That Gaby Roslin Podcast: Reasons To Be Joyful - Joe Wicks

Episode Date: December 5, 2023

Joe Wicks joins Gaby for a natter about body health, mental health, joy and laughter! Joe talks about how he's changed his relationship with his phone and now doesn't keep it in the bedroom. This is one of the things he's put in his new book, Feel Good 15, which looks at food, exercise, mental health and life hacks. As well as this, Joe talks about feeling good in himself, his famous fart and what makes him laugh. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

And welcome to reasons to be joyful. The season is upon us. And what better way to start celebrating December than with the sprinkling of Christmas joy in the form of Joe Wicks. Yes, the body coach, the author, the TV presenter, that Joe Wicks. Here he is and we do hope you enjoy it. Now, give me a press up. Go. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Joe Wicks, you and I are sitting here face to face and you are in my bed. every night and every morning. Should we explain that? Yeah, what am I doing in your lovely bedroom every night of the week? So, well, you and I have, so we've chatted many, many times, and I'm going to remind you of something really, really a long time ago. We will explain why you're in my bedroom every morning and night. We'll explain to your wife as well.

Don't worry. But many, many moons ago, you were Joe Wicks, body coach, and you came onto my radio show and we were chatting and you said, oh, I really know what I want to do. I want to get everybody fit. I want to get into schools. I want any age to join in.

And I said, oh, this is really going to take off. This is great. I love the whole idea of it. And then the next time I spoke to you, there was not one person in the world that didn't know you. And it was, you said to me in that the next time we chatted, you said, do you know what?

I think you were one of the first people who ever interviewed me. And now, look, I feel like a very proud auntie. Yeah, you've literally been at the start from the whole journey. You've seen me become a husband, a parent. You know, I had no kids back then. This is like just me doing the Lean in 15 videos, wasn't it, in the start? Just this. And Chris Evans was another one that the two of us, I remember even he and I talking about you.

And we just knew it because you are, you're anybody, you're everybody. And that's why it works. and then obviously through the pandemic, you kept everybody going. And that was quite a, that's a heavy load on your shoulders in some ways, isn't it? Well, look, thank you for being so positive. And you've always supported my career. And I love you for that. And yeah, even on social media, you've always been encouraging and, you know,

celebrating little moments of me. So thank you so much for that. And I, you know, yeah, the P were joined lockdown thing was a moment where I was kind of working on that, that vision of, you know, getting people moving, getting kids exercising. And I really thought it was going to take me 10, 15, 20 years of, like, campaigning and doing tours. And obviously then in that one moment in time, it was like everybody was there in their houses, kind of had no choice. And so it's a negative time, but also a positive thing came out of it, because I really did get people moving. I got families for the first time, you know, with their

kids exercising. And it was like a positive moment in a difficult time, I think. But also what was so lovely, and I know this from our own house that my kids' cousins live in Switzerland. And they were working out at the same time together with you. And I found that really emotional. Actually, that's really weird. It's just made me, it's so weird that time. It's like a weird time warp that didn't sort of happen. But that was so special that my younger daughter, so close to her youngest cousin,

that they were together doing something together thanks to you. Yeah, you know what? When you talk about that emotion, I can also feel the same if I think about the feelings and when it ended and it does, it does bring back that sense of kind of, it was just such an uncertain time, wasn't it? And I was also proud of what I'd achieved in that moment.

But yeah, you know, It was lovely seeing families in the UK with, you know, their families in, even in Australia. People were doing it in mad time zones, you know, doing in the middle of the night in America and stuff. So I saw a lot of that where people were doing the Zooms and the kind of FaceTimes and doing it in real time in their pajamas or in their fancy dress Friday outfits. And it was a, it brought people together. It was a routine. It was something they could look forward to. And I always thank everyone that took part because it also helped me get through the lockdown.

You know, it was my, it was my therapy. It was giving me like a focus every day. And it got me through, you know, I distracted myself. I just worked through it. And at the end of it, it was like, wow, we've just been through a pandemic. And I kind of was just really grateful that I had something to focus on that was really positive with my time. And you're so open about how you feel. So you're open, obviously, physically, but you're even more open about your mental health

and the struggles that you've had and ongoing. And I think that the more people talk about it, the better. And your new book, Feel Good in 15, this is workouts, this is health hacks, It's recipes. It's good for our mind, body and soul as well, isn't it? Yeah, and we share the same publisher as well, which is wonderful, isn't it? We do. We're in the same group.

