Lt Sam Griffiths, RE
Age: 26
Height: 178cm
Weight: 78kg
Unit: Royal Monmouthshire Royal Engineers (Militia); currently attached to 160th (Welsh) Brigade, Brecon
Years in: 7
Civvy role: Aerospace engineer
Sam Griffiths realised his bulk had become a problem as he pushed himself to his limits on a commissioning course at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.
Weighing in at a hefty 127kg – 20 stone – the officer cadet faced a personal battle to meet the army’s exacting standards.
Constantly at the back of his cohort and facing a relentless fight to keep up, he realised that change was needed.
And while a maximum effort paid off to see the reservist become a lieutenant in the Royal Monmouthshire Royal Engineers (Militia), completing the training was only the beginning of a journey from being overweight to competitive athlete.
Now at 78kg, the change in his physical appearance is as stark as it is impressive.
“It was a struggle to get through Sandhurst although I did manage to get there in the end,” the 26-year-old officer, who is nicknamed Griff and currently mobilised, revealed.
“But it was later on, in 2022, that I decided to take firm action. “I felt I wasn’t leading from the front; and I wanted to change to do just that.
“Looking in the mirror, I also asked myself if I was happy with the person I was and the answer was ‘no’ – and so a plan to turn my life around took shape.
“Even doing the simplest things had been a problem – going out for a walk with somebody, for example, was hard as I was so ashamed of myself.”
With running as his weapon of choice to burn the fat, the Brecon-based officer started on the streets with a basic task of jogging between one set of lampposts and walking another to recover. But the modest routine paid off as his stamina grew.
“I was getting out every day and started noticing the difference over the next six months or so. And looking at my diet, I made some changes there.
“The issue wasn’t really the content of main meals so much as snacking between them – cutting this out helped shift weight.” Meanwhile, both the distance and time Lt Griffiths spent running was on the increase. He also took a month-long break to travel to Nepal, giving up his home comforts to take on demanding hikes across the Himalayan heights.
“At home I had gone from 20 to 70km per week,” the officer, who was a civvy aerospace engineer with Airbus before taking up full-time status in the army, recalled.
“My fitness was improving all the time – having started out with a casual programme of walk-running, I had now achieved a standard where I was comfortable entering the Cardiff half marathon and ran it in 1hr 11min.
“This time was good enough to qualify for the London Marathon, which I put myself forward for and finished in 2hr 50min – it was an achievement but not quite the time I was aiming for as I’d hoped to get through in 2hr 30min.”
Despite the disappointment at missing his goal, a 26-mile running odyssey through the capital was testament to how far the once bulky officer had come.
With his new drive, Lt Griffiths went on to be a serial long-distance competitor – taking on the Lisbon Half Marathon and events on home soil while finding that he had more energy and resilience in day-to-day life. He also took to the army arena, representing his corps in different running events.
“Even before getting into competitive sport, simple things like going to the shops became easier because I had more energy and confidence,” he added.
“And generally, I could do more with my day and was more productive.” But while his success has meant a huge physical effort, the officer stressed that mental discipline is key for anyone committing themselves to losing weight.
“You need to be strict with yourself – in my case, I have to ensure the habits that I once had do not return,” Lt Griffiths said. “For example, I used to regularly buy bags of sweets on the Naafi break and this clearly had to stop.
“But I still have to pay attention to ensure I don’t go back to picking up the snacks because – if I do – I could easily end up back in my old ways.
“It apparently takes around three weeks to fully break a habit but if you start going back to them then old patterns can quickly re-establish themselves.”
The rhythm of life is, however, now different for Lt Griffiths. Highly disciplined in his training regime, regularly attending sporting events and constantly seeking new challenges, his old lifestyle is well and truly behind him.
“My training these days depends on what I am doing – for example, going all out for a marathon involves covering between 110 and 130km a week,” he said. “Of these, I do two runs that approach the full distance and seven easier ones.”
The officer reflected: “Taking up exercise can transform your life – you don’t just benefit from the physical difference when you do something about your weight, your mind alters too.
“I feel completely different now and it is definitely as much of a mental as a physical shift – I’m happier in myself,” he added. “My close friends and family can see that too – people notice the change in how you present yourself.
“This shift has given me an entirely new outlook on life – I have an Insta account these days and I’m glad to pass on my experience to others.” Find Lt Griffiths on Instagram at @Globerunnergriff
Sam before he discovered running
