Hitchin heart attack man loses 10 stone

Sukhi Rayat with his trainer Martin Penny Archant

A MAN who had a heart attack, probably because he was overweight, has lost 10 stone in just eight months.

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Sukhi Rayat

Sukhi Rayat, from Fishponds Road, Hitchin, weighed more than 28 stone this time last year.

The 41-year-old went into hospital after suffering what he thought was severe stomach cramps, only to find that he had had a heart attack.

It was at this point that he decided he needed to turn his life around.

“After that, clearly, I needed to do something about it,” he told the Comet.

Sukhi’s brother asked his best friend, personal trainer Martin Penny from Xchange Fitness, to pay Sukhi a visit and help him out.

When he first started trying to lose weight, Sukhi was doing just a few minutes of exercise a day, but now does several hours, including running, spinning and weights.

He weighs 18 stone, and is nearing his next target weight of 15 stone.

“The main part is now done. I’m very proud about it, and the fact I haven’t had any surgery to get myself here,” he said.

“I’m a totally different person. People walk past me in the street because they don’t recognise me. For me, it’s a huge achievement.”

He added: “It’s been through dedication and hard work, and through the fact I want to stay here and do things.

“If I had carried on the way I was going, who knows. When you notice people are noticing you, it’s a good thing, it drives you on.”

Sukhi, who is active in the North Herts Sikh community, also ended up changing his diet. He used to eat a lot of curry with ghee in, as well as biscuits and crisps.

Now, Sukhi - who wants to encourage other Sikhs and the wider community to realise the dangers of becoming overweight - has made some changes to this.

“I still snack a lot, but on healthy things. I never used to have breakfast, but now I religiously make sure I do,” he said. One of the highlight for Sukhi, though, has being able to play his drums properly for the first time in years.

The keen musician has played at every single Rhythms of the World with his band, The Tabla Rhythmix.

“This year was the first time I’ve been able to have the drums on the floor and play properly,” he said.

“Before, I always had to have them on a table because I was too overweight to sit cross-legged.”