Man Given 6 Months to Live Loses 76 Pounds on Fruit and Protein Shake Diet

TO Durham, North Carolina, A man has changed his life after receiving serious medical news.

Derek Barnett, 55, was diagnosed with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease 10 years ago, according to a SWNS report.

At his heaviest, Barnett weighed 240 pounds and was a size 38.

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Barnett, a construction worker who is currently unemployed due to health problemshe downplayed his diagnosis, telling SWNS that he “didn’t think anything about it.”

“Everyone has a type of thing,” he said.

But the man’s condition worsened, progressing to cirrhosis and eventually hepatocellular carcinoma, also known as liver cancer.

In January 2024, Barnett received a letter from his doctor giving him bad news: He potentially only had six months to live if the cancer continued to grow.

“When they gave me that letter last year, it became real,” he reflected.

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“That note said, ‘If the cancer becomes aggressive, you have six months to live.’ I kept it, looked at it every day, and it beat me up.”

Barnett’s doctors informed him that the best way to regain his health would be lose weight – and knew it was time to get motivated and take action.

“I thought, ‘Okay, we can do this,'” he told SWNS. “I’m addicted to fruits. I went to a main fruit diet basically.”

Barnett began limiting his diet to “very small meals” throughout the day, which included many of his favorite fruits.

“It’s about eating well, staying active and never giving up.”

“I can eat a whole watermelon in a day, but I also eat apples, oranges and grapes, whatever is in season,” she said.

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“I also drink protein shakes. I’m not a vegetarian, but I don’t eat a lot of meat because it fills me up too much.”

Barnett recently hit a record weight 164 pounds. He reported that he lost weight following this diet and that his “scores look fantastic.”

“I haven’t weighed this since I was probably 15 years old,” he said.

Barnett said he still has work to do in toning your muscles to “catch up on the skin loss”, but continues to move forward.

“My clothes are a little big and baggy, and it’s hard to buy clothes when you lose weight so quickly, but I feel fantastic,” she said.

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Barnett has also kept the weight off. stay activedespite his physical limitations.

“I have osteoarthritis in my right knee and I need a knee replacement,” he revealed. “I can’t go running or climb stairs, but I do what I can.”

He reported that his workouts usually involve sitting in chairs and “using small dumbbells.”

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“I’m non-stop, but I do it without hurting myself,” he added. “Losing weight is just about staying active and finding anything you can do to get off the couch.”

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Barnett told SWNS that she will find out the status of her prognosis in February and that she hopes to inspire others with her successful weight loss journey.

“If I can do this, anyone can,” he said. “I’ve done everything the doctors told me to do. It’s about eating right, staying active and never giving up.”

“I was 55 going on 90,” he continued. “Now I’m 55 and I’m 20 again.”

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Barnett hopes to return to work and live a “full and active life“, according to SWNS.

“I want to ring that bell the next time I see my doctors and tell them I’ve done it,” he said. “This is just the beginning.”