Mansfield dad loses seven stone as part of weight-loss football club
A Mansfield dad who lost seven stone as part of weight-loss football club, now helps other men to hit their weight-loss goals too.
Bradley Goddon-Smith, 29, has managed to lose a life-changing seven stone with a local healthy-lifestyle led football club, and has now taken up a role at the club to help other men to do the same.
Bradley talks what led him to start losing weight, saying: “I had been a ‘big’ person all my life, having learnt terrible eating habits and being in the habit of comfort eating if I didn’t feel great. I had wanted to better myself, and repeatedly tried to lose weight, but I could never commit to long term weight loss.
“This cycle went on for years. I’d be unhappy and unmotivated with my weight, decide to lose a bit, get happier, get lazy again and put the weight back on - something I think a lot of guys can relate to.
“In 2022, my partner and I married, had a baby, and were moving a lot for work, but we had found ourselves more sedentary than ever. Dealing with stress, a sick wife, and looking after a baby, I had stopped caring about myself, and it showed.
“It was time to get healthy. I have a toddler with another one on the way, and I want to be able to be active for them.”
Bradley decided to try something new and turned to MAN v FAT Football – a weight-loss programme for men with a BMI over 27.5, players attend weekly sessions where they weigh in and play 28-minute games of small-sided football. Extra goals are awarded to teams with the greatest total weight-loss.
Both a team’s total weight loss, and goals scored in matches contribute to a team’s standing in the club’s league table.
Bradley found the Mansfield MAN v FAT club an incredibly welcoming and supportive environment, which helped him to start consistently improving his fitness. He explains: “There is so much to enjoy about MAN v FAT, I feel extremely thankful to be a part of a club where anyone and everyone is welcome on their journey. I have to say that the people who are in the club are the best thing about it - hands down.
“There is a real sense of solidarity in our weigh-in room. It doesn’t matter if you lose, gain, or maintain your weight, everyone feels safe in that space to say why that might’ve happened that week, often helped by other players mentioning what has helped them, or reminding them of the progress they’ve made to that point.
Bradley highlights some of the ways that the club has helped him to improve himself, continuing: “The club has helped change my life around in so many ways, and I will always be thankful for that. I have lost seven stone (so far, we aren’t quite done yet), and dropped three T-shirt sizes since joining.
“I love playing football, and I’m thrilled that as I’ve gotten lighter and fitter, I can cover more distance, and play on the wing because I’ve become a faster player. It’s so exciting to see these physical results, as well as my weight results each week!
Now, Bradley has taken up a ‘player welfare’ role at the Mansfield MAN v FAT club, hoping to help the other members of the club to benefit their mental, as well as their physical health. He explains: “I’m hoping to be able to do a lot more to help the other players. I’m going to start running monthly drop-in sessions in a separate room at the venue, where the guys can come and talk if needed.
“I check in on players who are out with a long-term injury, and can do hospital visits if needed. I’m always around to chat to people and ask if they're doing okay in between the ears.”
Bradley is just one of the men seeing the benefits of the Mansfield MAN v FAT club. The club’s 60 members have collectively managed to lose 262 kilograms over the course of 2025, and takes place every Monday from 7:30 pm at West Nottinghamshire College.
There are currently more than 8,500 players at 170 MAN v FAT Football and Rugby clubs across the UK. The programme was created to differ from traditional weight loss classes and combines sport with achievable weight loss goals for men.
Aimed at men with a BMI of higher than 27.5, the total amount of weight lost by MAN v FAT players in the UK currently stands at over 900,000lbs.