Comedian Paddy McGuinness has opened up about hitting “rock bottom” before embarking on a rigorous 75-day fitness challenge that transformed his body and mindset
Comedian Paddy McGuinness revealed he began his recent weight loss journey after feeling like he had “hit rock bottom”. Earlier this year, the 52-year-old shared details of his fitness transformation on social media, following a rigorous 75-day program known as the 75 hard challenge.
Speaking to Men’s Health UK, Paddy said he enjoyed taking on the challenge and added that, with his new physique, it’s “nice to show other blokes it’s attainable”.
The star revealed that before he took on the intense fitness challenge – which involves two 45-minute workouts a day, one of which must be outside, drinking 4.5 litres of water a day, following a diet of your choice, no alcohol and reading 10 pages of a non-fiction book each day – that he “looked so bad” that people initially assumed his before photo was altered using AI.
He said: “A few people went, ‘Clearly you’ve AI’d the first picture.’ ‘F**king hell, you’re supposed to AI the after picture, not the before!’ I thought, ‘Jesus, that’s how bad I looked!’”
Paddy finished the challenge in January, but before starting the regime he decided to overindulge, saying: “I thought, ‘I’m going to have a real blowout, hit rock bottom’. I don’t recommend it. Just for me personally, I thought, ‘I’ll see if I can get myself out of it.'”
The star continued to describe how his lifestyle has been given clarity he never experienced when his diet was poor.
He explained that the challenge changed how he felt, adding: “I think one of the biggest things is the clarity you feel – you’re reading books every night, you’re in a routine, your diet’s good.”
The dad-of-three admitted that he treated himself to a curry and a milkshake at the end of the challenge, but it didn’t have the effect he expected.
“I ate it, but I didn’t get from it what I thought I was going to get, I just felt like sh*t. It actually changed something in my brain, habit-wise,” the comedian said.
Speaking about appearing on the cover of the fitness magazine, Paddy said: “You look at Men’s Health over the years, and the people who’ve been on the front of it, and you go, ‘My God, they look like they’ve been carved out of stone’.
Although for Paddy being on the cover he hopes others his age will be inspired, adding: “Just on a personal note, being 52 and a regular bloke, it’s nice to show other blokes it’s attainable.”
The former Top Gear presenter also highlighted the need to shine a light on mental health and male suicide. Paddy, who has previously spoken openly about being diagnosed with clinical depression, reflected on the impact of losing people to suicide.
“Knowing a few people who’ve done that (suicide), it makes me really think about my emotions more, because I wouldn’t want to end up in that space where everyone thinks you’re alright and you’re not and then it’s too late,” he said.
The full interview with Paddy McGuinness can be read in the April issue of Men’s Health UK, on sale from March 17.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: www.dailyrecord.co.uk
