Man achieves marathon run dream with NHS weight loss help

A Londoner has thanked Guy's and St Thomas' Healthy Weight programme for helping him to lose weight and achieve a lifelong ambition, of running the London Marathon. 

61-year-old Noel Graffie, an events manager, struggled with losing weight and was referred to the 12 week Lambeth Healthy Weight programme by his GP in February 2025.

Noel joined the men’s only class on the Black Prince Estate in Vauxhall. There are other Guy’s and St Thomas’ programmes available for adults, women and men, who meet the criteria across south east London, online and face to face.

To take part people must either be referred by a Lambeth GP or can refer themselves. They must be a Lambeth resident with a body mass index (BMI) of between 30 and 40, or live in Lambeth and be Black African, Black Caribbean, Latinx or South Asian with a BMI of between 27.5 and 40.  

Noel, who was over 15 stone when he joined the programme and is now 12 stone 10 pounds, said, “I knew I was overweight and I wasn’t really looking after myself in regards to my diet and exercise. I wanted something to stabilise myself. This group is particularly focused on Black men so, for me, it was a no brainer. It was ‘Let’s go and see what they can do for me’.

“We spoke about diet, we discussed what type of food you should be eating, and from an Afro Caribbean perspective. Other weeks were about the benefits of exercise, and one week we were playing 5-a-side football. We talked about the reasons why you over eat and why you’re overweight. I found it very beneficial.”

Noel explained how the programme motivated him to make lifelong lifestyle changes. He said: “I didn’t want to do this for 12 weeks and then forget about it so it acted as a catalyst to look at my diet and my work. I go to a lot of events and there is a lot of food and drink there so it’s kind of difficult for me to get away from eating, and drinking too much as well. The course itself enabled me to change my lifestyle. To make better choices for myself.

“I signed up to join a local gym in Lambeth afterwards and cut out or kept to a minimum all the things that are not good for you. When I finished the course I started to learn to swim. Then I thought the biggest thing I could do was something I always thought was impossible, and that was to apply for the marathon. I thought this will be the biggest turning point of my life.”

Noel completed the London Marathon in 4 hours 30 minutes in April 2026. He said: “I felt enormous elation after I finished. It was painful. It was tough. Knowing that I achieved that, at my age, after what I’ve gone through previously. I felt very happy with myself.

I’ve gone from not being able to run for a bus to run 26 miles!

“I would encourage people to actually go on the programme. It’s free and it does help you. It’s so beneficial and I would particularly advise Black men, men of my age, in their middle age, in their 50s and 60s, who may not have done any exercise before or may have done when they were a youth, to just do anything that makes them move because it will help you sustain a healthy lifestyle.

“One of the things I’m thinking of doing is retiring soon and travelling the world and I can only do it if I’m healthy, and I want to be in the best of health.”

Celine Causeret, community health improvement coordinator with Guy’s and St Thomas’, said: ”For Noel his goal was to run the marathon. The programme gave him the encouragement to work on his goal. Running a marathon is a very impressive goal. But for someone else it might be to walk every day, to do yoga, to swim or to eat more healthy.

"The goal is whatever they feel comfortable with. Health is a priority and it’s never too late to start being healthy. By making small changes you can have a big impact.”