Supersize Cabbies

-Thank you.

-You're welcome, sir.

Roger Laughton is 46.

OK, let's go through. Would you like to take a seat just on

-the blue chair over there, please.

-Thank you very much.

He weighs 31 stone.

I've never weighed myself,

but I always knew I was getting bigger, because of my clothes.

OK, if you could you step up on the scales.

'It was just a big shock, you know.'

My jaw, sort of, hit the floor, like, you know?

Like one in four UK adults, Roger's obese.

Initially, if you could lie flat for me on the bed, please? OK.

And it's pushing his health to the edge.

It's extremely dangerous. He could be seriously ill.

He's basically lucky to be alive, as he is, now.

'It is very scary.

'It does put you into a bit of a shock.'

'They said "you need to lose weight drastically," so...'

That's what I've started to do.

Good, good, good.

Roger needs to lose nearly half his body weight.

-Taxi for Donna?

-Yeah.

-And he's not going it alone.

His fellow drivers at the local taxi firm are all overweight, too,

like Mike.

-Push, push, push, push!

-So, they're going on a drive to fitness.

Let's go, let's go, let's go!

Can they turn around a lifetime of bad diet and little exercise

and go from fat cabbies to fit cabbies?

Hello? Where are you going? All right, see you soon.

At the firm where Roger works,

it seems being fat is an occupational hazard.

'Being a taxi driver, you're sat down in 11 hours of the shift.'

And you do put on weight. You do.

'Getting in and out of the car was exercise enough.

'Nine times out of ten, I have a chocolate bar, packet of crisps,'

bottle of Coke. All bad for you. All extra sugar.

But temptation's always there. And why does it taste so good?

You know?

Got your currant bun now, ain't you?

Boss Liam Sheerin used to be massive.

See you later!

There is couple of pictures of me from last year, in Benidorm,

before my lifestyle changed to what it's changed now.

Liam's lost almost 10 stone.

Push, push, push, push!

Keep going, keep going.

-And that's inspired Roger to get a grip.

-OK.

With his fellow cabbies,

he's joined a weight-loss group run by a community health team.

This is torture!

It's not just the obvious flab that needs to go.

-Nice, nice!

-Trainer Gavin wants to zap their internal,

or visceral fat, too.

Visceral fat is the dangerous fat around your organs.

Essentially, statistically,

people who have high visceral fat are far more likely to get various

diseases, such as chronic heart disease.

So this is a key indicator that we look for.

DANCE MUSIC PLAYS

Visceral fat can also cause strokes, diabetes, and cancer.

Roger's is almost off the scale.

When I first saw Roger step on,

I thought it actually broke the machine,

because his visceral fat was 50. Anything above 13,

it starts to class as high. So, 50, you know,

it's extremely dangerous.

So our aim is to bring that visceral fat down

and gradually improve his health.

Cabbie Mike is 30.

At 20 stone, he's dangerously obese.

So, he's on a diet.

I'm actually making stir-fry with a bit of piri piri seasoning.

-A bit of couscous.

-Couscous!

-Couscous.

The food that's so good, they named it twice.

Mike started piling on the pounds as a child.

At five, he had to wear a hearing aid.

That's when the teasing started.

I went from being just a normal kid, if you like,

to what I felt like an outsider. Just like that.

And...

..I still remember the bullying and the torment that I suffered.

The name-calling. The jibes. Made me want to comfort eat.

And then, because obviously I was comfort eating,

I was putting on more weight.

And then, because I was putting on more weight,

they then found something else to...

..to bully me for.

It's early days, but girlfriend Georgina thinks the diet's working.

Does it look like I do bullshit?!

I've seen a definite, like, change from him,

where he is not as tired.

When he... Because obviously, he does shift work,

but he's not as tired.

And he's much more happier in himself.

And he tells me that every day!

Mike's got a big incentive to lose weight.

He's going to be a dad.

-Not long.

-Not long, at all.

It could happen any day now, really.

-It could happen within the next ten minutes.

-I bloody hope not!

That's very nice.

A bit hot.

Never trust a thinker!

From here, that's it. Push. Nice.

And again.

Drive, drive, drop, good, good!

Roger needs to lose a whopping 15 stone,

so he's training five days a week.

Try a bit back. No, go on, then. Go under. All yours. Good.

'Rustic training, this is. It's not like going into a gym,

'running on a treadmill or cycling a bike.

