A dad loses 228 pounds after realizing he had no energy to play with his kids. He joined a full marathon, and in just 15 months, he was able to lose a lot of weight. He has also helped raise money for the Alzheimer Society through hiking.
No underlying health issues
Rob Sparkes weighed 441 pounds after living a sedentary lifestyle and not eating healthily. His doctor was surprised that he did not have any underlying health issues. However, the doctor told him that he might develop joint problems and diabetes soon if he does not lose weight.
The 31-year-old dad told SWNS that he was worried he would not be around for his children noting that he just had his second child. He realized that he did not have the energy to play with his children, so he decided to lose weight.
Becoming a better version of himself
A little over one year ago, the Weston-Super-Mare salesman decided to do something to become a better version of himself. After changing his eating habits during the pandemic, he took up running, and now, he only weighs 216 pounds.
Sparkes said he could not walk a flight of stairs without going out of breath before his lifestyle change. He shared that he led a completely sedentary lifestyle and ate 6,000 calories per day. He said that the farthest he could walk was from work down to the shop to have something to eat.
The dad shared how he would eat about four pieces of toast before heading off for work, and then eat some chips, a bacon roll, and a Coke in mid-morning. He would have a massive sandwich or a half-pound burger with fries and a family-sized bag of potato chips for lunch.
He also shared that he would snack on sweets, chocolates, and chips mid-afternoon, then some more chips when he arrives home from work. Sparkes said that he would enjoy a massive pizza takeaway and then eat popcorn while watching TV.
How it all happened
Before the dad loses 228 pounds, he first decided to have diet and lifestyle changes in September 2019. He made use of the Couch to 5K app to join a running club in March 2020. Sparkes ran his first marathon on December 20.
After running for five hours and 24 minutes, he was able to reach the finish line. In 2021, Sparkes runs a half marathon almost every weekend, and he has already booked four marathons for the year.
Helping the Alzheimer Society
Sparkes has also gone hiking and has helped raise $1500 for the Alzheimer Society. He joined the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge that was a 25-mile hike up the highest peaks in Yorkshire.
