'I was 24 stone, now I've run a half marathon'

Mark King knew he had to change his lifestyle when his mum suffered a stroke and brain haemorrhage in October 2024.

The 43-year-old had struggled with his physical and mental health after a breakdown in 2019 and had to use a mobility scooter due to his weight.

"I was 24 and a half stone, in a mobility scooter with type 2 diabetes, I had severe sleep apnoea and hypertension stage 3 blood pressure and couldn't walk for longer than a minute before I had to stop and take a breath and rest," he said.

Mark was referred to the NHS's social prescribing service and has since lost seven stone and completed a half marathon.

The NHS describes social prescribing as an approach which connects people with non-medical conditions which affect their health to activities, groups and services in their community which may help.

"Seeing my mum in hospital was the moment it hit me," said Mark, who is from Long Eaton, Derbyshire.

"I thought, that's me in two years if I don't change something. I didn't want to end up where she was."

Mark told the BBC he had been "sceptical" initially about the idea of social prescribers when he was refereed to the service in October 2024 by his GP.

But as his blood sugar levels entered the type 2 diabetic range, he thought he would "just tick the box to keep the GP happy".

He said: "My psychiatrist couldn't do anything for me, my friends couldn't do anything for me. I didn't want to do anything for me, so I couldn't see how social prescribers were going to help me.

"I started to believe in myself, I started to enjoy myself again, I started to love myself again. I started to appreciate life again instead of just being stuck indoors doing nothing."

Mark said he had been assigned a social prescriber called Clare who was "amazing" and set him weekly active targets starting with short walks.

"After 20 minutes, I'd be sweating like I'd been in a sauna. But I kept doing it because I knew I had to," he added.

With continued support, Mark lost seven stone in weight and completed the Couch to 5K programme.

He trained through the summer and took part in the Nottingham Half Marathon in September.

"Crossing that finish line was massive," he said. "I wouldn't have got there without the social prescribers. They were the catalyst."

Mark said he had reversed his type 2 diabetes, improved his blood pressure, reduced his body fat, stopped smoking and had not used his mobility scooter for 18 months.

"I look different, but more importantly I feel different," he said.

"My sleep's better, my energy's better. I'm actually living my life. And I can look after mum when she needs me."

James Bromley, chief executive of Erewash Voluntary Action, which supplied the social prescribers, said Clare had moved on from her role, but the care she and others gave Mark was something the organisation talked about with "real pride".

He said: "What she did wasn't just coordination or signposting; it was showing up for someone who'd lost his footing and helping him feel valued again.

"Mark's journey reflects the best of social prescribing: compassion, persistence and a belief that people can rebuild when the right support wraps around them.

"I'm incredibly proud of what Clare started and what the team continued. It showed Mark he wasn't alone, and it reminded all of us why this work matters so much."

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