Yahoo News 'I weighed 118kg and was teased by my son for being fat - now it's insane what's happened'
A dad teased about his weight by his teenage son has lost more than 40% of his body weight in just a year. Phillip Sainsbury, 42, a business improvement analyst, began piling on the pounds after years of working at a desk job and not prioritising his health.
Phillip, standing at six feet and then weighing 118kg (18st 6lbs), was enrolled in Man V Fat a football-centred fat loss challenge for men following jibes from his son which spurred him into action.
Within the first six months, he lost over 40kg and got down to 74.5kg (11st 10lbs) – and has since joined two football teams in the Taff Ely and Rhymney Valley and Welsh football league and has joined the gym.
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Now, after adding an intense diet which saw him cut out wheat, gluten and dairy, Phillip's body fat percentage is just 8.3% and he has maintained his weight of 74.5kg.
"Before I joined Man V Fat, confidence-wise, I just didn't do certain things, because I just felt I couldn't," Phillip told PA Real Life.
"So (I thought) there wasn't anything to be confident about."
He added: "I have a positive outlook on things now – when something challenging happens, I see it as a challenge rather than something negative."
Phillip, who lives in Pontypridd, Rhondda Cynon Taf, in south Wales, admits that he hardly prioritised his health or well-being before embracing his weight loss journey. His diet consisted predominantly of three takeaways each week, supplemented by convenient options like frozen breaded chicken.
He had a desk job, and once the working day was over, he would almost always go home and continue to be sat down for the rest of the day. Phillip had been stuck in this cycle for years on end, and in summer 2023, reached his highest weight of 118kg
Reflecting on his former lifestyle, Phillip confessed: "I wasn't very active at all, I was in a bit of a rut really.
"I suppose mentally I probably had a few sort of challenges going on...I was just eating and eating and not looking after myself."
His teenage son, Jake, 17, an avid football player, often teased him for his weight and lack of exercise – until, one day, Phillip realised he should do something about it.
He said: "My son got a bit cheeky or mouthy, let's say, in the sense of taking the mickey about what I can and can't do and it was hard knowing my son's more physically able to do stuff than me."
In June 2023, he was scrolling on Facebook and saw an advert for Man V Fat – a weight loss programme which sees men put into football teams, gaining points for their weight loss as well as goals scored.
Phillip saw this as the perfect opportunity to take control of his health, so he signed up. He began having weekly football sessions with other men hoping to lose weight.
"In my last season, I managed to win the top scorer award which is for whoever gets the most scores for weight loss and my team won the league," he said.
"It feels like you're among friends... and everyone there is trying to lose weight. When you're trying to lose weight on your own, it's harder because you've got no accountability.
"But with this, when it comes to Friday nights, you don't want to let your team down – you're not just focussed on yourself, you're focussed on the team."
In the first six months, Phillip lost 43.5kg, weighing 74.5kg – as he became leaner, his confidence grew, and he even went on to conquer his fear of heights, completing a skydive in October 2023.
He said: "The confidence I got from it (has meant) I'm just now constantly looking for different challenges."
In December 2023, he joined Taff Ely and Rhymney Valley Football League, the seventh level of the Welsh football league system, playing for the vets and senior teams.
He said: "I wouldn't have dreamt of doing that without kind of getting the confidence from taking part in Man V Fat."
In the same month, he went on an intense diet – cutting out wheat, gluten and dairy – and exercise programme for six weeks, which reduced his body fat from 28% to 10%.
He said: "My son took me down to the gym – me going to the gym before was me going on a treadmill and then looking at the different machines and maybe trying them out and not actually knowing what I'm doing.
"So my son was taking the mickey out of us because I couldn't lift certain weights, I didn't know what I was doing. So I challenged myself to get better and I focussed on getting stronger."
Over time, Phillip has got to grips with his diet and has incorporated a wider range of foods, but he now eats within a calorie deficit, consuming fewer calories than he burns.
Now, he goes to the gym five times a week, plays football three times a week, and can even lift heavier weights than his son – while his body fat percentage is just 8.3%.
He said: "My son's friends were saying how impressive it is, and I was saying that in the gym I can deadlift 200kg.
"My son's trying to catch up now so it's nice in a sense – he went from taking the mickey out of me to this, and it's something we can kind of do together. I think with weight loss it's so easy to get caught up in the numbers, but now with the gym, I focus on body composition and eating the right thing."
To other men hoping to lose weight, he said: "I think the biggest challenge is sticking to it... with Man V Fat, the best thing about it is the community feel and it really helps.
"I think sometimes you have to remember it won't happen overnight. I would never have thought I could do it, but I have.
"I've even signed up to do the Newport half marathon next year – I'm so much more confident now, it's insane."
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