Though master chef Gordon Ramsay is used to dishing out criticism and tough love, he might not be used to receiving it. But when his wife made it clear to him that she was not happy about his weight gain, he took her words to heart and lost over 50 pounds.
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Chef Ramsay explained: “Tana was not impressed with the way I was,” he said. “I was overweight, 18 stone [over 250 pounds]. I looked like a sack of s–t. I look at the pictures and think, ‘How did Tana stay around?’ Because Tana has got better-looking and more gorgeous. And there she is, getting in bed with a fat f–k.”
We are used to hearing about women struggling to lose weight, so the celebrity chef’s story is both refreshing and understandable.
“It was painful,” Ramsay said. “I used to look at myself in the mirror…So it was a big wake-up call.”
Chef Ramsay hired a trained named Will Usher to get things underway, helping him to establish a workout routine each week. “I didn’t have a figure,” Ramsay said. “I didn’t feel that good. After working my a– off and achieving a lot, I wanted to get in serious shape.” He believes he gained weight from over working and on several vacation trips, especially those spent with family friends David and Victoria Beckham.
Gordon Ramsay’s father passed away when he was only 53 years old. When Ramsay realized that was only a couple years away for him, he got down to work. “That’s only a couple of years’ time,” he said. “I’ve got this reminder to get fit, it’s scary. I get the fear on a daily basis. I may have not got on with him, but I still miss him. I miss everything I could have had from him if he was still alive in his 70s.”
Gordon has lost 56 pounds since his quest began.
Gordon now participates in athletics with his wife, including Ironman competitions. He also has a very stark and serious outlook on why he felt he had to get fit. “I don’t want my industry to kill me. I know how unhealthy chefs are at the top level. Stress. Suicide. There’s a big downside to cooking loads for a living. It’s lethal: from obesity to heart attacks to cocaine habits,” he said. He says he has also started letting go of total control over his businesses, travelling to visit each in turn, in an effort to preserve his health, lower his stress and keep his 20-year relationship with his wife, and the life they’ve built with their 4 kids, on track.
The weight loss coincides with Ramsay’s new book, entitled Gordon Ramsay’s Ultimate Fit Food, a collection of recipes he says help him to eat well at home. The book is divided into sections to offer healthy and delicious ideas for meals, and snacks, in a way that optimizes nutrition post-workout, to build strength and energy.
