Good Morning Britain’s Susanna Reid opened up about her weight struggles during the coronavirus lockdown during Tuesday’s early morning ITV programme.
The 51-year-old TV presenter made the confession during an interview with personal trainer Joe Wicks alongside co-host Adil Ray.
Wicks first began his free online workouts during the national lockdown in March 2020, with the sessions attracting millions of viewers.
Wicks, known as The Body Coach, raised £58,000 for the NHS through his PE lessons, and was later made an MBE for his efforts.
Susanna praised the 36-year-old trainer for his “motivating and inspiring” efforts, which saw a "massive shift" in the way in which people think about exercise.
She said: “Obviously during lockdown you did, basically, national service for all of us by keeping us all fit.
“The fact of the matter is that lockdown has had a massive impact on people.”
She then added: “Despite all of that, and the fact that we could get fit online, we do face an increasing obesity crisis.”
Turning to a more personal note, Susanna confessed she “put on weight” during the coronavirus lockdown.
She said: “I found it really hard to shift those pounds. What is the problem when there are so many workout plans, so many nutrition plans, what is the reason for that?”
Joe replied: “People gained weight because people were less active, but it is really a mental health crisis that we’ve got on our hands.
“Obviously when we’re stressed and we feel down, we turn to food – to watch a movie and eat a chocolate bar and a bag of crisps.
“You’ve got to try and inspire people to get moving and be active for their mental health. If you move your body, your mind will change and the transformation will come.”
Wicks has talked about how his childhood was affected by his parents’ mental health issues, and says helping people going through tough times has become like an addiction.
The fitness guru’s dad had depression and became hooked on heroin, while his mum had bulimia, depression and anxiety, which led to OCD.
Joe says he sometimes spends all day trying to help those who message him on social media, saying: “It’s a feedback loop. I give out love and positivity, I get it back. That’s my drug, I love it, I love helping people. That connection I get is very addictive for me.”
After his lockdown PE project ended, he soon felt lost. He says: “I felt very low. I thought ‘I’m not valuable any more’.”
A new BBC documentary explores the mental health issues that shaped his childhood and looks at how to support the 3.7 million youngsters living with the same problems.
