Father who weighed 24st inspired by birth of triplets to lose almost half

"I truly believe that if I can do this, absolutely anyone can!"

(YouTube/Slimming World )

A father who struggled with his weight all of his life has dropped from 24 to 9st after the birth of his triplets gave his life a new sense of perspective.

Martin Woodsford from Barry, South Wales, successfully shed almost half of his body weight by changing his diet and embracing exercise.

The 43-year-old’s weight first became an issue after he suffered an abusive childhood, and his size fluctuated between his teens and his early 30s.

However, Mr Woodsford pinned his weight rising to a dangerous 24st to the premature birth of his triplets in 2008.

“They were born three months premature and suffered varying degrees of health problems. It was a very difficult time and I practically lived at the hospital, so my eating habits suffered badly,” he explained on the Slimming World website.

The new father soon developed obesity-related conditions including diabetes, sciatica, high blood pressure, and back pain.

As his visits to the doctor became more frequent, Mr Woodsford feared he would die. It was at this point that decided he needed to transform his life in order to watch his triplets Harvey, Maisie and Maxwell and his first daughter Rosie grow up.

“I was in a bad way and I started to genuinely worry that I was going to die.

“However, in 2012 that all changed. I woke up one morning and something just clicked. I thought about the way the triplets had fought for their lives and I knew it was time for me to start fighting for me. I didn’t want to leave any of my children without a father.

Mr Woodsford joined a weight-loss class to shed the pounds, and has since been named Slimming World’s Mr Sleek 2016.

The father was able to transform his health by changing his eating habits and increases his fitness levels.

“I started by walking for around 15 minutes each day and slowly increased how much I was doing. I also joined a gym with my partner, Neil, and even signed up to jazz and tap dance classes.”

The weight loss has improved his health “dramatically”, he said, and he no longer needs medication for his previous conditions including diabetes.

"I know I’ll never go back to the old Martin and I truly believe that if I can do this, absolutely anyone can!"