'It's, you know, it's intense.'

Well done, well done.

'It is punishment'

for all my life, that I've ruined my body!

Three, two, one. Let's go. Good.

For Roger, having Gavin pushing him on is vital.

Well done.

Good, good, good, good.

I'll be just another person, sat at home or working.

You know, not exercising.

Eat what you want and carry on, as life is going, until it ends.

Three...

two...one.

Good.

MUSIC: "Taxi" TV theme

Roger works nights.

Shift work is linked to obesity, although it's not clear exactly why.

But for Roger, a pit stop at the burger van had become routine.

-Evening, Sean.

-Evening, Rog.

-All right?

-He's learning to resist temptation.

A bottle of water, please.

-Cheers, buddy.

-Cheers, man.

-Thanks a lot.

Normally, I would have had a burger or something or a hot dog.

-But I don't touch it no more.

-No?

I just stand here and yak with them, now and again.

You ought to be really proud of yourself, mate, cos it's not easy.

-No.

-Try working here, I tell you!

Eight weeks in and, for the cabbies, it's the first weigh-in.

Your fat mass went from 31.45 to 27.65.

-Can have a burger now, mate!

-No!

OK, Mike, if you'd like to step on, please.

Straight away, that's over a three kilo loss.

Take the handles, put them down by your sides.

Your metabolic rate has increased, which is fantastic.

I'll admit now, there's times I wanted to kill you...

But it's been worth it, cos there's brilliant scores.

-Well done.

-Brilliant.

Next up, it's Roger.

That is 19 kilos of weight loss.

So that is, essentially, 2.973 stone.

ROGER LOUDLY EXHALES

-That's mad.

-Yeah. It's working.

Well done, mate.

Thank you. Thanks, mate.

Three stone.

THEY APPLAUD

For most of the cabbies, this is where the programme ends...

Fantastic, guys. Really, really happy with...

..but Roger wants to keep going...

-Big cheer.

-ALL:

-Hooray!

..using Gavin as his personal trainer.

I reckon I could do another two stone in another six weeks,

hopefully. Keep working at it every day like I have been.

Yeah. I want to get there.

I think I'm going to reach my goal, I hope.

But then, for Roger, there is a serious blow.

He thought he had a chest infection,

but a check-up revealed something much worse.

I had my ECG and they found an arrhythmia problem.

With, also, the onset of heart failure.

So I've got to see a consultant and I've also got to stop driving.

So... Cos it's that bad.

Arrhythmia is an irregular heartbeat.

Roger can't work while he waits for more tests

and his size is causing delays in itself.

They cancelled my heart exam again,

because they are saying that the bed in the Cumberland Centre

won't hold my weight.

I lost seven stone and they are still saying I'm too big, like,

you know?

I've been feeling a bit down in the last couple of weeks.

I've not been able to work, at all.

No work, no money.

You know, sometimes I just stand and look out the window

for hours on end!

Because...oh, it's frustrating.

But he's not giving up and nor is Gavin.

We can still do resistance...

Although even a short walk leaves Roger struggling.

Yeah.

COUGHING

Excuse me.

You just feel half a man, sometimes, especially when you don't work.

-And I've worked all my life.

-So, essentially, just keep positive,

doing the right things.

-That's right, yeah.

-Tablets, water tablets will kick in

-and weight loss will be more visual.

-Yeah.

And just see this as part of your journey.

Start walking back.

Gavin's not giving up on him,

but all Roger can do now is sit tight and wait for a diagnosis.

ROGER COUGHS REPEATEDLY

Come on, push, push, push! Keep going!

Whilst Roger's at a standstill, Mike's going from strength...

..to strength.

That's fantastic.

Brilliant, mate.

Good, good, keep going.

Excellent.

MUSIC: Work That Body by Diana Ross

Come on, let's go.

He's carried on training with Gavin

and even taken to the dreaded burpees.

Come on, big finish, big finish.

-Well, almost.

-Well done.

How do you feel about burpees?

I hate them.

I hate them.

Two words - hate...them.

Three, two, one...

Sprint, sprint, sprint!

Go, go, go!

I'll be honest with you, I came that close to saying I just can't do it.

-I came that close.

-Full speed, full speed, full speed.

I don't care if it's got to take me until next year to do this, either.

-I'll get there.

-Well done. Excellent.

You did well.

Gavin thinks Mike needs a confidence boost.

