Strictly Come Dancing star Krishnan Guru-Murthy has opened up about his incredible fat loss journey for the popular celebrity dance reality show.
The journalist and presenter, in a write-up for The Times, revealed how he lost two stone for Strictly Come Dancing despite being a chocolate addict with a genetic heart problem and gout. He was nearly 15 stone before he began his fitness journey.
Explaining how he got fit enough for dancing, Krishnan said that a lot of people think that he lost wait for participating in Strictly Come Dancing. However, he had a different reason for shelling some extra pounds.
“It’s an accusation I have heard quite frequently recently. In fact, Strictly wasn’t the reason I lost the weight, but losing it was a big reason I finally said yes to the show. I shed 1st 10lb in April and May and have spent months since pretending not to feel hungry all the time. When I agreed, somewhat nervously, to take part in Strictly, in the back of my head a voice was saying, “Well, even if you turn out to have two left feet, it’ll be easier to keep the weight off,” he said.
The 54-year-old continued, “Of course, doing Strictly is a major, slightly terrifying commitment for anyone. Maybe it was the pandemic, or knowing people who are near the end of their lives. Perhaps it was the intense news agenda of war and political chaos, or even the exhausting culture wars we seem to be living in, but suddenly I felt it was time to say, “Sod it, why not?” And it was probably now or never. The longer I waited, the less likely I’d physically be able to do it. “Obviously, I can’t give you a 100 per cent guarantee,” one of my doctors said in answer to, “Will I drop dead live on the BBC?” But he was reassuring, telling me, “I think you should do it without worrying and should be fine as long as you’re sensible.” No matter how out of character me doing Strictly might seem to many people, to my mind it was logical. I had already spent months confronting some uncomfortable truths.”
He further added, My medical history made everything worse. I’d had high blood pressure and mild cardiovascular disease for years. I’d get out of breath walking from our Westminster office in Millbank to Downing Street to present the news. The GP had recently told me I was pre-diabetic and this was on top of having Crohn’s disease. Then there was the matter of an inherited genetic heart condition called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. That’s the one in which people drop dead suddenly. I had started copying the dark humour my dad has deployed since his diagnosis with the same condition: “Of all the ways you could possibly die, a sudden heart failure is really quite a good way to go.” Besides, it was the perfect excuse for not doing much exercise. “I must keep my heart rate down,” I’d explain while upgrading my bike to an electric one or just getting in the car. I had quietly given up on ever feeling healthy or physically confident again. I certainly couldn’t remember what it’s like to feel attractive. Then one night in March, I was unable to sleep as an excruciating, throbbing pain in my big toe got worse. After half an hour on the internet, the embarrassing truth sunk in as Google merrily informed me I probably had that disease of gluttonous kings and I had to sheepishly tell my wife, “I think I’ve got gout.” This was not what the GP had meant when she’d told me I needed a new diet.”
Strictly Come Dancing continues on BBC One, while spin-off Strictly: It Takes Two airs on BBC Two. Both shows are available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
