‘Mike & Molly’ Star Billy Gardell Reveals 170-Pound Weight Loss Following Serious Health Risks

Billy Gardell is opening up about the changes he made to lose 170 pounds and save his own life.

The Mike & Molly alum, 56, tells PEOPLE in a new interview published Tuesday that he had long promised himself that he would take steps to lose weight, but it was the COVID-19 pandemic that ultimately scared him into making a change.

“When the first wave hit, and they punched up that list of high-risk conditions, I had all of them,” said Gardell, who weighed about 380 pounds when the pandemic hit. “Overweight, sleep apnea, smoker, type 2 diabetes, asthma . . . It was really the perfect storm. Between my blood numbers not coming back good, my blood pressure going up, type 2 diabetes and COVID — it was enough stuff to scare me to say, ‘Come hell or high water, I’ve got to make a change.’”

On July 17, 2021, Gardell underwent bariatric surgery, which was the first step in making a “shift” in “everything” he thought about food. “Food is fuel. It’s not reward, it’s not soothing, it’s not medication,” the comedian explained. “I had to get beyond my emotional relationship with food.”

Since his surgery, with the additional attention to his diet and regular exercise, Gardell has dropped more than 170 pounds. “My diabetes is gone,” he shared. “I feel strong. I have energy. Losing weight saved my life.”

The Bob Hearts Abishola star explained that he never saw too much of an issue with his weight in his younger years, as the “big guy is always funny,” but eventually, it began to take a toll on his health.

In addition to developing type 2 diabetes, Gardell began to struggle with joint and muscle pain that made it “hurt to stand up.” He began to worry that he wouldn’t be around for wife Patty and son Will, now 22, but “chickened out” both times he had previously discussed weight-loss surgery with his doctor.

It was only when he had to face the “full bingo card” of high-risk health conditions that came with the COVID pandemic that he truly felt the “desperation” to make a change.

In addition to health benefits, Gardell said he’s enjoyed “magical” new life experiences like surfing and horseback riding since losing so much weight. “I can fly in a middle seat on an airplane now,” he said. “For a big person, that’s the unicorn! And I know it sounds silly, but I’m able to walk into a store and buy a shirt off the rack. That one brings me so much joy, I can’t even explain.”