Joe Wicks opens up on how father's drug addiction changed his life

Joe Wicks has opened up on how his father's addiction to heroin changed the course of his life as it meant he steered clear of drugs.

The 33-year-old shared the insight into his childhood and his dad's struggles while appearing on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs.

“Because of my dad’s life, I didn’t go near it. I was scared of it and I got into exercise and fitness and so his mistake changed my life,” he told host Lauren Laverne.

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“I just don’t regret anything I’ve gone through or anything I have been through with my mum and dad, I’m just proud of who I am.”

The father-of-two added that despite the difficult circumstances he was not unhappy as a child and just "cracked on" with things.

He shared his father was able to stay clean from drugs with help from Narcotics Anonymous.

Wicks went on: "He’s had times when he’s relapsed but today he is clean and that’s the most important thing, but when I was a teenager I found it difficult.

“I didn’t understand, I was angry but now as an adult I understand. I have got more empathy.”

'The Body Coach' is a parent to two young children himself, Marley and Indie, who he shares with wife Rosie Jones.

He has become a global hit with his live streamed weekday workouts for school children, but Wicks recently revealed he turned down an offer from Channel 4 to air the sessions on the channel. He also shared that he'd been asked by the BBC to sign a contract.

Wicks has previously pledged that all advertising revenue earned through the videos would be going towards NHS charities.