You should be smiling as you are exercising
Mr Motivator tells ABI JACKSON that it is never to late to change your outlook on life and why his mission is to try to make people feel good
DERRICK EVANS - better known as Mr Motivator - has been in high demand during the pandemic.
It’s easy to see why: ever since he burst onto TV screens back in the early-Nineties in a flash of neon Lycra, GMTV’s upbeat fitness instructor became synonymous with making people feel good.
He says he’s done hundreds of interviews this past year all over the world, and they’ve all wanted to know the same thing: “How can I pick myself up? If I feel like I’m coming to the edge, how do I pull myself back?”
His advice? “Learn to unplug the computer. Learn to enjoy the quality of life. Learn to enjoy the time you now have,” among other nuggets.
He believes the pandemic has been an opportunity to re-evaluate what’s really important, especially in terms of “looking out for each other” and realising we don’t actually need all that much.
He says: “This last year has made every single person out there realise chasing for that other television set you can’t possibly watch, that other car you can’t drive, is not that important. Your wish list has been all the things money can’t buy.”
For him, only four things have really mattered.
“One is the roof over my head. Food in the fridge – these are all wonderful blessings. Number three is your health, and the fourth thing is love.
“Who you love and who loves you is your business, but if you love each other, do it unconditionally. And if you don’t have anyone who loves you, look in the mirror and love you! Then you’re saying to the world: ‘Look, I love me, I’m available for love’.”
Finding the feelgood factor is heart and centre for Derrick, but he’s keen to point out that acknowledging we all struggle sometimes is also really important.
“This last year has been tough for every single person. When you call up your best friend and say, ‘Are you sleeping well? No I’m not’. ‘Are you eating well? No I’m not’. ‘How you feeling? Well I’m ok’. They’re telling you they’re crying for help.
“If you give people permission to feel the way they feel, what happens is it reminds them they’re not alone, and that can help us as well.”
It’d be easy to think looking on the bright side has always been easy for Mr Motivator, but he says it’s something “I had to learn”.
Born in Jamaica in the 1950s to a single mother, Derrick was adopted as a baby.
Aged 10, he moved to the UK, as his adoptive father had come over to work in Leicester. His mother came too, but soon went back, followed by his father a few years later. By 17, Derrick was here alone.
He’s talked about experiencing racism, and homelessness for a while in the early-70s as a young, single dad after moving to London.
“When you’ve been hungry and homeless, you value everything
Learn to unplug the computer. Learn to enjoy the quality of life... the time you now have Mr Motivator
that’s good in your life,” says the fatherof-four, who now lives in Manchester with wife Sandra Palmer – who shares Evans’ love of snazzy exercise gear and dancing like no one’s watching. At 68, he says he feels “fitter than ever” with a new venture to get his teeth into.
Derrick recently launched The Club – a new online hub aimed at older people and those looking for more accessible fitness solutions.
Alongside a range of exercise programmes, including chair workouts, Pilates and strength sessions, members get expert advice on ‘sensible eating’ and mental wellbeing.
Even people starting from absolute scratch, who can perhaps only manage a few minutes of activity sat in a chair, are very welcome.
Derrick says. “We’re recognising people are living longer and that older people in particular need to try and improve their independence, and one of the ways to do that is by having a good regime.”
And he is insistent that The Club isn’t intimidating exercise.
“That’s always been my bugbear and something I’ve wanted to keep away from. The important thing with exercise is that you’re smiling – it doesn’t have to be putting your body through so much stress that it takes days to recover.
“Motivator has always been about the clothes, the music, the attitude, the smile and having fun, and I think that’s a recipe to get us to change our outlook on life. To realise it’s never too late.”
And he is not giving up on his colourful outfits either.
He explains “The great American poet Maya Angelou once said, ‘People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel’ - and something I always do is try to make people feel good.
“Colours are all part of the picture of Mr Motivator. If I’d got on television just in black shorts and a white top, I would not be speaking with you today.”
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