Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

So you might know me, or know of me or you might just be curious as to why I am asking for donations!

Here's my story.....

Growing up I was never a thin child. I even remember that when I was in the cub scouts I had to have some shorts specially made for my uniform as children’s sizes weren’t big enough. Although I was always classed as overweight it was maintained at a level through home cooked meals and being kept active by my Mum. Throughout a standard week my Mum would take me to swimming lessons, martial arts classes and to play squash.

Things all changed when I was 15. My Mum was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, and home life changed with it. Meals more often became convenience food or things easy for my self or my sister to cook as my Dad was self employed and worked 7 days a week. Being the eldest, I took an active role in caring for my Mum, so after school or after my part time job, I would be at home either assisting my mum and her carers or doing housework and cooking tea. Over the next 3 years my weight slowly started to increase as I became less and less active and my diet started to change, with the added factor of comfort eating too.

Then in March 2000, just over a month before my 18 birthday, and after 6 months of progressively getting worse, my Mum passed away.  

The next few years were hard for me; so I focussed on work and looking after others rather than concentrating myself. My way of dealing with the loss of my Mum was just to keep busy and stay distracted. I then moved out of home a couple of years later once my sister and Dad were managing ok.

My weight was still increasing and when I would occasionally go to the GP’s they would always want me to try something new to help me with my weight. One of the first things that they asked me to do was stick to 1000 calories a day, which obviously I quickly got bored of especially since I would end up eating the same stuff day in day out because I couldn’t be bothered to keep working out the calorie totals.

So I just got bigger.

Then in January 2010 a picture appeared on facebook of my Dad and me! I was huge! So life needed to change!

That month I joined Slimming World. I weighed in on my first night at a shocking 31st 3 1/2lbs! That was the last time I saw that total! And I will never see that total again!

My life changed that night and over the next two years I completely altered my lifestyle with the help and support of Slimming World and its members, Family and Friends and even just comments from supportive strangers!

By April 2012 I had lost 17st 7 1/2lbs and was honoured to be presented with the Slimming World Greatest Loser 2012 award! 

My life is now all about showing people what you can achieve with determination, will power and the support of others! The Virgin London Marathon will be my biggest challenge to date! 

I want to raise as much possible to be able to help others, a way of saying thank you to all those who have helped me!

So dig deep, donate as little or a much as you can afford! Every penny counts!

Thanks in advance!

Matt :-)

http://group.slimmingworld.com/success-stories/matthew-briggs.aspx

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.