So, he's set him a challenge, at the local sports centre.

-Tickle!

-And guess who has come along?

Mike is now a dad, to Henry.

It's a long way up.

It's all right, I'll come down eventually.

Don't worry. I will. Daddy is not going to go anywhere.

Daddy is not going to stay up there.

Only one problem...

Mike's terrified of heights.

'The big thing for Mike is his confidence.'

When he is confident, he is, you know, incredible.

'Hopefully, the results today will show him that he is going

'in the right direction.'

-You ready, Mike?

-No. No!

-Cool.

-Here we go.

-Right up high!

-Hey!

-Oh, God. One foot on, that's it. The other foot.

BLEEP

-Relax!

-BLEEP hell!

-Nearly there!

-Well done!

APPLAUSE

MIKE BREATHES HEAVILY

It's all right, I ain't going to fall.

Small steps, small step. Relax, relax. Hold this.

Hold this. Good. good.

Sidesteps. Good, well done.

Brilliant. Keep going.

And then feet on. One feet, feet on.

BLEEP BLEEP

OK, mate.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Well done, mate. Well done.

You did well, you did well. Good.

Don't you ever make me do that again!

Brilliant. You did well.

He's exhausted, but the toughest part is still to come -

a ten-metre wall climb.

Imagine how great it is going to feel when you have got to the top.

God help me.

-Ready, mate? Yeah?

-Let's give it a go.

Good, excellent, mate. Good start. That's a nice one.

Lift your feet up. Good.

Next leg, lift up to the good one.

Perfect.

-All right. BLEEP

-That grey one looks good.

Now, big push up.

Mike makes a great start...

..but halfway up, he freezes.

-Guys, guys, no.

-You've got the grips, you need to...

Gav, Gav, no.

Gav.

Gav, Gav, no.

Guys, I want to come back down. Guys, guys, I'm coming back down.

Gav!

If he gives up, he will have his mum to answer to.

HEAVY BREATHING

If you come back down, you will always regret it.

Now, keep going. Come on!

CHEERING

Go on, mate.

That's it. Good! Well done, well done.

HEAVY BREATHING

You can do this.

-I want to go back down.

-You can do this.

-Why won't you let me go back down?

-Cos we want you to get to the top.

This is, look...

At the top is all the goals you have got, feeling better for yourself.

This is at the top. You playing football with Henry,

that's at the top. All these things are based on conquering challenges.

After over an hour on the wall, Mike is beaten.

-Can you just let me down, please?

-Next one, next one. Next one.

-Why? I'm absolutely aching, I'm knackered.

-Right, step back.

APPLAUSE

You, literally, had two metres to go. You were there.

I don't want to hear you say give up again. Because you can do it.

Roger is hoping that, for him, things are looking up, too.

He has finally got a hospital appointment.

I'm hoping that I will get the all-clear, to say

that I will be, you know. I'm OK, my heart, there's nothing

wrong with my heart. So, that's what I'm hoping for today.

If you could take your shirt off, please?

If you could lie flat for me on the bed, please?

OK.

COUGHING

OK, you're just going to hear some sounds

of the blood flow going through the valves, OK?

SOUND WAVES WASH

Roger's swollen up with retained water.

He can no longer tell what is fat and what is fluid

and what it is all doing to his organs.

Time to see the specialist...

-Mr Wilson? Jonathan Daniels.

-Oh, lovely. Yep, thank you.

..and get some answers.

-OK. Thanks for coming.

-Thank you.

-Finally got to see you.

-Yeah!

OK, well, you have got a couple of problems with the heart.

What we have found is that you have this condition, atrial fibrillation,

with an irregular pulse, where your heart is going too fast.

And we have also found that the heart has become swollen

and isn't pumping as efficiently as it should.

The heart problems have caused the water retention.

If something is not done, fluid could back up dangerously

into his lungs.

What we are planning to do is improve your medication,

so that you get fewer symptoms and lose a lot of this excess fluid

and end up less breathless.

Will I be able to go back exercising, to the gym?

Yeah, we'd want you to do that. You will need to build it up slowly

over a period of probably six months.

-Yeah, no problem.

-OK. Great. All right.

-Nice to meet you.

-Thank you very much. Nice to meet you, too.

Roger has done his best to reverse a lifetime of bad habits,

but at 46, his heart is irreversibly damaged.

Is he going to have atrial fibrillation the rest of his life? Yes, he might have.