But, yeah, I'm really proud of this book. It's my 12th book, which seems mad. 12. When you think about, you know, leaning 15 back in the day, it was like 2015. So 12 books in just under eight years is pretty crazy. That's incredible. I bang them out, don't know, I knock them out. But I've had a little bit of a break.

It's been a year and a half since I released another book. And this is really about the evolution of what I believe and all the kind of things that I never used to talk about. I would never talk about, you know, the importance of sleep, mental health, gut health, things that I'm learning on the way. And I'm sure you've, you know, been, you know, in kind of investigating and learning about new things as you've gone along. And it's little moments where you think, well, I need to share that

because it's so important to understand that what I think is common knowledge. A lot of people don't know. So I'm sharing things around sleep, how that affects our mood, you know, our gut health with certain foods. And so it's really about food in 15, you know, workouts and sort of mobility routines in 15 minutes. and then those little lifestyle hacks and things you can do as a family that are like non-screen activities,

things that get you away from the phone, away from technology, and it's little things, little daily wins that can make a massive difference on your mental health. That's very interesting. You said about,

you didn't just say workout. So I know you, there's a lovely thing you put on your Instagram a couple of months ago where you were with elderly people and you just walked in and you chatted to them and it's for everybody

and it's not just about, oh, let's get muscle. bound. This is, you know, we were talking before we started recording about people with dementia, really working on their core and movement, because it's, you should do it at all ages and no matter your, your mental ability either. 100%. So that's a video you're talking about when I was in Ireland. I was doing a school's tour and I got a message from someone saying, my, my grandma and her neighbour do your workout. So it was Cecilia and Paddy. They came along there, surprised me at this school. And when I walked over to me, I was like, my grandma, my grandma and my grandma, and her neighbour, and her neighbour,

like, oh, how are you doing? What are you up to that? Oh, we've done your workout every single day. You're in our lives. We do the senior workouts 10 minutes a day every day for three years. And I was so inspired with that. I shared it because I thought, you know, it just goes to show that you don't need to be doing really high-intensity workout. So you don't need to be like young and fit and in the gym doing things. Like movement is medicine, whether you're, and by the way, they were 89 years old.

Fantastic. So, you know, for a two-year-old child who's doing a little bit of movement in the living room or bedroom and a grandparent doing it on a chair, like it's all so positive. positive for our mood, for our energy. And especially in the world we live at this, a lot of stress. There's a lot of negative energy. And the world feels like it's falling apart sometimes. And I think sometimes you've got to use exercise as a way to release some of those emotions that you might be feeling and that anger or that resentment.

And that's really something that children and adults need to be aware of. And you know, a lot of things around exercise, it's always about weightless. It's about body image. It's always about changing the way you feel. And it's changing way you look and it's a punishment, right. But actually, exercise is a beautiful gift that we can use. It's a joy. Yeah, it's a joy.

Exactly. When you find it. So I'm somebody who was never very fit at school and I couldn't touch my toes and all of those things. But I found the thing that was right for me, which was little dumbbells and going to the gym and moving. And I thought, oh, I'm moving. Oh, I can do this. I can touch my toes. I can, whatever it is.

And when you find the thing that's right for you and what you do with all of your workouts and with all of your recipes and all of your books, You don't say, my way is the only way. How about trying this? How about trying this? Whether you're young, you're old, whether you have any disabilities. Because I know my friend with her child who has cerebral palsy, they do your workouts together. They move together.

And he loves it. So, no, it's not about being muscle bound and look how good. I can wear a crop top. You know, it's not about that, is it? I think, yeah, I just think in the last few years, the narratives change and the motivations change. think, you know, like with myself and a lot of other trainings, we are talking about mental health. We are talking about the mental health benefits of movement and it's not just about the physical

changes you might see in the outside. And I think that's a nice thing because people have always associated with fitness with, you know, it's PE and it's tough and I hated it at school and I'm going to hate it as an adult. But there's so many ways to move. And I always say that movement is medicine and that you never regret a workout, do you? So it's about doing little and often and fitting into your day. And this is why the book's really about, you know, what can you do today? If you have a stressful life and you think, I just don't want to exercise today, you might say, right, I'm going to find 15 minutes to do some gratitude journaling

or to listen to a podcast or go for a walk, listen to some music. There's loads of little things you can do that actually still give you that little boost that don't require such an energy input, you know. And that's why I'm trying to promote with the book, really. Okay, so every morning I get up and I will explain why you're in my bedroom in the morning and at night. So I take my shot of probiotic that I have in the morning and for 10 minutes you can't have anything else.

