A GYM with a difference is transforming the lives of people struggling to lose weight and get fit.

Middlewich mum-of-two Sam Moss joined a Biggest Loser programme at Core Lifestyle & Fitness gym.

For every pound the group lost, the gym donated £1 to charity and the person who shed the most won £250.

In just six weeks, the 45-year-old lost more than 16 pounds in body fat.

"My whole body shape just shrank," said Sam, who works in banking. "I had tried absolutely everything, wasting hundreds of pounds going to different gyms."

Sam signed up for the charity challenge with 18 men and women and says it has given her a new lease of life.

"It has made a huge difference," she said. "One of my children is disabled and keeps me up late and I have to get up early. Now looking after him, my daughter and husband, I now have so much more energy."

Sam started a calorie controlled diet and went to the gym three times a week joining different classes.

"We had a personal trainer," said Sam. "Everyone is absolutely lovely, I've never felt more welcome. This is a small gym with an absolutely dedicated team. They are changing those of us that are unfit and unmotivated into healthy humans."

The gym in Sandbach was opened in October 2017 by friends and business partners Andrew Hurst and Sam Hockenhull.

Northwich Guardian:

Friends and business partners Andrew Hurst and Sam Hockenhull make fitness fun and enjoyable

Andrew, 46, a former water process engineer, said: "We want to offer something different. We try and make it fun, have a laugh and encourage people. It's not about how fit and amazing you are it's about the effort you put in."

A bespoke plan was created to suit each person but everyone had to work hard.

"Everyone is pushed to their limits and leaves exhausted," said Andrew. "The classes are tough but everyone gets a buzz and feels great afterwards."

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Sam, a former builder before becoming a personal trainer, was bullied at school for being overweight.

"I got into fitness for health reasons and Sam trained me," said Andrew. "Now we've both got far more job satisfaction and get to meet people achieving amazing things.

"Sometimes it makes you cry when you see people proud and chuffed about themselves."