvement mindset in both my personal and working life."

In December 2021, Jay was at his heaviest weight, 143 kg, and had a wake-up call after seeing an unflattering picture of himself from his work's Christmas party.

At the time, Jay was having takeaways at least once a day, and barely exercising.

So, he decided to start calorie counting and went on a keto diet, eating high fat and low carb foods by February 2022, he managed to lose around 13kg.

Jay then came across Man V Fat after a friend recommended the programme and began playing football once a week with a group of men who also wanted to lose weight.

He explained: "Each week, you're part of the team and you gain points for your weight loss..you're held accountable for any decisions you make in the week really."

This encouraged Jay to evaluate his diet, and focus on sustainable changes rather than taking on crash diets which he had done in the past.

In just six months, he lost an additional 19kg, and slowly began to realise he needed to prioritise himself and make a serious lifestyle change for good.

He said: "This isn't something I'm going to just stop doing I've just built up new habits that I'll do for life, and I can't imagine a life without it now."

Jay also began having therapy, which helped manage his relationship with food and general well-being.

He explained: "Therapy was long overdue, really...so I lost my dad about 13 years ago, and I never really dealt with it properly. My coping mechanism for that was just making myself busy all the time.

"So therapy kind of unlocked that and made me realise that I need to look after myself and sort of focus on self-care and manage my life better."

Since then, Jay has been eating nutritious prepared meals that he orders online but only needs to microwave, meaning he has been able to adopt a balanced, high protein diet which has further contributed to his weight loss.

"Before, at Christmas time, I'd get Just Eat breakfast, lunch and dinner and didn't feel bad about it, that was just the life I was living," he said. I was always so busy there and it's so easy to order food online...but now I don't do any of that, and feel so much better."

"Every now and then I will treat myself, it won't necessarily be a takeaway as such, but it'll be something like a supermarket pizza for dinner. I eat a lot of fruit and mainly low calorie meals."

Over time, through Man V Fat, he started falling in love with exercise and the feeling he got afterwards.

So, he began completing walking challenges to fundraise for charities such as walking 2.2 million steps in three months for UK Diabetes.

He also incorporated walking into his daily routine, until one day, it got dark while he was on his evening stroll, so he decided to run home, and to his surprise, he found it easier than expected.

Jay then wanted to chase the runner's high, and in August 2023, began running almost everyday and, as a target, signed up to Brighton Marathon 2024.

Jay completed the marathon in four hours and 22 minutes, and continues to run regularly he runs around 13 miles, the equivalent of a half marathon, every other day, as well as strength training in the gym.

He said: "When I crossed the finish line I just cried I never thought I'd be able to run let alone run a marathon.

"Running has changed my life it's given me so much clarity and it turns off all the noise in your head, I'm almost addicted to that feeling. It's so bizarre it's just the polar opposite to my life a few years ago."

Jay also "just decided to do a marathon" one day in May 2024, running around his area, and completed it in four hours and seven minutes.

Since embarking on his health journey, Jay now weighs 85kg and has gone from a size 4XL to medium and feels so much more confident.

He has received a great deal of support from his loved ones friends have understood why he has not been going to the pub as much, and he has inspired many of them to get healthier.

He is also trying to help other Man V Fat members along the way, and has set up a running club at his local club in Margate, which he still attends, and has recently been nominated for Man V Fat's Most Active Player Award.

Jay is also planning on walking 100,000 steps in one day in July, and is aiming on completing an ultramarathon in the next year.

To others struggling with their weight, he said: "I think you should believe in yourself and accept that some weeks you'll gain some weight, and others you'll lose some telling yourself that you can do it is a big part of it."

For more information, visit: www.manvfatfootball.org

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