WHEN an executive producer worked on the film Mrs Lowry & Son, he didn't realise the profound impact it would have on the way he lived his life.

Stuart Piper - who swapped his career as one of the UK's leading talent agents and a film and theatre producer in London for something new in York - has told how he turned his health and lifestyle around.

"I worked in a fast paced, high pressure environment which involved lots of socialising and entertaining," Stuart told the Press.

"I was successful in what I did and it was really scary to step away from a job and life where I was a market leader. But I wasn't happy. I decided you have one life and I wanted to live closer to my son, Charlie, while he's still in childhood and have more time to spend with him and my loved ones.

York Press: Stuart Piper with his son at a red carpet event during his time as an agent.Stuart Piper with his son at a red carpet event during his time as an agent.

"It was very stress inducing and a 24/7 responsibility and I loved the artists I worked with with a passion but everyone needs downtime."

Some time before that Stuart had been working on the set of Mrs Lowry & Son and it was around this time that he began to think about transforming his mind, body and spirit.

The film focuses on the artist LS Lowry and the relationship with his mother, who discourages his passion for painting.

"The message of the film is about how life is beautiful," he explained.

"It's about how you choose to look at things. His mum is unhappy with her lot and was very miserable where she lived and he saw the beauty in his industrial surroundings. I found the film very inspiring. He was an optimist. It's a beautiful message I have carried into life."

Stuart took to Instagram - @myrunningveganjourney - to document the next stage of his life, describing how "Physically, I’d binged to XXL".

He explained: "I was getting bigger and bigger physically and less and less healthy in mind, body and spirit. I realised I needed to do a lot of hard work to change all three."

To start his journey Stuart downloaded the NHS Couch to 5K app and listened to Sarah Millican's words of encouragement each week.

York Press:

"I would look at people who were athletic and think I was alien to them," he said.

"I wasn't playing sports at school. I'm quite uncoordinated.

"I couldn't run at the beginning for longer than about three minutes. I wasn't always out of breath but it was a mental block to running without stopping. I never skipped a level - it was in 15 weeks from not being able to run at all to running 5K over half an hour everyday.

"You could say it has changed my life. I want to keep going. I'm finding it's making me feel positive. If I wake up a bit down I never feel worse after I run, I always feel better."

Stuart gradually changed to a plant-based, alcohol free diet while, in another part of his life, he took up a new role as a teacher in the creative industries. It started in December 2018 by cutting out meat and slowly shifted to vegan diet - a decision he says that has helped his journey back to health.

York Press:

In early 2020, Stuart made the decision to leave London for York and from September he will follow a lifelong dream of getting a degree as a student at York St John University.

In a message to anyone else who was affected by lockdown and needs a boost to their wellbeing, Stuart said: "Make small incremental improvements. Rome wasn't built in a day.

"I'm still on my journey, still living day by day.

"I remember thinking it wasn't possible for me. My whole life I believed it isn't possible for me.

"I feel it's the single best choice I ever made. I'm never going back!"