Leslie Watson climbs Mauao, Mount Maunganui for 150th time

Leslie Watson was all smiles just before his 50th climb up Mauao. Photo / Andrew Warner

Leslie Watson has climbed Mauao 150 times and shed 40kg off his 209kg frame - but shrugs off the achievements as "just numbers".

"The bigger picture is I am up there doing it every day which was what I intended on doing," he said.

The 44-year-old father-of-four climbed Mauao for the 150th day in a row on Sunday. Friends and family have joined him on different days, but this time he climbed Mauao alone and woke up at 5am to reach the summit before sunrise.

"I just sat up there and just reflected waiting for the sun to come up," he said.

"A lot of people go up there, and it is just like a routine, they forget to take everything in."

Watson's journey started on March 30 when he made the vow never to tip the scales at 209kg again.

Now 40kg lighter, Watson feels "awesome".

"I am just more active, more than what I was. My fastest time up and down was 50 minutes which is great considering it took me an hour just to get up there when I first started."

He admitted it had been tough.

"You have your hard days, and some are easier than others," Watson said.

A big motivation was the support from his family and friends who often join him on his walks, and he posts selfies at the top of Mauao to his Facebook page to record each climb.

"I call it the wall of fame," he joked. "I had a friend say he has never had so many likes on Facebook. He said he caught a fish, and it got four or five likes but if he has a photo with me he gets heaps."

Watson was enjoying being able to inspire others who are following his journey which has got plenty of attention.

He has had an interview with the Bay of Plenty sport team and was a guest speaker at Toi Ohomai where he spoke about his weight loss journey.

"One lady there was 180kg, and she has lost a heap of weight. She had been through what I have been through. My story really hit home for her."