Chance to watch weight-loss walker
10:33am Thursday 2nd November 2006 in News By Staff Reporter
SHEDDING POUNDS: Gary Baines, aged 45, during his 500-mile walk
AN OVERWEIGHT dad who marched his way towards fitness for a television documentary sees his efforts screened on Channel 4 next week.
Gary Baines was one of eight obese people who took part in a gruelling two-month, 500-mile trek from Plymouth to Edinburgh in a bid to shed pounds.
The whole event was filmed for the Channel 4 documentary Too Big To Walk? aimed at highlighting the problem of weight in Britain, where one in five adults are classed as obese.
Gary, an accountant who works for Horwich-based sports ground maintenance firm Rigby Taylor, weighed 24st 4lb when he started the trek in August. When he ended the march in September he was 3st 3lb lighter.
Gary, aged 45, was spurred into taking the drastic action after his doctor told him he would not live to see his daughters Zoe, aged seven, and Laura, three, grow up.
The efforts of Gary and his fellow walkers will be shown at 9pm on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday next week, and Gary and his family plan to watch it on television at his home in Burnley.
He said: "I haven't seen it yet. I'll be there grimacing."
Since Gary returned home he has managed to keep the weight off, and a medical examination revealed his blood pressure was back to normal and he was 67 per cent fitter.
He plans to continue the regime with trips to the gym and swimming pool.
He reckons it should only take a few more months before he hits his target weight of 15 stone.
"Another good year should see it done," he said.
"You never know. The cameras might come back to do a follow-up."
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