(WSVN) – South Florida soccer followers are utilizing their love of the game to get off the sofa and on the pitch — however the one solution to win the sport they’re enjoying is to lose. Heather Walker explains on this 7Spotlight.
Monday nights at Brian Piccolo Park are all about soccer. These guys are doing extra than simply enjoying for enjoyable; they’re enjoying to lose.
Igor Felicioni: “And I’ve misplaced, since I’ve began, I’ve misplaced about 20 kilos.”
Mario Fernandez: “I’ve misplaced 30.”
The gamers are all members of the MAN v FAT sports activities league. It helps males enhance their well being by enjoying weekly soccer video games. This system began 10 years in the past in the UK.
It instantly grew to become successful with guys who wished to have a enjoyable — and simple — approach to enhance their well being.
Richard Crick: “These aren’t the blokes which can be on the lookout for the right eating regimen. They really simply want to scale back their calorie consumption, decrease their snacks, much less takeaways, much less alcohol, extra bodily exercise, extra strolling.”
Final 12 months, organizers took MAN v FAT to South Florida. MAN v FAT Broward at present has 4 groups made up of males of all ages. Gamers should be a minimum of 18 years outdated and be thought-about “clinically obese.”
They don’t must know the best way to play; they simply should be keen to stand up and get energetic.
Richard Crick: “They usually’re all united by that truth of taking care of one another and dropping some weight, getting out and having enjoyable.”
Igor Felicioni performs a number of positions for his staff, Ozempic Lyon. He mentioned his household is his largest cause for taking up the problem of moving into form.
Igor Felicioni: “I simply wish to hang around with my son extra. And I get drained once I play with him and, you understand, I figured I should be there.”
The gamers are all weighed earlier than every recreation. For each two gamers that shed extra pounds, an additional level is added to their staff’s rating within the recreation. It’s a approach for all gamers to assist their staff win, even when they don’t make a single objective.
Mario Fernandez: “For us, for those of us that don’t rating many objectives, it’s a solution to contribute to the staff as effectively.”
Sixty-year-old Mario Fernandez by no means performed soccer earlier than becoming a member of MAN v FAT. Becoming a member of Crew A1C Milan was the right match, as a result of it’s serving to him management his diabetes.
Mario Fernandez: “I’m within the pre-diabetic vary now, in order that’s been a giant plus. And dropping pounds is nice. I really feel so a lot better.”
Coach Felipe Herrmann tracks the gamers’ weight every week. He mentioned, initially of the season, a lot of them had been coping with melancholy and reduce themselves off from the world.
Felipe Herrmann: “They weren’t in a position to go in public locations as a result of they felt dangerous about it. They weren’t in a position to go the health club as a result of they really feel that they’re being judged by that.”
However because the kilos fall off, their shallowness goes up.
Felipe Herrmann: “However the good story is that now, most of them are getting again to regular lives. They’re in a position to go to the seaside, go to golf equipment, go to the health club.”
The gamers additionally achieve a staff of supportive pals they stay up for seeing each week.
Mario Fernandez: “You realize, friendships that we’ve made and the kilos that we’ve misplaced.”
To this point, MAN v FAT Broward has collectively dropped over 500 kilos in two seasons.
It reveals that typically one of the simplest ways to win is to lose.
Heather Walker, 7News.
MAN v FAT has additionally began groups in Miami-Dade.
For extra info on the MAN v FAT league, click on right here.
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