A YORK woman who lost 14 stone is rowing half a marathon in lockdown to raise money for charity.

Jilly Whitham, of Third Avenue Heworth, weighed 24 stone and wore size 32 clothes when she married husband, Jack, in April 2012, but dropped to ten stone and size ten or 12 after joining Weight Watchers.

The Press has previously covered Jilly's weight loss journey and now, aged 40, Jilly says she wants to row just over 13 miles and raise money for York Food Bank.

Jilly said: "I need to make one thing clear - I’m not a rower. I’m an injured runner/lifter who believes that nutrition should be a right, not a privilege - as I feel it is now.

"We are battling the crisis of a lifetime and all over the world hearts are breaking - everyone suffers and I could choose to raise funds for so many worthy causes. But for those in crisis, a food bank provides a life line to something so fundamental and in the current climate where food shopping is challenging I believe donations to food banks must be suffering particularly.

"This is why I have chosen to take on this challenge in order to raise funds for the York Food Bank. The Trussell Trust, of which York Food Bank is a member, is a charity that WW members can also support by donating “wellness wins” which they earn by tracking food activity and weight on their app.

"As a side effect I hope to be able to inspire my amazing members to pursue behaviours that help to look after themselves, as well as others, in these difficult times. I am currently supporting my members through conducting virtual workshops where we celebrate success, conquer challenges and I discuss techniques that they can put into action to make positive changes in their lives."

If anybody would like to support Jilly through her challenge they can follow and donate here.