Fitness guru Jessie Pavelka vows to get us off the couch

Fat: The Fight For My Life fitness guru Jessie Pavelka has come up with a plan to save the nation from their slovenly ways.

The Canadian trainer has expanded his exercise programme from the depths of the gym into the office.

With successes behind him on Sky TV’s Fat: The Fight For My Life, Jessie’s expanded his domain, encouraging Brits to flex their underused muscles in the most unlikely of locations.

“Within office hours, we commit our lives to work,” he says.

“What we’re trying to do is raise awareness, allowing people to find those little pockets of time and get in 10 minutes of exercise, whether it be cardio, a resistance routine or some stretching. We’re missing a trick not exercising at work.

“When you look at our lifestyles now, everything is go, go, go,” explains Jessie.

“We try to take care of ourselves but by the end of the working day, we’re exhausted and lack energy.

“So you have to be creative look at your life and come up with a plan. Most of us spend so much time at the workplace, it’s a great opportunity to supplement some of these exercises, integrate them into your life.”

So what sort of exercises are we looking at?

“We’ve gone back to basics jumping jacks for cardio, lunge jumps, a tone-up workout, a body resistance workout with push ups and dips,” explains Jessie.

“We also have a static stretching programme, working on flexibility, because when we’re sitting down, our muscles are shortened, and we need to lengthen them.”

He’s chiselled the bodies of overweight Brits in front of the camera, so working out with a colleague might be for you.

“Team up with people, or make it a group thing go out, walk, train,” says Jessie.

When we look at the news these days, obesity seems to dominate the headlines.

“We’re doing something about it,” Jessie explains.

“The problem is that we are fighting something big. People are changing their menus, but you have to remember that doesn’t happen overnight, and switching habits is uncomfortable.

“You have to take each choice and decision as it comes and reward yourself with something healthy if you do things right.

“But if you do things wrong, don’t beat yourself up. You have another meal coming up, so if you eat a bad lunch, don’t eat a bad dinner. Understand food isn’t something to be afraid of, but to enjoy.”