James “Arg” Argent has opened up about turning his life around after struggling with a drug addiction and his weight.
The former The Only Way Is Essex star, 35, says his quality of life has improved drastically and not only has he now been sober and clean “for years” but he he has lost more than 14 stone since undergoing a gastric sleeve operation last year.
Speaking to Nana Akua on GB News, he said: “I battled with that for a number of years. But I’ve got through it and I’m doing alright. I’m doing well. I’m clean, sober, and I have been for a long time now.”
Reflecting on his slimmed down waistline, which he said ballooned during lockdown, he said: “I kind of didn’t really have a very good routine and structure and definitely used food to balance that out when I wanted comfort. Being locked down for me wasn’t easy.
“You know some people really got into their exercise and they’d be doing at home workouts while other people really quite struggled.”
Describing himself as a yo-yo dieter, he explained how his relationship with food and exercise has now changed, saying: “I had a bad relationship with food. I would either do no exercise at all and binge eat or I would starve myself and train three times a day.
“I was either morbidly obese or slim. I was constantly yo-yo ing.
“I now have a great relationship with food and with exercise and I have got the balance right. I am proud of what I have achieved.”
The Essex native also went on to cite boxer Tyson Fury as an inspiration, adding: “Not all stories have to end in tragedy. Some people can turn things around.
“I was heavily inspired by Tyson Fury. He’s a friend of mine. He’s someone who struggled.
“He managed to turn his life around and become a World Champion. That’s the ultimate comeback story. He’s amazing.”