In that 10 minutes, I do your 10 minute abs. And I love it. And it's just something that I do. I don't think about it. I just do. And it's there on my phone. I get on the floor, put my mat out, and then I do my squats afterwards.

And my 50 squats, if I don't do my 50 squats in the morning, I don't feel good. Now, I told somebody about this recently. And I said, this is what I do. And they said, oh, there's so much pressure. I said, no, if you start doing it. They've started doing it. And they say, oh, I didn't realize it was so easy.

And it's, I mean, I spout you every. In my book, I talk about you. And I just say that it's those, it's easier than you think. Especially if you can do it 15 minutes, that's not a big time out of our day. What I love about that is that, you know, it's that little routine that you're in. And I was actually doing that when I was on the road in Ireland, and I was just getting up and doing, you know, I was doing 50 press-ups and sort of 50 crunches.

And even though it's such a small little amount of time, it only took me like, say, yeah, 10 minutes probably in sets of 10. But I felt like, you know, I've done something. I had my shower and it just gets you off to a positive start. And it's something that's low friction. There's nothing stopping you. Like you said, you can do it on your floor in your bedroom or your kitchen. And, you know, you just did a mat or a towel.

And so those little things build that little sense of, I've achieved something, something productive. And it might knock on to, you know, a better food choice for breakfast. Or you might say, I know what, I'm feeling good. I'm going to go food shopping and prep some meals for tomorrow. It's like a little thing to have a big knock on to the rest of the day. And so, yeah, I think that's great. I think what you're doing is brilliant.

And, you know, you look great for it. So it's obviously working. Twice a day is a bit greedy. Twice a day. No, twice a day. Every day. No, yeah, twice a day. But I do the 10 minute.

I do the 10 minute abs every day. And then I often have you again in my bedroom. So like you sandwich me. Between the worker. I absolutely do. Yeah, I absolutely do. And there's another, there's another trainer as well that I follow online. And Caroline, and I love the idea of you and Caroline doing something together.

I think you should. I've seen videos, but it's Caroline Gervan. She's in incredible shape. No, we've not crossed paths actually. But I do go to Dublin sometimes to the Well Festival in Dublin. There we go. You two together. That would be awesome.

So you must know every single word in that workout word for word. Can you preempt it and talk to me sort of thing virtually? I do, and there's a seven minute one as well and you go, oh, not bad for eight minute abs and I always say, no, you're doing seven minutes. I'd like, I correct you. Like you can hear me and you put it on there. Gabby, it's not the one where I fart, is it?

No. Oh, thank God for that. Do you farting one? Didn't you hear about that? No. Okay, I missed the farting. So basically, during that the second or third lockdown, I went live on YouTube.

Oh, yes, that one! You know, and just before I thought it was, I didn't think it was live. You must have heard they went all around the world. Yes, yes. Yes, yes. I thought was I hearing you fart every day? But that was in lockdown? Yeah. Oh my God. Everyone went mad about that. Yeah, it was a bit, it was a bit embarrassing. But I thought, I'm going to own that. I thought, I'm going to own it. And it went all around the world that far. Yeah. So sometimes, you know, when you're brewing, you got a bit of a sore tummy, it's coming out. And I thought, I've got to do it before I go live. Because if I do it in the middle of the workout, by doing a crunch or, you know, some kind of press up, I'm going to feel very embarrassed. But people needed a laugh. They needed a good, I think it was a proper good belly laugh. So how is your mental health at the moment?

How, you know, if you, because you've had some really tough times. And I know you're the first person that's been, no, second person that's been on this podcast twice. So it's an absolute joy. But you talked very openly about your childhood. And I think it was one of the first times you did. And there was a lot of pick up afterwards and people chatting about that. But now how do you feel, I mean, you've got 3,000 children now. Almost, yeah.

Three kids. You got three. How are you feeling? in you. Yeah, it's a lovely question. It's nice for you to ask because I obviously reach out to so many people and it is nice when a stranger reaches out and how are you doing, you know, what are you up to and how is your mentor?

