Tom Kerridge weight loss: How the TV chef lost a whopping 12 stone

Celebrity chef Tom Kerridge has dropped 12 stone, admitting that he now lives by a largely carb-free diet but 'still enjoys a flapjack' now and then.

On his new show, Lose Weight and Get Fit with Tom Kerridge, the 46-year-old was told that his weight had crept back up to 22 stone, with the percentage of body fat around his organs also double what it should be.

The popular cook has been open about his diet, revealing that his job as a chef was likely one of the main reasons he put on a lot of weight earlier in his life.

The 46-year-old, speaking to GQ, said, "As a chef, I was grazing and snacking throughout service. Or I’d be eating cheese on toast and packets of crisps because they were quick. I was a big one to skip breakfast. I didn’t have any.'

At 30 stone, Tom explained how he had a realisation at the age of 40 that he needed to change things, before it got too late.

Speaking to the Sunday Times, he explained, "Say we live to 80. Well, I thought, I’m halfway there. And then, I thought … I’m not going to get there. If I’m like this, I’m not going to make it."

Tom has spoken about his diet changes before, sharing an impressive photo on Instagram showing just how much weight he'd lost.

Following a dopamine diet has been one of the main keys to Tom's success: 'The recipes feature ingredients that trigger the release of the 'happy hormone' dopamine in your brain, so it's a diet that will make you feel good!', the publishers of Tom's Dopamine Diet cookbook say.

The dopamine diet is based around the idea of increasing levels of the 'happy hormone', as well as losing weight. There are many foods thought to boost dopamine, such as fruit and vegetables, nuts, dark chocolate and eggs.

'Tom's 'dopamine heroes' also include dairy products such as double cream and yoghurt, good-quality meats including beef, chicken and turkey, and chocolate,' - which doesn't sounds like a bad diet plan, if you ask us.

Tom explained that initially, he was on a low-carb diet when first trying to lose weight - and relied on a surprising meaty snack to get him through.

He told The Express, “When I first went on a diet to lose a load of weight, I was on a carb-free diet, so Peperami was like a good meaty snack. I’m still a huge fan.”

And despite lowering his carb and sugar intake, Tom still treats himself now and then. The chef said, 'There is nothing wrong with a flapjack in the afternoon when you get that 4PM lull if everything else is in place.'

He also makes an carb exception for fruit. Kerridge told the Telegraph, 'I love eating grapes and apples as a snack now.'

The chef also enjoys 'mood boosting' cheese, and cites 'one tray wonders' as being a great family meal: 'For dinner, yesterday I did bath time with Little Man and read him a story so Beth did a lovely vegetable bake with chicken and mozzarella.'

In March 2016, he opened up about his new way of eating, and why his former job on The Great British Bake Off professional series Bake Off: Crème de la Crème made it something of a challenge.

Rather sadly, but also obviously, he never allowed himself to eat any of the cake! You read that right - none of the delicious cakes, pastries, pies, puddings or breads featured on the show, and we're just as baffled as you as to how he managed it. 'I was very well behaved,' he admitted. 'I wasn't a judge, they were the guys who had to judge it and eat it and test it.'

Tom earned his Michelin stars through his pub the Hand and Flowers, and explained that as well as sweet treats and carbs he also cut alcohol from his diet to ditch the pounds. To this day, he's still not drinking.

'I own pubs and, you know, I'm quite good at tasting,' he detailed. 'So I knocked all booze on the head. Stopped drinking, went completely teetotal.'

'I went, right, I'm not drinking. That's it. No more. Then for Christmas my wife Beth bought me tickets to go and see a live band once a month. So I said, I'll have a drink on those nights. But it petered out pretty much after that and now I don't miss it.'

'Every now and then I think, "I could have a drink," and then I just think, "There's no point; I won't have one".'

Ditching sweets and alcohol aren't the only dramatic changes that Tom's made, either - he now incorporates regular exercise into his healthy routine.

He told the Telegraph: 'My alarm wakes me up at 6.15 every morning and I go to the swimming pool at a hotel up the road. On a busy day I swim a kilometre, on a relaxed one I'll do a mile.'

But on Desert Island Discs, he admitted it was a huge thing for him to get into the swimming pool at the beginning of his weight loss journey, being as big as was. He confessed, "I’d swim a mile and I’d swim it really slowly and I wouldn’t give up. It’s a big step and to get into a swimming pool being that big. Being conscious of your body and worrying about it.”

"It’s not just going to the gym where you’ve got clothes on, you’re just walking around in your pants essentially. Swimming is very good because you become isolated. No one can talk to you, your phone doesn’t ring. You’re on your own."