31 December 2023 , 10:29
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Gregg Wallace is preaching about the benefits of home cooking - claiming it has been the key to his huge weight loss while still being able to eat as much as he wants.
The 59-year-old MasterChef star saw his waistline balloon after he entered the spotlight as he feasted on high calorie meals as part of his TV judging job. His weight shot up to 17 stone - while his cholesterol became three times the recommended healthy amount and his BMI lever was a massive 36.1.
But in recent years, fitness fanatic Gregg has wowed fans by shedding the pounds and is now a trim 12 stone in weight - while his BMI and cholesterol levels have reached much safer levels. And the TV star claims he has not been on any extreme diet or resorted to weight loss injections to reach his new weight.
Gregg says the secret has been changing his diet to avoid processed foods and to eat as many home made meals as possible. He claims cooking from scratch makes it easier for him to monitor what he’s putting in his body - and he can pile his plate high without fearing of gaining weight back.
Gregg Wallace was 17 stone at his heaviest (Ken McKay/Shutterstock)
He shed 5 stone by changing the way he eats and with exercise (@greggawallace/instagram)Speaking to the Daily Mail, the TV star said marrying fourth wife, Anne-Marie Sterpini, also helped him eat more healthily as he adapted to her way of cooking. He explained: “I tried eating less. I tried not having lunch. I tried not eating carbs. I had a fair bit of success initially with Weight Watchers, but they were paying me, and when they stopped my motivation went. I was just always hungry and frustrated.
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“Anna's diet had lots of lean protein in it – grilled fish or simple meat dishes – with huge amounts of veg and fruit. The more of it I ate, the more I realised I could eat massive portions that were much lower in calories than my usual meals. I'd look up the calories in a piece of grilled cod and find it was half of what was in the battered cod I'd get from the chip shop.”
Exercise and three large, healthy meals per day have led to Gregg shedding lbs (@GreggAWallace)
The body confident chef shares snaps of progress on social media (TWITTER / GREGGAWALLACE)He added: “I started cooking more from home, making my lunches and breakfasts in advance and eating fewer takeaways and fry-ups. I wasn't left hungry and the weight just dropped off. It came from a desire not to be hungry and ended up being a kind of eureka moment.”
Gregg says others can easily change their approach to cooking and reach similar benefits. He thinks the public at large have shied away from cooking fresh due to not knowing how to put a meal together. He recommends steaming fish, boiling potatoes, and frying spinach in butter as a quick and easy way to make one meal - which will be free from the processed foods that ready meals and fast food would be filled with.
Away from the kitchen, Gregg has also been very vocal about the gruelling workouts he puts himself through. The star has worked with his personal trainer, Danny Rai, to work up a sweat to whip him into shape.
Sharing his home workout tips with the Mirror during lockdown, the star said: “I know what an enormous difference exercise can make to your life."