Because I am very open, you know, even this morning I woke up feeling a bit down, you know, what's going on in the media and it does affect me as a parent especially with young kids, you know, so I kind of, I'm, what's the word, I'm trying to navigate through that really because when you are on social media, there's a pressure for you to be common and everything that's going on the world. And if you don't, they think that you don't care and that's so untrue because I'm I really do care. But yeah, you know, it affects me. So I try not to consume the mainstream media too much, but with social media, it's there isn't it every single day when you wake up. And so

I'm trying my best to have the first sort of 15 minutes to half an hour of the day where I just don't look at my phone. You know, use an alarm clock, don't look at the phone. And that's helping me. That's one of the things I talk about in the book. But, you know, I manage to, I can detach from social media. Although I'm very addicted to my phone, I'm very addicted to social media. I am able to sort of at the weekend, say to Rosie, let's just leave our phones in the are spend a couple of hours going to Richmond Park or going to the farm and just really removing myself from it and not being contactable, which is quite nice because it's a nice time for my brain to kind of relax and feel unstressed. But yeah, I'm good. Mainly the exercise anchored me,

I think. It's the daily exercise that brings me back to that feeling present and feeling like I can control one thing, which is how I feel, you know, in the moment. But yeah, do you, do you know what I mean? Do you feel that sometimes? It's overwhelming, isn't it? But it's lovely to hear that from you because I've spoken to you when you're not feeling. like that and I love you for your honesty but also I think that you know who you are now

in what sense do you mean well because I think you thought you a lot of the time you were there for everybody else and you were you especially through the pandemic there was pressure on you know it was you have to put out the workouts you have to be there for everybody you have to make everybody feel good you have to

you know and your recipes and but now I feel like you know who you are that you're a dad, that you're a husband, that you work hard, that you do stuff for charity, you do all of these things, but I get the feeling that you know who, that you're you now, that you found you. Yeah, I think there's, um, there's definitely some truth in that. Because I think I've definitely learned to find peace with not being able to respond to

every single person that messages me and to accept that's okay. Because if I send 10 voice notes today that makes 10 people feel good, that's enough. Whereas before, like, especially during the documentary when I filmed that, I was going to bed at night thinking people are reaching out to me and I can't open their messages I can't get back to me. It was like this feeling of they're slipping through the net and who's going to help them. But I have got boundaries now with the phone.

Like I'm really good at nighttime. I leave the phone downstairs. Really? Yeah, because if I don't, it's like I'm on it and I'll be in bed and I'm watching TV and I've got the phone. So for me, the biggest change in my life, I think, for that was leaving the phone downstairs so that when I wake up in the middle of the night for a wee,

I'm not picking up the phone and scrolling and watching Instagram reels and replying to people in other parts of the world. So it was a big step for me, and it's got easier. But the morning time I find harder, because when I wake up, there's this unbelievable urge and, like, a temptation to just find the phone. My brain's looking for the dopamine. It's seeking, like, right, I've got to plug in.

I've got to see what's happening. I've got to read the messages. So that's why one of the health hacks is, you know, can you spend just 15 minutes, the first 50 minutes of the day without your phone? And for a lot of people, that's difficult. And some days I do it, and some days 15 seconds later I'm on my phone.

You try. Yes, you tried and you're being honest about it as well. And the food thing as well, you were, I mean, that's sort of how it all started as well, the food and the working out. So in here you've got 15-minute recipes. And I really like that because the amount of times, because I go on about health and nutrition all the time, I've been studying it since Dad had bowel cancer 27 years ago.

And when I talk about making fresh food, people say, how do you have the time? It doesn't have to take ages. and there you are saying you can do stuff in 15 minutes. Yeah, well that's kind of always been the promise around my rest because if you think back to the very wacky lean 15 videos. So not a lot of people notice. They think it's because it was in 2015,

but it was nothing to do with that. It was because it was a 15 second video because all you could post was 15 seconds. So 15 second video, 15 minute meal and that became lean in 15. And I always think the time promise of that short amount of time is quite appealing to people because we are busy than ever. And even then, like 15 minute.

And it's felt like a, like, didn't feel like a long time now. And even today, it's less, you know, people are like, they're more stressed and they've got less time. So I thought, go back to that principle of few ingredients, nice and quick, you know, a few shortcuts with the microwave and, you know, one pan, one, the sort of thing. And it's, it is the way I cook, you know, it is because I've got three kids. And when they're hungry and they come in from a long day, yeah. You know, they're like, they want to eat. So I think it is. It's just that simplicity of it.

And I think that's why my book's done so well, because it was a, it was a guy learning to cook in real time. with my audience and sharing them and hanging out the window and being a bit of a nutter and then people walk past. I'm going to hang out the window and go, and that right there is leaning 15.

It was mad. And I find it hard to watch them back. I cringe. No, no, don't cringe. Never do that. Because, you know, I've been doing this for long time. And people say, oh, do you ever?

And I've decided not, I didn't finish any sentence then. I didn't finish a line I was saying, but I knew what I was talking about. Don't go back and do that because you just think those bits all made you where you are now, which is what I said before is I feel like you know who you are now, Joe.

