Body coach Joe Wicks shares his HIIT leg workout and how to serve up quick and tasty meals… that will save your life forever
His healthy-living advice has helped thousands of people to lose weight and made him a best-selling author
HE hates spending hours on the treadmill, is against low-calorie diets and says you can enjoy big bowls of pasta and still lose weight.
Joe Wicks, known as the Body Coach, has won millions of fans with his down-to-earth advice for healthy living.
His second book is out now, with 100 new recipes and workout plans to keep you in shape this summer — and we are giving you a preview.
Whether you are tucking into his steak and chips or sipping on a sexy smoothie, Joe insists you will never feel like you are on a diet with his plan — because it isn’t one.
Joe, 30, says: “My plan isn’t a quick-fix diet or short-term way to shed a few pounds. I’m arming the nation — and the world — with a way they can change their life forever without starving themselves or spending every night at the gym.
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“I practise what I preach. I keep myself in shape with the same high-intensity interval training workouts I upload on to YouTube and I eat the same meals from my book. It just works.”
Joe, of Surbiton, South West London, started out working in a sports shop before becoming a PE teacher and then a personal trainer.
He shot to fame after sharing 15-second recipe videos on social media, gaining attention for his quirky personality and strange habit of shouting “Midget trees!” and “Guilteeeee!” from the window of his flat.
His first book Lean In 15 outsold Jamie Oliver, Nigella Lawson and Delia Smith last December to become the biggest selling cookbook of the decade.
Joe says: “It’s mental. Sometimes I still can’t believe it. I’m so grateful to everyone who buys my books and still get such a kick seeing people’s transformations.
It's no quick fix...we can change your life forever
JOE WICKS
“I was in Glasgow the other day for a Q&A session and met a woman called Ruth. She told me she had driven two hours to see me and tell me she had lost seven stone on my plan.
She gave me this amazing handwritten letter saying that I had changed her life and I was so proud of her.
“Moments like that make me stop and realise how amazing it all is.
Yes, I have given people help and advice — but they are the ones who did the hard work and changed their life.”
Joe also helped those closest to him, adding: “My mum and dad have become fitter because of me.
Dad, who is 55, is in the best shape of his life and got a better time than me in the London Marathon last year.”
Joe employs more than 50 staff and turns over £1million a month. But it is more than a business and he loves keeping his fans up to date on his life.
He says: “I love social media. I’m on it 12 hours a day, sharing my life with people.
“I get feedback every minute of the day from people so I always know what they want more of and what they like. Snapchat can be all-consuming.
People want updates all the time and if I’m ever having a quiet day, they message me saying, ‘Where are you?’ I switch off by going to the gym or on a bike ride and I love going to the cinema.”
Joe’s chiselled abs are the perfect advert for his high-intensity interval training (or HIIT) sessions. They alternate short periods of intense exercise with gentler recovery periods.
Joe, who gained a sports science degree at London’s St Mary’s University, says: “Being healthy and lean is part of my job so I use that as my main motivation.
“But I can genuinely say the feeling I get after a HIIT workout is such a buzz — that’s what keeps me going.
“What I preach to my followers is the same thing I live my life by. Be realistic.
“If you can’t stop thinking about having a burger, have a burger. Just make sure the next meal you eat is a healthy one.
“You can’t live your life not enjoying a bit of what you love.”
So with book two on shelves and a third book due out in November, does Joe think he can maintain his success?
He says: “Yes, I do — because our lives show no sign of slowing down. We have less and less time to workout and cook.
“My whole plan is about making these things achievable. My recipes are healthy, cheap and speedy and my workouts are short, fast and effective.
“If you have a family, a busy social life and a busy job, you can still be lean without having to make huge sacrifices.”
How it works
EXERCISE: You work out four to five days a week, completing a 15-minute HIIT session and a short weights circuit.
FOOD: On workout days, you eat one carbohydrate “refuel” meal after your workout, plus two reduced-carbs meals and two snacks. On rest days, you eat three reduced-carb meals and two snacks.
Joe's Quick Workout For Luscious Legs
FOUR to five days a week, you will need to complete one of Joe’s 20-minute HIIT cardio sessions.
Try our exclusive workout available online at machibet777.site, then follow it up with some weights.
