Schoolboy, 12, who weighed 16 STONE sheds 4 stone in just 6 months after embarrassment of getting stuck in a slide at local park spurred him to slim down
A 12-year-old schoolboy who tipped the scales at 16 stone decided to embark on a diet after he became so fat he got stuck on a slide.
Harvey Pickersgill, who admits he snacked constantly on crisps and chocolate bars, became a near recluse and was bullied at school as his weight soared.
But for Harvey, the motivation to change his ways came when he suffered painful friction burns going down a slide at his local park - and became completely wedged at the bottom.
Wake-up call: Harvey was shocked when he got stuck in a children's slide at the local park, and that is what spurred him on to lose weight Big loser: Harvey Pickersgill tipped the scales at 16 stone and was constantly bullied for the way he looked but a health scare motivated him to get fit and begin dropping the poundsHarvey sought medical help and was told to either lose weight through diet and exercise or face a risky operation to reduce the size of his stomach.
The determined youngster lost an impressive four-and-a-half-stone after he changed his eating habits and hit the gym 10 times-a-week.
He is well on his way to shedding more weight.
Harvey, from Glastonbury, Somerset, said: 'It was horrible when I was stuck on the slide. I am very proud of myself for losing the weight and for getting more active.
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'I feel better about myself. I'm not huffing and puffing all the time now. I have a lot more energy. I am so glad I am able to play with my friends now without the problems.
'I was at bit nervous about going to the gym, and it was hard to motivate myself, but when I got there, the atmosphere was really nice - it was just amazing.
Big change: After changing his eating habits and attending the gym an impressive 10 times a week the youngster has now lost four and a half stone, and is well on the way to losing more'The classes were good fun and I could choose which ones I wanted to take, and I picked ones I really liked. I really enjoyed going.'
Harvey was a big baby, weighing in at 9lb 1oz, at birth - 2lbs higher than the national average.
But despite losing his puppy fat, his weight yo-yoed and he began to gain more weight when he hit primary school.
He started skipping breakfast and eating the wrong foods such as crisps, chocolate bars and eating dinner as late as 9pm.
By September 2012 Harvey topped the scales at 16 stone.
His mother Annabelle said: 'I could tell Harvey was so upset when he got stuck on the slide, when he came down he had burns all down the side of his hips.
'He just looked devastated. It is the exercise. More children need to do more exercise. I don't think he did enough at school.
The team: Harvey, who now weighs 12 stone after losing 4 stone, with his mother Annabelle and fitness instructor Tom Palacio'It is ok to say tonight we are going to have burgers and chips but then if you sit in front of the TV instead of exercising it doesn't help.
'Harvey didn't pig out but I think when he ate it was the wrong type of food. He was perfectly average until he hit age six and that was it, he went up and out.
Fitness fanatic: He now visits the gym 5-days-a-week and takes part in two gym classes per night'All of a sudden the exercise stopped, he just kept piling the pounds on. We didn't actually realise how heavy he was until we went to see someone.'
Harvey was also suffering pain in his pelvis due to his weight and was diagnosed epiphysis - where the hip does not fit properly into the socket.
This - combined with the embarrassing slide incident - proved enough to spur Harvey on to shed the pounds.
Harvey now visits Glastonbury Leisure Centre every day with his mother, where both now take multiple classes of hard hit, spinning and Zumba.
He also undertakes regular sessions on the gym equipment.
'We only started at three days a week,' added Annabelle, who works at the local village school.
'But Harvey and I got bitten by the bug and now we go five times a week doing at least two classes a night.'
Harvey has switched crisps and chocolate for fruit and cereal bars and eats dinner no later than 5.30pm.
He says he won't stop until he reaches his target weight of eight stone.
Annabelle said: 'Harvey had lost a lot of his confidence. It's great to see him happier. He has so much more energy now.
'It has even had an effect on his academic work as his school reports have improved and have been graded as outstanding. I am very proud of him. Really proud.
'I just hope that he can help inspire other children - or adults - who want to make positive changes in their life, but might be apprehensive about doing it.'
Lifestyle change: Harvey has switched crisps and chocolate for fruit and cereal bars, eating dinner no later than 5.30pm and won't stop until he reaches his target weight of eight stone HOW HARVEY DID IT...Harvey's old diet:- Breakfast, would be skipped.- Lunch, white bread ham sandwich, crisps, chocolate bar and a yoghurt.- Dinner, new potatoes with a pork chop or jacket potato with cheese topping.- Snacking throughout the day on crisps and chocolate bars.- Drinking full-fat Coke and squash
Harvey's new diet:- Breakfast, nutrigrain bar, low fat yoghurt and a Special K type cereal- Lunch, ham wrap, banana, weight loss fruit bar, packet of baked crisps- Dinner, tuna or chicken pasta bake with no dessert- Snacking on fruit, usually strawberries, or fruit bars.- Drinking water, flavoured water and the occasional can of diet Coke.
Harvey's exercise regime:- Monday, Hard Hit class, spin class- Tuesday, Zumba class- Wednesday, spinning class- Thursday, Zumba class, Boxercise class, Hard Hit class- Saturday - Hard Hit class and a gym session
