James Argent embarks on healthy cooking regime

Former TOWIE star James Argent has revealed he’s started a healthy cooking regime after doctors warned that he could die if he doesn’t lose weight.

The 33-year-old has been very open about struggling to control his weight in lockdown after tipping the scales at 26 stone.

In light of his woes, Arg gave his fans an update on his health on Thursday night as he filmed himself cooking a lamb and aubergine curry.

Taking to his Instagram Story, the ITVBe revealed he enlisted the help of meal box delivery service Hello Fresh to assist him in planning his meals in advance.

Although he confessed he’s a ‘terrible cook’, Arg looked the part for his session in the kitchen as he donned a novelty apron with a muscular man on the front.

In the video he was sat in his dining room with all his ingredients laid out on the table and took his followers through the recipe step-by-step.   

He shared: ‘I’ve always been a terrible cook but this has taught me how easy it is to cook. I can plan what meals I want in advance and how many servings I want.

After he finished cooking his curry, the TV star filmed himself tucking into his health conscious meal.  

Last month, Arg revealed his hopes to get life-saving gastric surgery after his doctor agreed he needs to do something during an appearance on Loose Women.

He said: ‘I spoke to my doctor on the phone numerous amounts of time and even though I had lost a lot of weight at the start of the year I was always considering weight loss surgery. 

‘My doctor said the weight I am right now, 26 stone, that is danger territory. My mum and my dad both suffer from heart problems and my dad has got a pacemaker so there could be serious implications for my heart.

‘People even say to me, with my weight as it is at the moment, if I catch Covid, I could be one of the people that could be in serious trouble.’

He added: ‘It is difficult as it is intense and serious. It’s nothing to be taken lightly. I know that if I just work hard then I can do it. It’s just about maintaining it. I’ve always struggled finding a happy medium.

‘I believe from the research I’ve done, it can potentially really help me in terms of portion control. It’ll help me long-term. Health is number one.

‘I’m rotating three different clothes as that’s all that fits me at the moment. All my friends and family haven’t said it’s too drastic – I think I have to go for it.’

James said his best friend Mark Wright has been very supportive and said: ‘I speak to him every day. He’s seriously concerned. He wants to help me.’

The Loose Women panel congratulated James on his sobriety and said he shouldn’t beat himself up too much because he has already achieved a great deal.   

He concluded: ‘I feel once I’ve got my weight sorted, sky is the limit for me. Once I tackle this, I’ve got a real positive future ahead of me.’

In the same interview,  Gemma Collins’s ex revealed he has felt ‘lonely and bored’ since they split and hasn’t been able to stick to his exercise regime now that things have closed.

However, he should be very proud in that he has managed to stay sober for one year and one month following a near fatal drugs overdose.