Yeah, definitely cut through the noise. And yeah, I think I've gone on the journey, you know, when I was the early days, it was just about fat loss and losing weight and transformation. But yeah, I've gone on the journey because I understand human behaviour a lot more now. You know, when I started out, it was me running a boot camp, sharing videos on Instagram. You know, the body coach app, we've had almost a million people come through the 90-day plan and now the body coach app. So you think of all the conversations I've had, all the transformations I've seen.

And it always starts from a position of people want to lose weight and change how they look, but it's not what keeps them going. It's the mental health benefits. It's how they find work easier. They find relationships improve. They're more confident and they're more patient. These are the things that truly bring you back to exercise, right? It's not always going to be trying to look good in the mirror and it's being lean.

Like we're never going to be able to maintain that forever. But if you can tap into the mental health benefits and really want to feel good, then you can actually, I think, keep it up all year round. I'm just going to pull some tea. So we're not having a wee. Go on you on. Yeah, me too. Yeah.

It might sound like we're having a wee on. No, we're not. So you must be really interested in the whole, like, you know, the gut health and all the science. Oh, big time. It seems to be a new thing. But have you been studying that for literally 20 years? Yeah, you've been way ahead of the time. Years and years and years because my dad had bowel cancer.

And I used to go to bed and I still do a lot. I read medical papers about health and nutrition and movement working out, whatever you want to call it. and they're also interrelated. And I remember banging on about gut health years ago and people were, oh, what do you know? And it's just because I haven't got letters off to my name, but I love it. I'm passionate about it, absolutely passionate.

But it's got to be accessible for everybody. Yeah. It's got to be accessible. I just read a book recently and it's blown my mind called Ultra Process People. Have you read that book? Oh my God. Process food.

There's a whole other conversation then. But it talks about gut health and how it affects, you know, chronic disease and illness and also, you know, depression and anxiety, things that we all sort of know that when you eat junk food, you feel a bit naft, but you don't really know the science behind it, but it truly does connect to the brain and give you feelings of anxiety and depression. You can eat yourself into those emotions. And so that's been a learning curve. And I think, you know, what I've realized is you can't be someone always banging on about the problem. You've got to be a solution-based kind of person where you're like,

this is a reality. We're never going to live a life about ultra-processed foods, but you can reduce it by 10% 15%. You can switch things in your kids' lunchboxes. There's little things you can do and then we can take back some of that ownership around the food we eat. And have treats because that's why they're called treats. Have them every so often. You know, you do. I bet you do.

And I know you have days where you've told me before where you have days where you just want to eat rubbish and you just don't want to work out and you don't beat yourself up about it. Well last night I went to I got to see a little premiere of BBC Planet Earth. It was amazing. And on the way there I had a bag of those like gummy kitten things

and a little box of chocolate truffles and I loved it and I was enjoying every single one and I'd done the whole lot. But this morning, woken up, I'm bloated, my tummy's hurting. I don't wake up feeling, oh, I feel guilty but I physically feel the impact of these things. But you know what to do about it?

Yeah. And so today I'm taking a bit of a cheer. I'm going to have a fast for a few hours and give my digestive some a little bit of rest. But, you know, it's just kind of being aware and trying to be a positive role, but also understanding the complexities of income And where we live, the food choices, the environment is set up to basically like hunt us and target us with these ads to buy these products that we think are healthy.

And they're not, you know, and so it's kind of what I've learned from all the books I'm reading is, do you know what you've got to do? It's really simple, but it's obviously challenging is cook more. Just cook more, like make your porridge in the morning, take a little chicken salad to lunch and, you know, protect yourself from the world we live in, which is ultra-processed foods at every single petrol station and hospital and vending machine. And they're right there by the tills. So people are tempted. They think, oh, look. And some of them say, healthy alternative. No, maybe not always.

Sometimes. One of the podcasts I listen to you with the author of that book, his name's Chris Van Tullochan. He said, he's phenomenal, Chris. He said anything that says healthy or added this or fortified with this, it's usually not food and it's usually ultraprose and it's not really good for you. So, yeah, you know, it's a powerful marketing. I love the way you're talking about somebody else's book.