Here, Joe shares his Leg Circuit exclusively for Sun readers. You will need to perform ten sets of ten reps of each exercise.
Step 1: Dumbbell Squats
Stand up straight holding a dumbbell in each hand. Lower down by bending the knees as you keep your chest and head up. Raise your torso back up to the starting position.
Step 2: Deadlifts
Stand with barbell over your feet and bend at the hips. Lower until shins contact the bar. Keeping your chest up, straighten your legs and then pull the bar back, pulling shoulder blades together.
Step 3: Dumbbell Lunges
Stand upright holding a dumbbell in either hand. Step forward with one foot and lower your upper body down, while keeping your chest up. Push back up to start position and repeat with other leg.
Step 4: Barbell Squats
With the barbell behind your shoulders, drop into a squat position pushing the hips back as you go. Keep the torso upright. Once down, drive the weight back up until in the start position.
MONKFISH KEBABS WITH TABBOULEH
Serves 1. Carb-rich, to be eaten after one of Joe’s workouts
This tabbouleh tastes fresh and healthy, and leaving it to sit means all the flavours develop nicely. If you don’t have skewers, don’t worry – just grill the monkfish chunks without spearing them, and cook for a little less time.
YOU NEED:
50g dried bulgur wheat
250g monkfish, trimmed and chopped into 2-3cm chunks
Drizzle of olive oil
Salt and pepper
3 tbsp chopped parsley
2 tbsp chopped mint
2 tbsp chopped coriander
1 ripe tomato, roughly chopped
2 roasted red peppers from a jar, roughly sliced
2 spring onions, finely sliced
2 lemons
Pitta bread, to serve
METHOD: Preheat grill to maximum and bring a saucepan of water to the boil. As soon as the water has boiled, dump in the bulgur wheat and cook according to the packet instructions before draining through a fine sieve and rinsing under cold running water.
Slide the monkfish on to one massive skewer or two smaller ones. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
Grill the monkfish for 8–9 minutes, rotating a couple of times while cooking.
Tip the drained bulgur wheat into a bowl and add the chopped herbs, the tomato (scraping in all the tomato juice too), red pepper, spring onions, the juice of 1 lemon and a generous pinch of salt and pepper.
Mix the ingredients together. Serve up the tabbouleh with the cooked monkfish skewers on top, a final spritz of lemon juice, some grated lemon zest and pitta bread on the side.
PEPPERED STEAK WITH SWEET POTATO CHIPS
Serves one. To be eaten after one of Joe’s HIIT workouts
Steak and chips is such a classic post-workout meal. This peppered one with sweet potato fries is just what you need to get your body building lean muscle.
YOU NEED:
1 large sweet potato
1 tbsp pink peppercorns
1 tbsp coconut oil
1 x 250g sirloin steak, trimmed of visible fat
Salt
Oil
2 tbsp dried breadcrumbs
Watercress (for a side salad)
Juice of 1 lemon, to serve
METHOD: Prick the potato in a few places with a fork and plonk it in your microwave. Zap at 900w for 4 minutes, let it rest for 1 minute then zap for a further 4 minutes. While the sweet potato is in the micro, smash up the peppercorns in a pestle and mortar until they are still reasonably big but no longer whole. Melt half of the coconut oil in a frying pan over a high heat.
Tip the peppercorns on to a plate and coat the steak – they should stick to the meat. Turn the steak until it is fully covered in the peppercorns. Heat some oil in a pan then season the meat with a little salt and lay gently into the hot oil. Fry for 3½ minutes on each side before removing and leaving to rest.
Turn the heat off from under the empty steak pan and add the dried breadcrumbs. Stir for 1 minute, or until they are crisp.
Tip the crumbs on top of the resting steak. Take the sweet potato and slice it in half lengthways, then slice each half into 3 wedges to make 6 chunky chips.
Heat the remaining oil in the same frying pan over a high heat and, when melted and hot, carefully slide the wedges in and fry for 2-3 minutes, turning to brown them evenly. Drain the fried chips on a piece of clean kitchen roll.
Serve the steak topped with breadcrumbs alongside the sweet potato chips and a side salad of watercress dressed with lemon juice. Perfection.