Television life coach Pete Cohen is spearheading a move to get a Shropshire market town fit.

The GMTV star was in Ellesmere this week helping to recruit people to the GP surgery’s healthy living programme.

He and the town’s medical staff want 50 people to sign up to the free, one-to-one weight loss programme which will combine help from his own programme and from nurses at the surgery.

And he told a meeting in Ellesmere’s Black Lion pub that his system works.

He said people should not see dieting as weight loss, but as a positive move to make them stronger, fitter and healthier.

“Dieting is depriving yourself of something and human beings do not want to feel deprived,” he said. “It is possible to enjoy losing weight.”

He said the programme would help people to crack bad habits and find new, healthy habits.

One of those already benefiting is Sue Schofield, an admin officer at Ellesmere’s surgery, who has already lost 13lb in a month following Pete’s programme. Those who signed up to the free programme this week included welder Peter Jones, from Ellesmere, who has tried slimming clubs and slimming tablets without long-term success.

He is hoping Pete’s three-month programme will be different. He said: “I don’t want to feel unfit when the new bowling season starts.”

A second meeting for patients at the Ellesmere practice, who want to join the programme, is at the Black Lion on Monday at 7pm.