Obese man nicknamed Big Mac for his burger love sheds 22 STONE after his girlfriend dumped him on Valentine’s Day
Jason McDonald ballooned to 36 stone after scoffing extra large meals from McDonald's
An obese man who was jilted by his girlfriend on Valentine's Day because of his weight has found love again after shedding 22 stone.
Jason McDonald, from Stretford, Manchester, was nicknamed Big Mac after his weight ballooned to 36 stone due to his love of scoffing large meals from McDonald's.
His weight rocketed through gorging on two extra large Big Mac meals with a side order of 20 Chicken McNuggets at mealtimes.
The 28-year-old spent up to £16 on junk food twice each day, which saw him expanding to a 70-inch waist, 22-inch neck and a 62-inch chest.
But when his girlfriend ditched him and advised him to lose the pounds, he decided to hit the gym and began eating healthily.
Devastated Jason said: "When my ex left me I was heartbroken. I was at rock bottom, truly believing it was the end for me. She had me convinced I was wholly unlovable and a complete embarrassment.
"She told me her friends believed she was only with me because she had low self-esteem. She told me she didn't like doing certain things because of my size, from being intimate to simply going out in public.
"She told me she'd love to go on holiday, but that I was too fat to fly and that she would never dream of having children with somebody of my size. Looking back, I don't think she ever loved me. Maybe she loved the security that came with being in a relationship with me, I'm a good, loyal man who would never have hurt her.
"My confidence was at rock bottom. I valued myself as completely worthless and believed if I couldn't make it work with her, as unhappy as I was, I would never find happiness again. But she then told me to lose weight and come back to her in 6 months and it was as though a switch had been flipped."
He added: "I could either work my backside off to win her back, or realise she didn't love me and work on myself for myself and let the future take its course, and that's what I did. When I started at the gym I was absolutely massive. I couldn't walk very far or do very much, and if the speed of the treadmill wasn't fast enough it simply wouldn't move."
Doctors warned that if he didn't curb his dangerous dining habits, he was likely to develop type 2 diabetes.
In the first year of his fitness regime, he lost fourteen stone and in the second year he lost a further eight stone.
After two years, Jason now weighs a healthy 14 stone and has started dating former school friend Rebecca Bellanfante, 27.
He said: "Rebecca's been the best thing that has ever happened to me, besides losing all the weight.
"In fact losing 22 stone and the journey that I have embarked on as a whole have really helped me to gain confidence and belief in myself.
"It has taught me to have pride and love myself, it has taught me to be more patient and to have more self-control, that giving up is never the answer and that life doesn't get easier, we grow stronger.
"The fact is I've met the woman of my dreams and for the first time in my life, I feel truly happy in myself."
Last year Jason, who works as an accountant, completed a 10k run raising £1,000 for Cancer Research along the way.
He added: "Losing weight has turned my life around. Rebecca has encouraged me to carry on working hard, and gave me tips and advice where she could. She was somebody who really listened to how I was feeling, and has never once judged me.
"Without a doubt, the biggest change in my life since losing weight is that I finally feel free."