Your book is very good. too but yeah i completely agree with you chris is just so so so i i probably do what you do in a sense you take the science and like you take the bigger picture and you try and try and break it into a smaller digestible bit of content and so we're in the book it's just about you know and i've been saying this for for nine years remember i should say prep like a boss yeah so prep like a boss means make a big batch of overnight oats or make a big bolognese put a bit in the fridge when you come home tomorrow you cook a little bit of pasta for 10 minutes and you've got a nice healthy meal for you and the kids again so that i've always been saying it but now there's the same

science to kind of understand and explain why. So yeah, I'm saying the same thing just slightly differently each time. So when you start your book, so I mean, it's pretty cool. So on the cover, Joe Wicks, number one, bestselling author. Does that, look at the smile. I love that. When I said that, the big smile on your face. I mean, so when you think of another book, is it you the things of it or is the wonderful, lovely publishers at HQ, do they say, oh, you know what, why don't you do this? Or is it you? Do you go in and go, hey, I've got this idea. I'm not a big, like, forward planner, so I don't think, right, I've got a book for, like, next year, and I've got the title and a TV show plan.

Because I don't really do traditional, like, TV and that sort of media, but I do... You've got your own TV, you've got a body coach TV? I do, yeah, I do YouTube and Instagram, and I think, I don't know, it's sort of going with the times. What do people want to be seeing and hearing? And I think, you know, quick food that's going to make you feel good and also, you know, on a budget is kind of what people want at the moment. Nobody's got any money. You can't, you know. Yeah, and the title stems from my previous book, which is great.

called feel good food and this is obviously feel good in 15 because it's much more than just the food. I think the book's got 60 recipes and the workers, but it's all that added bonus content around how you can actually be a happier fan. Because you know, like I talk about things like valuing your partner and finding time to have time with the kids and but story time. Like these things change how you feel. Like when you read books to your kids in bed, you know, it releases oxytocin and like you feel better, you sleep better. And so it's little things that some people just don't think about because they're so busy you know so it's like I'm trying to share all these little positive little golden

nuggets that make a difference. And talking as a family when you're eating there's nothing. That's a social that's what people did before there were telephones. They all sat around and talked. Talking at dinner is such a lovely thing because you know I think everyone rushes for every everyone's always rushing you know rushing the school run rushing to get to work but when it comes to dinner time even if you do it once a week or two nights a week you sit as a family you have a chat you know put your phones away don't watch TV. These things you might think

well that's well how is that going to affect my mental health, my mood, but it helps you connect to your partner, you know, what's going on and how are your kids feeling? And you all go to bed a little bit happier and you wake up feeling a little more positive and connected. And so these things are human interaction moments that actually have a, do have an impact. It really does, because otherwise you can be living in a house with a family of people and no one's really close, no one's really talking, and everyone's got issues going on, and you just kind of, the communication breaks down. And so I try to lead by example, things like cooking as a family, you know, going, you know, doing, I keep saying, like, non-screen activities, which is like,

going in the garden, we go in the garden, and we play hide and see-or, we find stuff. Lovely, love it. We find pebbles and we paint them, you know. Love it. These are things that really calm you down, like, because if you're, if you're a child who wants to play the PlayStation and watch crazy, like, cartoons on Disney Plus, your brain is moving really moving really quick, but when you do something a bit more mindful, like, play, even playing, like, double or Uno or doing a bit of colouring, that really slows you down, it calms you down.

And so I try to encourage those sort of things as for even if you haven't got kids. You know, put out a Lego set or do some, do some painting. Like, it's good. Do you know what I did last week? So I haven't done it since my GCSEs. And I did pottery. And but I went all these years later and I found a studio and I went on the potter's wheel and I threw two pots. That's amazing.

My mum and Rosie done that a few days. Oh. A sort of present as a birthday present for each other. Oh, it was. But also when I was six doing, well, you know, from younger to. 16 when I finished doing it. I never appreciated being in the moment of it. I loved being artistic and I loved creating things.

But actually just sitting there on the potter's wheel, I cannot tell you the joke, I felt bliss. Did you nail it? Was it all wobbly and going like that? I'll show you afterwards. I'll show you some pictures. No, because I remember, it was weird. Because I remembered how to do it.

It was like getting on a bike. I remembered how to throw a pot. I made two pots. Is that the term throw a pot? Yeah. Yeah, because Rosie. a bit naughty, they ended up making a penis. Many people do.

They did a pot and it all went wrong and they ended up just making a penis. The teacher said to me, she said, do you know what ends up? Everybody, everybody makes a penis. I went, I didn't! I made two bowls! And then I felt I'd missed out a bit. Does she bring the penis home for you? No, I think just one of them, I think, well, they all tried, but it all went flopped and a bit flaccid.

So in the end, the guy that was doing the actual lesson, made it and gave it to one of the girls, it was her birthday. So, but it was like a fun girl's day out with Rosie and my mum. What, the guy that was doing with the potter teacher made a hard penis. He made like the perfect penis and gave it as a birthday present. Actually, that's probably better. Perfect penis sounds better than the way I just put it. Yeah, we'll have to put a warning on this podcast.

