How Did Mark Labbett Lose Weight? His Special Diet & Exercise

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Mark Labbett has been open in sharing his weight loss progress

English quizzer and television personality Mark Labbett has been one of the “chasers” of the ITV game show “The Chase” since 2009. He earned the nickname “The Beast” on the program, as he had gone head-to-head with the contestants in an attempt to outrun and prevent them from winning the cash prize.

The role of the chasers is to answer more quiz questions than the contestants, so they would be eliminated and will lose the chance to take home the prize. Mark is also doing a lot of losing in real life – but not necessarily a bad thing. He began with his weight loss journey, and the result seemed to be positive.

The quizzer sets his goal to lose extra weight, and he’s been very open about everything when it comes to it. He’s proud to show everyone the result of his hard work by sharing pictures on social media. His life-changing decision has led him to live a healthier life.

Mark Labbett's Weight Loss Tricks

The main keys to Mark’s successful weight loss:

  • He began losing weight when he was diagnosed with diabetes in 2017
  • He focused on  healthy lifestyle, particularly with his diet and exercise
  • He stopped eating unhealthy foods and switched to high-protein diet meals
  • He follows a regular exercise routine

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Mark Labbett began his weight loss journey when he was diagnosed with diabetes, and his father suffered a stroke at 55

Mark weighed 26 stone (406 pounds) back in 2003. He was concerned about his health at the time, but the real wake-up call to him was when he was diagnosed with diabetes in 2017. He took his health more seriously and began changing his lifestyle, especially his diet and exercise.

The quizzer said that “sugar was his vice,” so he wasn’t surprised when the doctor revealed that he had diabetes. He even admitted that he binged “12 chocolate bars each day for years.” He let go of his unhealthy habits when he learned about his condition.

“I think me being diagnosed as a diabetic was like a three-bottle-a-day alcoholic being told that they have cirrhosis of the liver,” Mark commented.

However, the major factor he wanted to lose weight was when his father suffered a stroke at the age of 55. In a report via Express, he revealed that his father had a mild stroke, but the situation would be different if that had happened to him. He may likely lose everything that he’s enjoying now.

“It was a mild one, but if it happened to me now, the chances are that’s my career’s over,” Mark said.

Aside from losing his career, he may not survive it either. That’s when he decided to make a change and follow a healthy lifestyle. Now, he felt that his weight loss journey had a positive impact, and it probably “expanded his lifespan.”

“Every kilo that I take off my bodyweight probably expands my lifespan by a certain number of weeks.”

Mark Labbett reveals he tested positive for COVID-19 and the side effects caused him to lose weight

Mark made a guest appearance on the British talk show “Loose Women” in March 2021. He opened up about his weight and how he managed to lose it. He said he weighed 26 stone (364 pounds), but he lost weight after testing positive for COVID-19.

The TV star said that he lost his sense of smell and taste, so he only ate very little for two weeks. He noted that what he had gone through at the time kickstarted the rest of his weight loss journey. He also found out the best thing to do in order to cut down more pounds.

“The principal thing has been running after a hyperactive three-year-old in lockdown when the nurseries were shut. Instead of going to the fridge for a bit of late-night snacking, all I could do was just collapse on a heap on the bed,” Mark shared. 

What is Mark Labbett's diet plan?

When Mark embarks on his weight loss journey, he avoids eating foods that aren’t good for him and stops doing his unhealthy habits. He switched from pub meals with onion rings and garlic bread to high protein diet meals for his meal.

He said that he’s still missing pub meals but tries to avoid them as much as he can. The quizzer also loves chips and other carbs, but he’s having quite a bit less than he used to. Since he has diabetes, sugar was the number one thing he removed from his diet, and he referred to it as his “downfall.”

The TV personality tracks his weight loss progress, as well. He said told Loose Women, “I gradually dropped Xs off my size, from 5XL to 4XL, and it looks like the next time I go shopping, I’ll be able to squeeze into XL pants. Small things but important things.” 

But although this is a huge achievement for him already, he believes that he’s “still got a way to go.” The quizzer shared that he wasn’t far away from being diabetic years ago, but he let himself go a bit because he didn’t know at the time.

What is Mark Labbett’s workout routine?

Aside from his diet meal, he also loses weight through exercise. During his guest appearance on “The Pet Show” in December 2021, Mark revealed that his “unlikely personal trainer” has helped him cut down some pounds.

He credited his Golden Retriever named Baloo, saying his dog helped him fall into a regular exercise routine. When the first they got him, his then-wife, Katie, took care of Baloo – walking him, feeding him, and more. But after two weeks, things had drastically changed.

“That lasted about two weeks before she decided, ‘Actually, Mark, look at your belly – you need the exercise!” Mark said.

Eventually, he developed a healthy routine and taking care of the dog helped him move his body more. He was walking Baloo around the fields, and they ended up going into places. The TV star thanked his pet because he helped him be more active than ever.

Meanwhile, some may have also wondered whether the quizzer’s weight loss was due to diet pills or surgery. But he made it clear that one of his friends advised him not to have a gastric band. This was because he got his calories from sugar, which is hard to digest.

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