A Wirral man says his life and health have been 'transformed' after losing an incredible 10 stone.

John Astbury achieved his target weight after joining his local Heswall Slimming World and feels great as a result. He was was awarded the group's ‘Greatest Loser’ award, presented to the member who has lost the most weight.

The 63-year-old joined his local Heswall group, which is run by Ria Jones and said: "My weight had become such a burden to me, that really I had to do something about it or it would have destroyed me.

"Just about every aspect of my life was experiencing a negative impact related to my weight from reaching down to putting on my socks to suffering with gout, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and being type 2 diabetic."

People who are severely overweight, with a Body Mass Index (BMI) - a measure that uses your height and weight to work out if your weight is healthy - above 30, are more likely to suffer from health problems like coronary heart disease, arthritis, diabetes and cancer, and obesity is linked to a reduction in life expectancy of between seven and nine years.

On Wirral 63% per cent of people are categorised as overweight meaning their health could already be at risk.

When John decided to join the Heswall Heroes at Heswall Football Club, he said: "Walking through those doors for the first time,

"I had absolutely no idea what to expect and it was quite daunting at first but with Ria offering encouragement and enthusiasm and the support of everyone in the room I was made to feel so welcome even when I was often the only male in the group and that welcome has definitely been a key ingredient to my sustained commitment to weightloss."

John followed Slimming World’s Food Optimising eating plan and learnt new ways to enjoy food. He says: “I've completely changed my lifestyle regarding what I eat.

"I've learnt to cook healthy meals from scratch. I batch cook and fill my freezer with meals and enjoy my food so much more now - as does my wife!"

He added: "It just goes to show that it's never too late to take control of your life.

"It would be quite wrong for me to say if I can do it so can you because we all have our own individual reasons for being the way we are.

"All I can say is that I never thought it would be possible for me to lose my excess weight, but I have."

Ria Jones, who runs the Heswall Slimming World group attended by John, said: "The changes we've seen in John are incredible.

"I hope his success will inspire other people in Heswall who’d like to lose weight by forming new lifestyle habits and become happier and healthier to take action."