Footballers shed weight to fund food bank and toys for Noah’s Ark Hospital

Bridgend amateur footballers shed 400 pounds of excess weight in only 9 weeks, leads Food Bank drive with over 900 items donated

A Bridgend football club that launched to encourage overweight and obese men get fit and adopt healthy lifestyle choices, has helped 48 local men lose 400 pounds of excess weight in only 9 weeks.

To celebrate the end of the club’s first season, coaches and players led a Food Bank drive that saw over 900 items donated to the Compassion Church in Bridgend, with the team also raising 10 boxes of toys for Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospital ahead of Christmas.

David Quinn who coaches the club explains: “I’m so proud of everyone involved with the club we’ve come a long, long way in such a short space of time!

“Our Food Bank drive went beyond what we could have imagined. It took place on the 16 December, the day of our final session on the season, with a whopping 911 items of food donated to the Compassion Church in Bridgend. The brilliant team there make up food hampers for those in need as well as donating to and feeding the homeless around the town.

“We also collected 10 boxes of toys for a local children’s hospice to ensure children who may not be having the greatest of Christmas, have toys to play with.

“Our players have achieved all of this while losing a huge amount of weight and enjoying their football – it’s been a brilliant first few months for the club.”

MAN v FAT Football Bridgend meets every Friday evening from 7pm at Ysgol Bryn Castell, Bryncethin Campus on Abergarw Road in Bridgend.

Aimed at men with a BMI of higher than 27.5, MAN v FAT is an FA-affiliated scheme, which has more than 8,500 players taking part in over 170 clubs across the UK. The programme was created by Andrew Shanahan, who, fed-up with traditional weight loss classes primarily aimed at women, decided to develop a programme that combines the beautiful game with achievable weight loss goals for men.

Before matches, players are weighed, this is followed by a 30-minute game of six-a-side football, with extra goal bonuses awarded to teams based on their weight loss. Weight loss and match scores then contribute to teams’ league positions within a club.

In addition to football sessions, MAN v FAT players also receive off-the-pitch support including healthy meal recipe ideas and tips on general fitness. Players also get full access to The Other Room Virtual Gym, so they can train in their own time at home.

The total amount of weight lost by MAN v FAT players in the UK currently stands at around 460,000 pounds.