A CWMBRAN man has lost eight and a half stones after finally winning a life-long battle with his weight.

And 25-year-old Marchello Gulotta says he doesn’t think he would be alive today if it wasn’t for getting involved with a British Heart Foundation Hearty Lives project.

Mr Gulotta weighed 22 stones when he was only 14 years old.

He had started to comfort-eat at the age of just seven after his mother was diagnosed with cancer.

In 2011 he was topping 25 stones. He was referred to the British Heart Foundation (BHF) Hearty Lives Torfaen group exercise and healthy eating programme.

Thanks to working with the project he has shed stones.

Mr Gulotta currently weighs 17 stones and is well on his way to reaching his 16-stone target.

BHF Cymru’s Hearty Lives Torfaen project, established in 2009, worked with Torfaen County Borough Council, Aneurin Bevan Health Board and Public Health Board, to help people make lifestyle changes to prevent early deaths from heart disease locally.

Mr Gulotta said: “April 9, 2011, is a date that will forever hold significant meaning to me because it’s the day I made a promise.

“A promise to succeed, to take control of my life, to lead a healthier lifestyle and to hopefully give myself a shot at getting back into the sports that I love.

“If I’m honest, I don’t think I would be alive today if I hadn’t taken part in Hearty Lives Torfaen. If I could change one thing, I’d just wish it had come five years earlier. I am tremendously happy – it has boosted my confidence, and I am now in a position to get back into sports.”

Wales development manager for BHF Cymru Elaine Tanner said: “A national evaluation of the programme which was recently released, and the testaments of people like Marcello who have been helped by the programme, show us that the efforts of everyone involved have started to make a real difference to people’s lives.”