MAN v FAT Oxfordshire in partnership with
MAN v FAT Football and MAN v FAT Challenge are FREE for Oxfordshire residents thanks to Oxfordshire County Council and Achieve Oxfordshire
If you’re a man in Oxfordshire who wants to lose weight, MAN v FAT is for you. Improve your health alongside like-minded men with our innovative and effective MAN v FAT Football and MAN v FAT Challenge programmes.
See below for information about MAN v FAT Football and MAN v FAT Challenge, including how you can take part for free.
Football clubs exclusively for men who are overweight.
Join your local MAN v FAT Football club and play small-sided football games against other men who also want to improve their health. You can join if you’re 18 or over and have a BMI of 27.5+ (check your BMI here).
Your weight loss progress directly affects your team’s performance, with the chance to score bonus goals based on your pre-match weigh-ins.
90% of our players lose weight thanks to our successful combination of team support, accountability and competitiveness. You’ll always receive a warm welcome at your MAN v FAT Football club, and will have the full support of your MAN v FAT Football club coach as well as your MAN v FAT community to reach your goals.
Whether you’re a regular on the pitch or haven’t played footie since you were a kid, MAN v FAT Football is for you if you want to make real, lasting changes to your health.
How can I play for free?
If you’re an Oxfordshire resident, you work in the county or have a GP surgery there, you can play a season of MAN v FAT Football for free. Enter your Oxfordshire postcode and the promo code ACHIEVE when you sign up – you’ll have to pay a £10 deposit, but as long as you attend 10 of 14 sessions you’ll get that back at the end.
If your workplace or GP is based in Oxfordshire, please contact us on [email protected] with the relevant details, so we can attribute a funded place to your profile.
To qualify for a free place, you must not have redeemed a free season of MAN v FAT Football in the past 12 months, had bariatric surgery in the past 12 months or have active bulimia, substance abuse or psychosis.
Click here to go to the MAN v FAT Football website or sign up using one of the links for your chosen club location below.
Funded Club Locations
Abingdon
Funded places available thanks to Oxfordshire County Council and Achieve Oxfordshire
Where?
Tilsley Park, Dunmore Road Abingdon, OX14 1PU
When?
Wednesdays, 8.00-9.00pm
Banbury
Funded places available thanks to Oxford County Council and Achieve Oxfordshire
Where?
North Oxfordshire Academy, Drayton Road, Banbury, OX16 0UD
When?
Sundays, 6.00pm-8.00pm
Bicester
Funded places available thanks to Oxfordshire County Council and Achieve Oxfordshire
Where?
Whitelands Farm Sports Ground, Whitelands Way Bicester, OX26 1AJ
When?
Fridays, 8.30-10.30pm
Oxford
Funded places available thanks to Oxfordshire County Council and Achieve Oxfordshire
Where?
Barton Park Pavilion, OFF Barton Field Road Oxford, OX3 9LD
When?
Mondays, 7.00-9.00pm
FAQ
Are MAN v FAT Football sessions currently running?
Yes! Following the easing of COVID-19 lockdown restrictions in England, MAN v FAT Football sessions have now resumed. The health and safety of players is our #1 priority, and we will always adhere to both government and FA guidance.
If anything changes, you can find our latest communications about MAN v FAT Football and COVID-19 here.
What exactly is MAN v FAT Football?
MAN v FAT Football is a UK-wide network of football clubs with a difference – each club is exclusively for men who are overweight and want to make a difference to their health.
90% of our players lose weight, and we’ve been featured on The One Show, BBC Breakfast, Sky Sports News and in FourFourTwo magazine, the Daily Mail, The Guardian and the Daily Star.
I'm worried that my fitness isn't good enough to take part - is MAN v FAT Football for me?
If you’re a man and you’ve got a BMI of 27.5 or over, then yes! It doesn’t matter if you’ve never kicked a ball or if you haven’t set foot on a pitch for 20 years, and it doesn’t matter if you get out of breath just going upstairs.
MAN v FAT Football is for all men who want to lose some weight, improve their fitness and have fun playing footie, and the best thing is that your teammates will all be in the same boat.
How does it work?
You’ll be placed in a team with other men who all share the same goal – to lose weight, get fit and have fun. Each player weighs in every week and your progress on the scale directly impacts your team’s score, meaning you get the chance to score goals both on and off the pitch.
You’ll be supported by a dedicated coach, will receive the MAN v FAT Football Player Handbook and will be able to access our exclusive online tools, including our popular MAN v FAT TALKS sessions – player-exclusive interactive webinars with weight loss and fitness experts. You’ll also get the opportunity to play in MAN v FAT’s national tournaments, which will culminate in the MAN v FAT Football Festival – an unique celebration of all things MAN v FAT Football.
