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Gladiator aims to inspire healthy child lifestyles

BBC Gladiator Steel, real name Zack GeorgeBBC
Steel, real name Zack George, says he used to eat junk food "four or five times a week"

Steel from Gladiators is promoting a "healthy mindset" for youngsters after admitting he used to be overweight as a child and had little confidence.

The athlete, real name Zack George, is now a CrossFit champion and a familiar face for fans of the Saturday night BBC TV show, but said he used to eat sweets and chocolate "every single day".

Steel, 33, from Leicester, visited a West Yorkshire primary school on Monday to help encourage students to make healthier choices and boost self-esteem.

He told the BBC: "It's a passion of mine to show kids how to eat well, exercise and have a good mindset."

Steel told children at Holy Trinity Church of England Primary School, Halifax, he used to eat junk food "four or five times a week" but loved watching Gladiators on TV and saw them as "superheroes".

He drew abs on his stomach, he said, in a bid to look like his on-screen idols.

"They could do all these games and looked in great shape and I said to myself - I want to be a Gladiator," he said.

"So I started eating better and started to train to try and live my dream."

Tom Ingall/BBC Steel and some children on smoothie bikes Tom Ingall/BBC
Steel visited a school in Halifax to promote exercise and healthy eating

Steel co-founded an initiative aimed at improving health and wellbeing in UK schools, featuring workshops for children aged three to 16.

He said: "You can see some of the kids who come into the workshops have low confidence, their heads are down, their shoulders are rolled over and they're really quiet.

"By the end their chests are up, backs are straight and they're smiling - so that makes it worthwhile."

He added: "It's really important to use the platform we have for the greater good."

Steel is one of the new generation of Gladiators to star in the BBC One revamp of the hit 90s show, filmed at the Utilita Arena Sheffield.

Tom Ingall/BBC Steel Tom Ingall/BBC
Steel, 33, said he used to dream of being a TV Gladiator

School head teacher Sarah Huby said you could "sense the excitement" that a real-life Gladiator was visiting the school.

"It's something they will always remember," she said.

"We want our children to grow up to be happy and healthy - the world is very different now and we need to prepare them for that."

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