Having stepped into the United States in late 2024, we’re now starting to see the men in our Soccer leagues hit those same remarkable changes, with some huge weight loss totals – and the US tally so far is a collective total of nearly 7,000lbs.
One of the big contributors to that total is Jason King, one of the original MAN v FAT Soccer players in our Tampa Bay league.
Joining with no real previous soccer experience, Jason is set to hit 30% weight loss in his time with us and fine tuned his abilities on the field too.
He has twice lost the most weight in a Tampa Bay season and his league colleague Antonio Salguero tells us: “Jason has embodied the spirit of MAN v FAT: accountability, growth, humility, and community. He’s someone new players naturally gravitate toward, and his journey continues to motivate men across our league.”
Army veteran Jason’s weight loss has taken him from 264lbs to 187lbs so far and not only have his clothing sizes dropped a couple of levels, he’s also more importantly gone from pre-diabetic, high blood pressure and high cholesterol to great stats across the board.
We caught up with Jason for the lowdown on the secrets to his success.
What was it made you join MAN v FAT in the first place?
Just a month after my 40th birthday, I found myself up at 2AM unable to sleep and doom scrolling social media when I stumbled across a MAN v FAT ad. At this point I was at 264lbs and really struggling with depression. My wife had warned me for a while I was getting really heavy, but every time I tried to lose weight, I’d find myself in a start stop cycle of small successes and huge failures.
I considered it, but was afraid I’d continue in the same cycle, so I made excuses. Oh, that’s money I could use for other things. Oh, you haven’t played soccer since sixth grade, you won’t be any good. Oh might as well not start, because you’re just going to get laughed off the field. So I talked to my wife who told me, “If you’re interested, what’s the harm in checking it out? Maybe you’ll find yourself having fun. Plus having a ‘third place’ could be good for your mental health.”
So I reached out to Coach Mike and came in the next Thursday only to find a great group of guys in the same boat. We all have tried and failed to lose weight in the past, and here we can all push each other to get healthier and keep accountable. I joined Team Blue and found myself not wanting to let the team down by gaining weight that week. The first three seasons were tough, and I found myself in a 0lb loss, 5lb loss, and 0lb loss. This was a start, and I needed to keep going to see progress.
What is it about the program that has supported your successes to date?
Accountability full stop. Since my first night, my goal was to not score any own goals. Partly from a competitive aspect, but I also didn’t want to be disingenuous when trying to motivate others. A few months later, Season 3 rolls around and we both add a new team and change up existing teams via a draft. It was also at that time that I really buckled down.
I was part of a new team, and we had new members in the league looking to the “veterans” for motivation and advice. I joined in the last week of season 1, but I felt as though I was in that group. Wanting to be a good influence, I worked throughout the week to make sure that come weigh-in I was ready. 3 Seasons later and I’m now the captain for Inter Umami (Team Pink) and continue to strive to be the positive influence both for my team and others.
How powerful is the community ethos within MAN v FAT and particularly at Tampa?
Community is the core of our league. It’s not just about wins and loses on the pitch, but also how we come together. The best days are close matches that everyone is cheering everyone else on in the end.
Often I see those in the first match of the night wait to watch the second game; and for me, that’s important. Sometimes life gets in the way and you need to leave before the end of game 2, but there is something to be said about having the other teams stay to cheer on the current match. I really feel that a lot of us feel the same way.
What have been the ways in which you’ve managed to succeed through the course of the week to hit consistent weight loss?
Each week it gets a bit easier, and the controversial answer is that earlier on in my journey, my doctor noticed my struggles with the weight loss, but the effort I was putting in. I was also pre-diabetic, had high blood pressure, obstructive sleep apnea and other medical conditions.
At that time, she started me on a GLP-1 treatment. To some it’s a miracle drug, but for me, it was another tool in my arsenal. I’ve tried everything from just eating less, to working out multiple times a week, but nothing worked. For me, the medication helped by decreasing appetite and helping my body to process the blood sugars that my body just refused to process out. That said, if I did nothing but the medication I still wouldn’t see the improvement.
MAN v FAT helped by giving me more motivation to go on walks with my wife and pups, to take the stairs instead of the elevator at work, or even just to make sure I’m paying attention not just to how much I’m eating, but also to what I’m eating. Because I’m not eating as much, it’s important to ensure that what I do eat is good for my body. Instead of eating out all the time, I’ve fallen in love with the kitchen and often will cook for my family. With that in mind, I know what’s going into the food I’m eating.
What are your longer term health and wellbeing goals, both with MAN v FAT and beyond?
As of this writing I’m less than a pound from hitting my 30% milestone and weighing in at 183.5 lbs. My closest next goal is 179 and that’s to officially go from being obese to being overweight for the first time since at least my Army days.
According to the BMI charts, I should be in the 150s for my height, so I’m aiming for that long term. I’m wanting to be able to run a 2 mile time and pass the old PT standards I had to achieve in the past. From a wellbeing goal, I want to continue to help inspire those who are struggling with their journey. MAN v FAT has been a massive influence in my life and one day I could see myself in a behind the scenes role in helping others to find that motivation and achieve their own goals.
Want to follow Jason’s example?
If you’re keen to get started at MAN v FAT, you can join Jason and the guys at Tampa or take a look on our website to see our ever growing list of leagues!
