Joe Wicks admits he lost 'thousands' of followers after being blasted for 'scaremongering' and 'demonising sugar'.... before risking further backlash with his opinion on fat jabs
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Joe Wicks has admitted he lost both his confidence and thousands of Instagram followers after facing fierce backlash over his recent health advice.
The fitness mogul, 39, unveiled what he called 'the UK's most dangerous health bar' for his new Channel 4 series in October, which was designed to show how ultra-processed foods (UPFs) packed with additives can still be marketed as 'healthy'.
Joe, who has 4.8M followers, urged fans to buy the bars but not eat them, saying profits would go to healthy-eating charities, however diet experts branded it a 'scaremongering' stunt.
Meanwhile fans also hit out at the work-out guru, nicknamed the Body Coach, accusing him of 'demonising sugar' and 'creating weird obsessions' after he revealed feeling like a 's**t dad' for refusing to give daughter Leni, three, a sweet treat.
Joe said: 'I wasn’t prepared for [the backlash], emotionally, It definitely knocked my confidence. For a week, I was like: "Have I done the wrong thing?".
'I hate upsetting people, I actually want to empower and inspire, but sometimes you say things the wrong way or people are triggered by an emotional topic. Ultimately, all I’m trying to do is get people to be healthier, but people won’t always love what you do'.
Joe Wicks, 39, has admitted he lost both his confidence and thousands of Instagram followers after facing fierce backlash over his recent health advice
The fitness mogul, 39, unveiled what he called 'the UK's most dangerous health bar' for his new show on Channel 4 in October - which diet experts branded it a 'scaremongering' stunt
Risking even further backlash Joe also shared his opinion on popular weight loss drugs and said staying fit 'took work' which could not be achieved from an injection.
He told The Sun: 'These [weight-loss drugs] can help in the short-term, but long-term, how does it affect your psychology around food? How does it change your lifestyle? Are you still exercising? There’s more to it than just appetite suppressants'.
He faced further criticism from personal trainers, nutritionists and dieticians this year after claiming he had 'relapsed' from his sugar-free lifestyle.
The star had been sharing his journey on social media as he tried to eliminate sugar from his diet altogether, including natural sugars found in fruits.
However, the online fitness community has raised concerns that he is sending out 'irresponsible' messages about disordered eating to his millions of fans.
Last year Joe revealed he 'could be interested' in one day serving as health minister, after again stating it would take 'more than a jab' to lose weight and improve people's lives.
He rose to prominence with his healthy eating cookbooks and PE With Joe workout routines, which became a staple in households across the nation during the Covid lockdowns.
When asked if he might consider helping to shape not just bodies, but also government policy on health issues, the fitness trainer seemed to hint he was interested - but only if he could effect real change for the nation.
Fans also hit out at the work-out guru, accusing him of 'demonising sugar' after he revealed feeling like a 's**t dad' for refusing to give daughter Leni, three, a sweet treat.
Risking even further backlash Joe also shared his opinion on popular weight loss drugs and said staying fit 'took work' which could not be achieved from an injection
In a frank interview with The Telegraph, he said: 'My only fear is that you go down that path and nothing changes - and you might be disheartened.'
If he were to go down the policy making route, he said that he would want to see people have sustainable lifestyle changes, not solutions that offer quick fixes.
Joe said he is keen to stress that he's not against Wes Streeting's idea of providing weight loss jobs for the unemployed, but the fitness coach said it was just as important for people to address the underlying issues they might have around food, rather than just shedding pounds to get them back into work.
He has previously spoken about his relationship with sweet and ultra-processed foods, admitting that he 'ran on sugar' as a child.
Appearing on BBC Radio 5 Live's Headliners podcast, Joe said his love of Sunny Delight, Wagon Wheels and jam sandwiches caused behavioural issues when he was a youngster.
He told the podcast: 'Looking back now, there's no doubt the food I was eating was directly linked to my behaviour.'
Joe claimed that a reliance on processed and unhealthy foods can lead to lack of energy and a struggle to focus in young people.
He added: 'The thing about them is we can eat so much, so fast, because they're so palatable, we know these foods just taste amazing and we can consume so much of it.
'And then we're taught this is what kids eat, kids need these snacks in their lunchbox, this is what they have for dinner.
'So, we're kind of being confused and led down this path that adults have adult food and kids have kids menus and kids food.
'And that's the issue we've got because people are cooking less than ever and relying on these processed foods. It's a shame, because kids are getting their energy sucked out of them.
'They're struggling at school with focus, they're gaining weight, and probably having really low energy crashes because these foods are just not going to give your children the energy they need to sustain a healthy day — a balanced level of energy.'
