A BLACKBURN man is set to run next year’s London Marathon after shedding more than four stone.

Craig Cunliffe, 33, of Fosse Lane, Blackburn, became a gold member of Weight Watchers and has participated in the St Helens spring marathon.

He used to weigh 16st 4lbs and now weighs 12st 3lbs.

He says of his new fitness regime: “I’m never hungry and I am enjoying the benefit of the exercise and change of lifestyle.”

Mr Cunliffe used to comfort-eat over the years, but after a camping trip decided he had to adopt a healthier routine. He says: “It was the most uncomfortable I had ever been and needed to change.”

Since joining the group at St Aidan’s CE Primary School, he wears a fitness watch to calculate his 10,000 steps a day, and soon found he could resume running.

In seven weeks, Mr Cunliffe lost 21lbs, smashing his one-stone goal before his partner’s birthday.

He said: “My willpower and self-determination have surprised me.

“When my partner has a takeaway I make myself a ‘fakeaway’ so we still enjoy food together.”