The Overweight and Obesity Organization

The Beginning...

The origins of the Overweight and Obesity Organization began about 30 years ago with a small boy, who at the age of 8 was already forced to wear adult clothing because of his size.

Jon LeBon was a kind and thoughtful child, however, he found out very early on in his life that it takes more than this to be accepted into society. The only thing Jon lacked was the physique of a normal child - Jon was fat! Unfortunately, with all the will in the world it is hard to force political correctness upon children and Jon soon became the playground joke. Saddened by the attitude of others, Jon sought comfort in food. Before his age had reached double figures he had already been captured in a wicked cycle of weight gain. He was depressed so he ate, but the food made him put on weight so he just became more depressed. He would hide away in his bedroom for hours, the only place where he felt safe from the stares and the giggles. He would avoid school at all costs and eventually he dropped out. He was only 14.

Most of his teenage years were spent moping around his house. While other boys his age were experiencing pubs, clubs and girls, Jon chose to shy away from the world. Society had rejected him. By the time he was 21 he weighed well over 400 lbs with a colossal sixty inch waist. He found it hard to find clothes to fit him, so he often wore rags tied up with string.

But everyone has their limits, and Jon had reached his. A final taunt from a group girls half his age caused him to take a good look at his life. He couldn't go on like this. Physically his health was a time bomb, and mentally he was a wreck who was struggling to go on. Being unemployed, he had little money to invest in weight loss products, and felt too ashamed to go to a weight loss club, so he was going to have to lose weight the hard way - by himself! Not knowing where to start, he made his way to his local library and borrowed some books about the body. If he could work out exactly how his body had ended up this way, perhaps he could reverse the process. He learned about diet and exercise, and with his last scraps of money, he bought a cheap set of plastic hand weights. Armed with his new found knowledge, he cut down his calories, reduced his fat intake and began some gentle activity. He would walk to the end of the road and back, about 300 yards. This in itself would leave him breathless - any further would put far too much strain on his heart. After his first week he began to notice the difference. It was the first time in his life his weight had gone down!

Time went by and Jon fought through all the frustrations losing weight can throw at you, and eventually he reached his target weight - he had lost nearly 250 pounds. That was his first step towards his new life. He still had no qualifications and was unemployed. However, a local charitable trust saw potential in him, and offered a small grant to help him get qualified in a profession that had taken hold of his heart, the health and fitness industry. Jon became a qualified Personal Trainer, and with the money he earned, he attended courses so that his knowledge of health and nutrition could be improved. National newspapers, magazines and radio published his incredible story, but in every feeling of pride there was in him, there was also a feeling of sadness. There were people out there going through the same amount of suffering that he did when he was overweight. People who were sad, people who felt that no one cared, people who were discriminated against just because of their size. As a Personal Trainer he couldn't reach out to all these people. And so was born the Overweight and Obesity Organization, a place where people could come for help with all aspects of being overweight or obese, a place where people can feel comfortable with their size, whether they want to lose weight or not.

The Overweight and Obesity Organization is a place of sanctuary where people do not have to feel that they are alone. It is a place for people that can offer advice and experience, designed by someone who has been there and bought the T-Shirt!