Okay, so right, we're sitting here. What can we do right now? So anybody's sitting here listening. Okay, so obviously, buy the book. That's a done deal. done, but sitting here or sitting on the tube or wherever they are listening to this, at home, going for a walk, what can they do to suddenly feel better physically? Can you do any sort of exercise just like on the tube?

I came here on the tube, it was so stressful. Not for me for everybody else. I say hello to everybody. It drives everybody mad. But you could, it got stuck in the tunnel and everyone was getting really, really stressed. So I started talking to people. But can you do anything to get yourself fitter? Can you do any core thing just sitting?

What can we do? Let's do it. Well, you look a bit bunkless maybe on a train, but again, I don't mind. I mean, a simple thing that is a bit more kind of covert. It's just some deep breath, you know, to kind of channel the breathing. But if I was going to do a movement, what would I do? Well, I mean, you can just lift your knees up. If you lift your knee above your waist, you'll feel your abs engaged a little bit. So just like marching knees.

Do you know, it looks like you're about to do a fart, isn't it? It does look, yes. People are going to go, what's she up to? Well, are we doing it now. Okay, so, and what else? So a little marching on the spot. I know me and you've got to dodge your shoulders, but we'll try and do some arm circles.

Okay. Big arm circles. Big arm circles on the tube, or wherever you are, walking in the park. This one's a bit clicky because I've got a little tear in my shoulder. We've both got clicky shoulders. Okay, so that.

And how about, how about a twist? Yeah, you can do a little twist. Just sort of rotate left and right. Twist. You might feel a few clicks. Come on. Come on. Come on.

There we are. Oh, they're doing it now. That's what we like. It's a little bit of a strictly come dancing one, isn't it? So you do, so you've done. God, they'd go on about you and Strictly, don't they? Every year, story runs. Joe Wicks is doing strictly, and I've never ever even had a conversation with him.

It's my worst nightmare to do that because I'm not confident. I'm not a confident dancer. Oh, no, thanks. Yeah, no, every year it's like Joe Wix is doing it and then... But you do children in need. So you do... This year, it's finished, obviously, but you did the burpees. Yeah, the bear-pies.

Yeah, the Bear Pee's. If I'm going to be on TV, I want to be on there actually doing something. doing something that I believe in talking about the mission. You know, because I don't, I do get a bit self-conscious on TV. I'm not like desperately trying to be on there. So when I am now, I want to be talking about the food, you know, the mental health and the fitness type of thing. And so to be dancing in a leotard, you know, for me, like, and to do it live in front of millions of people like, I'm so nervous. You're the only person.

I thought you've done reality. Have you never done any of those shows? No. I won't do strictly. I love dancing and I'll happily dance in the street. Right now I'll run out in the street and jump around and music and everything. But don't put me on a Saturday night. I'd be more to...

I'm too shy. Yeah, I'm the same. I'm far too shy for that. I will have a dance. If I go out with my mates and I've had a few drinks, I'll have a dance, but I need someone next to me

or like, you know, I need roads with me so I've got like that sort of, you know, that little buffer, that comfort blanket. But when they spin you out and you're like, on the other side of the dance floor

on your own, so exposed, that for me is like, I would just cave. I wouldn't love. The amount of stuff that's written about you and all the reality shows, Joe Wicks is definitely booked for strictly.

Joe Wicks in the jungle. Joe Wicks, S-A-S, who dares, you know, everything. And I love the idea that you just go, no, I'm just... Yeah, and also, like, the only one I consider doing, but I then go, I just hate being cold and hungry. It's the S-E-S-1. I think physically I'd like the challenge of that, but I don't like being away from the kids too long.

I was away in Ireland for four nights, and I'm just... I'm there, and I'm doing it, but if they were with me, I'd be much happy, do you know what I mean? I couldn't drag them around for, like, four days across Ireland, but I just don't think I'd ever, like, just disappear to the jungle for three weeks, because, you know, when you're just like thinking,

why am I here? What am I really here? And I'd be missing the kids every day. You and Rosie, you're special together, aren't you, you two? Well, thank you. You know, when I met Rose, I was 30, and, like, you know, I've always thought,

like, how do you know you in love? And how do you know you with the right person? But I've just been best mates of it, and I just haven't wanted to separate from ever since. So I think it's one of those relationships where we parent the same. You know, she wanted to be a PID, she wanted to be a primary school teacher as a kid. And I wanted to be a teacher kid.