MAN v FAT Challenge is our online-only weight loss programme, making it easy to lose weight on your terms – with weight loss support whenever you need it, wherever you are.
We’ve taken what we know works from MAN v FAT Football, peer support, accountability and tapping into your competitive side, to launch a fresh and exciting way of losing weight.
MAN v FAT Challenge is for men with a BMI of 25+, and it’s based around two unique challenges every week centred around what you eat and how much you move.
You’ll be put in a team alongside men from around the country, and working together you’ll earn points for participating in challenge tasks, and for your weight loss progress. You’ll weigh in remotely, and your team has the support of a dedicated MAN v FAT Challenge coach to guide you towards making new healthy habits.
MAN v FAT Challenge is for you if you want a new, fun way to lose weight that truly fits around your lifestyle.
How do I take part?
Sign up over on the MAN v FAT Challenge website, and don’t forget to use your Oxford postcode and the promo code ACHIEVE when signing up to claim your funded place.
Members’ Challenge images
Challenge: Make a healthy meal for under £4
Result: Healthy, calorie-controlled meal for £3.87
Challenge: Step challenge! Work with your team to get more steps than other teams
Result: A week of activity and getting an average of over 10k steps a day
Challenge: Make a healthy plant-based dish
Result: Cumin-roasted squash and tortellini bake – something a bit different and delicious
MAN v FAT Challenge At Work
Take the challenge to your workplace with MAN v FAT Challenge At Work. Whether you’d rather compete against your workmates or against other workplaces in Oxfordshire, MAN v FAT Challenge At Work means you can utilise our innovative programme to help support your male colleagues.
MAN v FAT Challenge has wide-ranging health and wellbeing benefits, providing real support to your team to help improve the health of your workforce. For more information on getting your company started on MAN v FAT Challenge At Work, please email [email protected]
FAQs
Does MAN v FAT Challenge include any football?
No! If it’s football you want, you need MAN v FAT Football. MAN v FAT Challenge is 100% online, with no in-person sessions. Please keep this in mind if you decide to sign up for Challenge, as we wouldn’t want you to be disappointed!
What happens when I sign up?
You’ll receive a welcome email with all the information you need. You’ll be assigned to a team and will receive an invitation to your team’s WhatsApp group chat so you can introduce yourself and start chatting to the people who will become your support system throughout your weight loss journey.
You’ll also have access to your own personal dashboard where you’ll be able to track your weight loss progress, keep a food and activity diary and upload your contributions to the weekly challenges.
How do the challenges help me lose weight?
It’s all about building healthy habits that will help you to lose weight.
Each week you’ll receive two different challenges to complete. Completing these challenges earns points for your team.
MAN v FAT Challenge is built around 3 key principles:
Nutrition – you’ll be challenged each week to create a meal from scratch, centred around a theme. You’ll be able to upload picture evidence to your member’s area to earn points for your team, and each team’s best dish can be put forward to earn bonus points.
Exercise – you’ll also receive a weekly exercise challenge to complete 3 x 30 mins or 5 x 30 mins of exercise over 7 days.
You’ll earn points for completing your exercise sessions. We set a different exercise focus every week to keep things interesting, so for example, one week we might ask you to complete a boxing session via our virtual gym, or we might challenge you to try an exercise you’ve never tried before. You’ll earn points for sticking to the exercise focus too. But we’d never expect you to shell out for obscure exercise equipment for a challenge!
Building healthy habits – you’ll also earn points for tracking food, exercise and water intake each week. You’ll have access to your own personal member’s area, where you’ll be able to set goals and targets, earn achievements, and track your progress.
I'm not great in the kitchen, will this stop me from doing well at the food challenges?
Not at all! If you’re thinking cooking is beyond your skillset, don’t panic. We’re not all Gordon Ramseys here, the nutrition challenges are more about adding a bit of variety and fun to your weekly meal plans. Whether that means you’re plating up Michelin star-worthy grub or something decidedly homemade-looking, if it’s edible it’s all good.
We’ve heard from many MAN v FAT Challenge members that the weekly nutrition challenges have taken them from not even being able to boil an egg to eating well 7 days a week without compromising on taste, so you might find that you’ll soon need that chef hat after all.
I'm unfit and the exercise challenges worry me. Will I still be able to take part?
It’s really important to us that MAN v FAT Challenge is accessible for everyone, so if you’re worried about your fitness levels or are unable to complete some fitness challenges, don’t worry – you can absolutely still join in. None of us are Olympic-level athletes and we don’t expect you to be! It’s all about just doing your best.