A man once branded a "scrawny tiddler" due to his lanky appearance has transformed into a champion bodybuilder.

Tom Thorman, from Whitstable, aspired to be professional footballer but had his dreams shattered after being told he wasn't strong enough.

The 28-year-old ditched his boots for the gym and embarked on a mammoth fitness journey, which has left him unrecognisable.

He recently bagged the overall champion gong with the biggest fitness federation in the world, PureElite.

Tom, who weighs more than 18 stone and demolishes about 7,000 calories a day, says he started playing football at the age of five with Whitstable Town FC.

He was scouted by Gillingham FC, aged 14, but was told he "needed to be a bit stronger" to play in centre-midfield and didn't manage to score a place with the club.

"I probably didn’t grow from the age of nine to 15 years old," he said.

"My mum and dad called me ‘scrawny tiddler’.

"I was tall but I was lanky. I didn’t have any muscle or frame and I didn’t like the way I looked.

"I didn’t like to take my top off and I was low in confidence - so that was one of the main reasons I joined the gym for a bit of confidence in myself."

Tom started training with First Touch when he was 15 where he got the chance to play against Newcastle.

But he was told again: "We would love to take him on but he’s not strong enough yet."

So he made the decision to join the gym so he could be stronger on the football pitch - but says he fell out of love with the game when he was 17.

"At the start, I was training three to four times a week," he said.

"I was still going out with my friends and enjoying myself.

"I wanted to take things to the next level as I saw people around me at the gym who were in really good shape and were doing competitions. I thought that is something I might want to do."

Tom's says 10 years ago he weighed about 11 stone, but he now boasts a whopping 18-stone physique.

His figure is down to his gruelling diet and workout regime, which comprises a 7,000-calorie diet in his gaining phase.

"I wake up at 6.30am and take my dog for a 30-minute walk," he said.

"When I come back, I do 30 minutes of cardio on the treadmill.

"I then have my first meal of the day at 10am which is oats, protein powder, almonds and strawberries and for my second meal at 12.30pm I have white potatoes, chicken and vegetables.

"Just before I go to the gym at 2.30pm to do two hours of weight training, I have my third meal which is rice, chicken and vegetables.

"My fourth meal of the day, which I have after I’ve trained, is Coco Pops, strawberries and protein powder.

"My last meal of the day at 8pm is the same as my first meal. I also do 12,000 steps a day."

As a self-confessed foodie, Tom admits sacrificing his favourite grub is the hardest part of training.

His vices are pizza, burgers, cookies, ice cream and pancakes.

"Straight after a show, we make sure we treat ourselves and eat what we like," he says.

"My mum makes me a lasagne and my partner and I go out for a big meal.

"In a week, we're back on our nutrition plan and straight back to it."

Tom won the overall champion prize at the PureElite contest in High Wycombe on November 5, in which people compete from across the globe.

He bagged a £1,000 prize and a trophy, but it also puts competitors in with the chance of securing sponsorships and allows them to promote their businesses.

The fitness fanatic now runs AT Online Coaching, with his partner Aston, which he launched four years ago and moved to Dubai about two years ago.