With the festive season just around the corner, there will no doubt be plenty of temptations on the table to enjoy.
Over the coming weeks, we’ll share some content to help you through that period, but it was a Christmas Day two years ago that encouraged MAN v FAT Rugby member Ben Eggleshaw to take a grip of his health and join our programme.
Firstly at Nottingham and more recently in Leicester, Ben has grabbed the oval shaped ball with both hands and recently hit his 20% weight loss landmark.
He told us: “I’d been slowly gaining weight for a while, not really focusing on what I was eating. I’ve always enjoyed playing sport, but I was kidding myself if I thought that my limited exercise would offset my diet!
“During Christmas 2024 I was at a friend’s house and didn’t feel comfortable in myself and the final straw for me was sitting in a chair trying to put my shoes on and I had trouble reaching over my stomach!
“As someone who has never been a gym goer, I was looking for alternatives to become more active whilst incorporating some discipline with my diet and then I saw a MAN v FAT advert on social media and joined in March 2025. The best thing was it was based around rugby, of which I’m a huge fan having started playing when I was seven, so for me it seemed the perfect fit.”
Like many, Ben found that the community spirit – both at sessions and through the course of the week – was a crucial factor in setting him on the path to success.
“I enjoy the group environment that MAN v FAT offers, both in terms of support from the coach Karl as well as other players at the club,” he added.
“I also really enjoy playing rugby, so the team dynamic is better for me than trying to get enthused about joining a gym to exercise on my own.
“In addition, there are WhatsApp groups for your individual teams as well as one main group chat and there are always tips and tricks for diet/exercise being made available by people who think others could benefit.
“Everyone that joins are made to feel extremely welcome from the off and it doesn’t matter if you haven’t played rugby before, the rules are quite easy to pick up. I would recommend starting with MAN v FAT knowing where I am now from where I was when I first joined.”
Ben therefore goes into this Christmas in a much healthier position and admits he’s learned an awful lot from being involved with the Leicester group.
He continued: “MAN v FAT has been the main driver to me changing my lifestyle. Before I joined my diet was incredibly bad and my energy levels and enthusiasm to change were low but having joined MAN v FAT and gotten back into playing rugby, enjoying the social aspect that the MAN v FAT club has introduced me to, it has been the spark I needed to make those positive changes.
“I’m now more conscious about my diet and accountable for the results of our Monday night weigh ins! If I do have a bad week on the scales, it helps me double down and go again to try and improve for the next weigh in.
“I haven’t done fasting or anything like that, but subtle changes have allowed me to lose steady weight from the beginning.
“To be sat here now over 4 stone lighter has given me some confidence back, eased the strain on my body, my blood pressure has lowered and now I have higher energy and enthusiasm to enjoy more forms of exercise such as hikes at weekends and am also playing tag rugby during the week, something I would’ve struggled to do eighteen months ago.”
Want to join Ben in action?
Leicester has both a MAN v FAT Rugby and MAN v FAT Football club! You can sign up today to Leicester or any other Rugby club by visiting the MAN v FAT Rugby website.