And he'll probably have to take tablets for the rest of his life, to look after his heart.

It's serious, but Roger doesn't seem to have taken it all in.

It's still a problem with the heart, but it's not major.

Get the tablets in, get back to exercising

and get back to work.

Yeah, that's the plan.

But, just a few weeks later, Roger is back in hospital.

I went to get some pain relief for my legs,

because my legs are blistered up with the water

and they found out I had a problem with my breathing.

So they rushed me right into hospital

and they found that my kidneys wasn't working properly,

a problem with my breathing and some water on my lungs, yeah.

The doctors are trying to drain the excess water from his body.

Have you had much to drink this afternoon?

-No.

-Blood pressure is a bit low.

-Yeah.

-Try and have a drink, OK?

-Yeah, no problem. Thank you.

It is very scary and it does put you into a bit of a shock, yeah.

You know...it does worry me.

Roger's finally waking up to the risks of being so overweight.

You know, don't get as big.

Don't put on the weight. It's not worth it.

It does cause a lot of medical problems

and dangerous ones, as well. In my eyes, you know, I think,

I could have prevented it, a lot more years ago, than...

Than what I have, you know?

Three weeks later, it's the final weigh-in.

In for another weigh-in, mate. All good.

And incredibly, Roger has made it.

After a month in hospital, he's pulled through.

OK, guys. So, back at my joint nine and a half months later

from our first weigh-in.

So, obviously, you have done fantastic.

That will show in the results. I'm really proud of the progress

you have both made and, today, it is just going to confirm that, really.

Nine months ago, Mike weighed 20 stone

and at just 30 years old, was dangerously fat.

This is torture!

He's hit the wall...

Guys, I want to come back down.

..and become a dad.

But has he conquered the scales?

If you would like to step on, please.

That's it.

-Just relax.

-I can't relax. I can't relax!

Mike, you can step off. I'll just go through the scores with you.

So, we have lost weight again since the last weigh-in we've done.

Very close. Nearly got that three stone mark.

So, that's fantastic. That's what you wanted.

Nearly, nearly there.

He wants to lose more,

but now, three stone lighter and with almost normal internal fat,

Mike is no longer morbidly obese.

Having Henry was a big motivation for you.

-A massive, massive motivation.

-Massive motivation.

As soon as Henry was born, that was a real incentive then to carry on.

-It's been an amazing journey.

-Yeah. And you can look forward to now,

at 30 years old, if you continue to improve your health,

you will live a long time for Henry.

Brilliant.

Here.

-Well done, Mike. Feel good?

-Yeah, amazing.

Now, it is Roger's turn.

Go on, then. All yours.

A year ago, he weighed 31 stone.

I've done exercise, but never like this.

His heart problems put a stop to any exercise.

He probably will have to take tablets for the rest of his life.

But, he has kept to a strict diet. Has it been enough?

OK, if you would just like to step on the scales, please.

You can step off, if you like. Just writing out the scores for you.

OK. So, Roger.

Unbelievable. Absolutely incredible.

Your visceral fat down to 25, from 50.

-So your health risk is cut..

-Right in half.

-That is absolutely fantastic. Just that bit alone.

-Yeah.

But I've got some more good news, from the scores.

Today, your weight is 123 kilos,

which is 11 and a half stone in weight loss.

-Brilliant.

-11 and a half stone weight loss.

-So...

-Fantastic.

-Fantastic.

11 and a half stone. You have actually lost more than I weigh.

-You have lost more than I weigh.

-That's good.

I'm half the man of what I used to be.

Yeah. Brilliant.

By shedding more than 11 stone, Roger has halved his internal fat,

potentially adding years onto his life.

You are an inspiration. You really turned your life around.

-Yeah, too right.

-And you can look forward to the future now.

Oh, yeah. Yeah, too right.

-Cheers, mate.

-Happy days.

-Thank you. Thank you.

-Well impressed. You are looking really good.

-Thank you. Thank you.

I've had ups and downs, illness, hospitals.

But, yeah...

..I am very proud.

Can we get a smile? No?

Just going to give me evils.

'I look at life now'

and I feel amazing. Every day I wake up and I feel amazing.

Who knows what's going to happen with the baby.

Maybe, hopefully, he'll be half the man I used to be, as well!

It's been a rough ride for Roger.

He's got to learn to live with a heart condition,

but at least he is finally in the driving seat

on the road to recovering his health.