Man Says He Owes Drastic Weight Loss to Personal Trainer Who 'Banned' Him from Fast-Food Restaurants
A man from Middlesbrough, England, made headlines last October when his personal trainer passed flyers out to local fast-food restaurants asking them not to serve his client.
A year later the duo is going viral once more — this time showing off an incredible transformation.
Just a year ago, Darren “Dibsy” McClintock’s family was living in fear of the day they would lose him. Dangerously overweight at roughly 560 lbs, the 27-year-old knew he needed to make a change.
Doctors told him that he wouldn’t survive if he kept going down the path he was on, warning that McClintock was “eating himself to death,” Fox News reported.
Thankfully, that’s when the young man met Mike Hind, one of the United Kingdom’s top experts in physical fitness.
Hind, who works to help dozens of people meet their fitness and weight loss goals, told Good Morning Britain that every year he takes on one client free of charge, as a part of his mission to change lives.
When Hind met McClintock’s mother and saw her worry for her son, he knew he wanted to help him get his life back, no matter what it took.
However, the trainer’s unorthodox methods were viewed by some as bold.
Hind visited all of McClintock’s favorite fast-food haunts, leaving instructional flyers asking employees to refuse to serve him, should the young man stop by and try to order food.
While the approach stirred controversy online, Hind felt it was necessary to save his new friend’s life.
What’s more, McClintock agreed.
“Seeing my mum’s reaction to it all was heartbreaking,” he told Fox News. “If it wasn’t for that I might never have changed. Now I need to face up to my problem and tackle it head on; it’s now or never,” he said at the time.
Only a year later, McClintock’s efforts, combined with Hind’s support, have proved successful.
A stunning 280 pounds lighter, the 27-year-old is enjoying his second chance at life — finally able to do the things he could only dream about in the years leading up to his transformation.
“Twelve months ago I had given up on life and thought there was no way back from the weight I had reached. Now I’m living the best life I can, it’s amazing,” McClintock said.
“A year tomorrow marks the day that I first stepped into MAS body gym and with the advice of Mike my life has totally changed for the better,” he wrote on Facebook. “It’s Madness to think what has been achieved but I lay here now thinking about it and I am so proud of what we as a team have achieved.”
Together, Hind and his client participated in the Great North Run. McClintock also competed in a boxing match for charity and climbed a mountain in Scotland, Fox News reported.
The proud coach spoke up, praising his dedicated client for all his hard work.
“I don’t even think this photo needs any words,” the coach wrote on Facebook. “But I’ll say it anyway.”
He shared a before-and-after photo of McClintock, showing how far he had come on his journey.
“He never thought he would come out of that bed,” Hind wrote. “Yet 8 months after that photo was taken he is a new man.”
“I can’t even start to imagine the emotions Dibsy goes through when he thinks back to the dark days but honestly for me I’m so proud of him,” the trainer continued. He said McClintock was “by far the most genuine caring guy” he had ever trained.
Now, after months spent together, working, pushing and fighting for McClintock’s life, the two men have formed a friendship that has changed both of their lives forever.
“He is the most dedicated, loyal and humbled client I’ve ever had in the past 12 years doing this job … I’m proud of you brother,” Hind wrote. “Words will never describe how much respect I have for you.”
McClintock also thanked his trainer, telling Fox, “Hind has been there pushing me the whole way though, he’s been absolutely incredible.”
He added that the weight loss battle has given him new pride and the courage to believe in himself.
“When I look back over the last year and what I have achieved I’m very proud of myself. Both physically and mentally I’m in the best place I have ever been, I’m really happy.”
Truth and Accuracy
We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.