So when we're with our children, We enjoy teaching. We enjoy that, you know. And we love, and we're homeschooling India now. So she was at school for a year. But we just love being a family unit. I think it's like the happiest time for us to be together. So, you know, that was the only option for us at the moment. I'm not sure it's forever, but at the moment we're going to just homeschooling this year.

We get on with that. But also don't listen to what other people say. This is what you're, this is a decision that you two have taken together. Just like you say, we don't know what's going to happen. That's how we're doing it right now and we're happy. Yeah, I just wanted to see how it goes. And yeah, we just, you know, we have some. much fun and traveling, you know, I could take so many more opportunities and be filming this

and doing more TV and more shows, but I need to have those breaks where I slow down because otherwise I'm going to look around and my kids are going to be 18 and I'm going to say, you know what, I miss that, you know? Trust me, I've got a 22 year old and a 16 and I swear my 22 year old, two weeks ago, she was eight. Yeah, the years seem to fly. Indies five now and I, you know, I'm so lucky I've been there, I've been present, but I still like think, where's the time gone?

You know, like years just seem to go by. I'm really conscious of that because I don't ever want to get to a point where I have built this career, but I regret missing certain things and certain moments of my children's life. So I'm really working towards that trying to engineer my life so that I can be present as much as possible, but still be successful and still help people and do that along the way. So I'm going to go back to what I said earlier when I said, I think that you know who you are now. If you were 12 years old looking at you now, would you, what on earth would you think?

What would you say? Yeah, you know what? When you get asked that question, you always think, what was I that like? When I was a teenager, like the 12 to sort of 16, I was at my most, putting my most angry and resentful, because my dad's at the time, the drugs, when you're a kid, you don't really know what's going on, but when you get to that age, you're like, you realize and you know what's happening. And so the constant disappointment of relapsing and him being clean and being present, and we had the family, and then he was gone.

It was like, I was angry, so I was disruptive. I was, you know, very distracted at school. and people would have said, you know, he's going to end up down that same path. Like, he's going to hang out with the wrong kids. It'll pick up weed. He'll start drinking. It'll probably go down that path in crime and drinking drugs. But I never did.

I was so frightened of it. You know, I was so frightened that if I drank, I'd become an addict. Or if I picked up drugs, I'd be like my dad. So it definitely just scared me. And I'd be really proud of myself looking, well, I am proud of myself, you know. Good. And also, I'm really proud of myself. And also I'm like, I don't have that imposter thing because I think, like, I came

out of that. I'm a product of that environment, but I really made decisions that were the right thing for me as a teenager. I got into fitness. You know, when I was 16 and I got my first job at Wilkinsons in Epsom, RIP Wilco's, they've gone under now, haven't they, bless them. But I loved it. I worked on the till. I used to get £80 a week and I used £50 a month of that to join Holmes Place Gym in Epsom. And so when I was 16, I was already in the gym trying to look after myself, trying to stay fit, trying to look after my mental health, versus, you know, my friends that were down the park, smoking and drinking and stuff. So I think I made those decisions.

It was my choice. And so I'm really glad that I really chose a different path from a young age. And along the way, like, I've managed to use all that energy that I've got for it, you know, my genuine love for movement and getting people moving. And there you go. And now, like, you know, I've become like, you know, the body coach and I've helped all these people. And a best sell, number one best selling author. Yeah, I still, I still can't believe the book.

Because, you know, with the books. Believe it. It's here. There it is. It says the number one best. Best selling author. Feel Good in 15. I know. And if anyone's listening, it's got one of the books, thank you. Because I, you know, I didn't plan on having books.

I just love sharing rest of on Instagram. And I found it quite funny, throwing it in the pan and sharing it on Instagram. It was never an idea of like, I'm going to get a book deal. It just wasn't there. It didn't exist that about them. Oh, it's wonderful. Listen, I only wish you more and more love and more and more. I love the way you're smiling now.

You're smiling differently than you have. Like I said, I think you're, you can not just see you're happy. What a lovely thing to say. It's really nice. And I hope you've enjoyed our chat. Oh, I love chatting to you every time. You've always been so supportive. And I wish, you know, best of like of everything you're doing.

Oh, bless you. We're going to go out now and we're going to do a quick something in the street. We're going to flash mob everybody and we'll put it on our socials. I don't know what we're going to do, but it will probably end up with me laughing a lot. And you going, I don't know, let's see. I might. As an experiment, let's see if we can round up a few people to do some. start-up. Okay, right, we'll do that. Done. Let's go.