A dad has lost an incredible 7 stone after a terrifying health scare spurred him into action. One day in October 2019, Greg Maskalick was getting ready for work when he got out of breath.
When the music teacher arrived at school his breathing got worse and eventually it was so bad that staff called an ambulance and he was taken to hospital. The doctors told him he had had a minor heart failure and one of the contributing factors was his weight.
At the time Greg, from Derbyshire. tipped the scales at 25st 5lb. His wife Gail said he needed to lose weight and found a local Slimming World club in their area for him to join.
Gail and Greg went to weekly sessions together, which resulted in the dad losing almost a third of his body weight. He says: “I would eat for comfort and typically have two or three greasy burgers for lunch, with cakes and biscuits for pudding.
"The idea of depriving myself was what had always put me off trying to lose weight before. With Slimming World I can eat the foods I love and I’m never hungry.”
Thanks to his weight loss six-foot Greg has rediscovered his love of activities such as cycling. Speaking to The Mirror, he says: “Six years ago, I bought myself an expensive bike, but I couldn’t ride it because I was so overweight the tyres went flat when I got on it.
“But I decided to get back into cycling. “I loved it, but my first journey of just over two miles was too far at that time. A little red-faced I had to get Gail to come and pick me up.
“I’ve realised the importance of taking things at my own pace and gradually I’ve built up my energy levels.“ Last year, Greg – who has two grown-up daughters – achieved his goal of cycling the 151-mile Hadrian’s Wall Coast to Coast route.
He now he aims to complete the 180-mile Castle to Castle route from Newcastle to Edinburgh. Greg says: “It’s incredible to think that only four years ago I used to get out of breath walking down the garden.”
