Health & Fitness Features

The JOE Weight Watchers Challenge starts in earnest! Darren Savage, Aaron Chalke and Joe Mulligan are the three willing participants in the Challenge, and they're attending their first Weight Watchers classes this week.

A couple of weeks ago we put the call out for Irish lads willing to take part in JOE's New Year Weight Watchers challenge, and thanks to some stories on the site, a bit of prodding here and there and a Facebook shout-out or two, we've whittled the applicants down to three willing participants.

Two of the three - Darren and Aaron - are living and working in Dublin while Joe is a proud native of Achill, the island that's just off the west of the island that's just off the west of Europe.

What all three have in common is that they feel the time is right to do something about their weight, by proactively taking decisions to eat healthier and exercise that bit more.

As you'll see from their profiles below, Darren, Joe and Aaron are all coming at this from different angles, with different motivations and goals.

We'll be with them every step of the way as they take the Weight Watchers Challenge over the next 12 weeks. Next week we'll be catching up with the lads to see how they fared out in Week 1, when they met their team leaders at Weight Watchers classes for the first time.

In addition to keeping track on the three lads, we'll also be giving you loads of healthy recipes every week, all of which will be sure to do two things:

• they'll fit safely into the category of 'man-grub', so your family and friends won't think you've gone a bit odd, and
• they definitely won't skimp on taste

But that's for next week and beyond. For now, let us introduce the three lads taking part in the JOE Weight Watchers Challenge. Wish them luck!

Darren Savage

From: Tralee, Co Kerry, living and working in Dublin
Occupation: IT recruiter
Age: 24
Weight: 17st 4lbs

What he says:

My weight has been fluctuating for a good few years. I put on a lot of weight, I’m able to lose it but I struggle to maintain that and end up putting on the weight again. When I left school back in 2005 I was 19 and a half stone, and I managed to get it down to 15 stone within the space of a year and a quarter. By Christmas 2010 I was back up to 18st 8lbs. So I’ve got it down a bit since then, but I still have a good bit to go yet.

I played a bit of rugby at school and when I was in college in Limerick, but I haven’t played much since then. I suppose the college lifestyle didn’t help – my eating habits aren’t too bad, for putting on weight it’s probably down to drinking in college more than anything else.

I take a lot of motivation from my father, who started Weight Watchers in Castleisland, Co Kerry last year and has lost more than 70lbs. He has the 50-pound weight loss plaque on the mantelpiece at home and he’s very proud of that. So I’ve seen what Weight Watchers can do.

Joe Mulligan

From: Achill, Co Mayo
Occupation: Sales Manager
Age: 38
Weight: 21 stone and a bit

What he says:

I’ve been faffing around about weight loss for the last couple of years. It’s been on my mind, I’m 38 now and if I don’t do it now it might never happen, so when I saw the challenge on Facebook I thought to myself, this might be the opportunity. In for a penny and in for a pound!

I’ve never in my life been on a diet. About two years ago I just made a decision to start eating a bit more healthy, and taking a more proactive approach to my lifestyle. Nothing drastic, now, but I lost two stone doing that. I’ve put back on a stone since then – the stresses of a modern lifestyle, you know yourself.

I was at the doctor a couple of years ago and he worked out by BMI index that the ideal weight for a man of my height was 15 and a half stone. Now that’s a good bit away. The doctor said that a good weight for me might be 18 and a half. My initial goal is to get down to 19 and a half, which would leave me the same weight as I was when I got married in 2002. That’s a starting point, and we’ll aim for 18 and a half after that.

I don’t have a sporty lifestyle. I played a bit of rugby in college but not since then, and it’s been a good few years since I swung a golf club. My hobbies centre around trad music and a local pipe band.

Aaron Chalke

From: Ballintubber, Co Mayo, living and working in Dublin
Occupation: Advertising Executive
Age: 22
Weight: 14 and a half stone

What he says:

After working in Dublin for nearly two years I have started to put on the extra bit of weight that's not needed.

My job has a large social element to it so it involves plenty of good food and drink. I also got a bit lazy and stopped going to the gym, and I really want to nip this is the bud before it goes too far.

I have a number of family weddings this year I want to slim down for and also have a target to run the Great Ireland Run of 10k later this year. Developing healthy lifestyle and eating habits is a big part of it, and as far as weight goes, I have a goal to lose a stone and a half and drop a jean size by the start of June.