Worth leaving the sofa for?

The pocket PT

Since lockdown began it’s felt like every Instagrammer with a set of washboard abs and a bit of confidence has transformed, overnight, into a virtual personal trainer. And that’s no bad thing, with the absence of gyms and the overabundance of snacks, we all need a bit of motivation to get up and start moving, and where better to find it than your social-media feed?

For the past few weeks I’ve been trying to follow the workouts of James Stirling, better known by his social-media handle @london_fitness_guy, who has been sharing daily exercise plans on Instagram.

Can I follow the routines at home?

Yep, Stirling presents all his new workouts from either his front room or back garden, and I’ve been following them from my living room. Occasionally there are park-based workouts, but I managed to do most of these at home too. You really don’t need a gym to get fit!

Do I need any special equipment to follow his routines?

Some workout videos involve dumbbells or a yoga mat, but I managed fine by swapping these out for some big bottles of gin and my living-room rug. Aside from that, you might need the odd chair for tricep dips and one ab workout had me making a glider from a pair of socks. Overall, though, you

Camo shorts, £37.95, adidas (adidas.co.uk)

Black mesh trainers, £14, Tu (tuclothing. sainsburys.co.uk)

Wupisvital ar m ing

Cotton-jersey T-shirt, £30, Nike (nike.com) should be able to make do with what’s around the house.

Do you actually get a good workout?

If my sweaty face and gasping for breath are any indication, I’d say yes. With each daily post, Stirling suggests a set of around five or six exercises and a recommended number of reps for each move, so you can increase or decrease reps depending on what feels right for you. Each day focuses on training a different body part, so by the end of the week you’ll have worked on everything. Stirling also posts frequent ‘timer challenges’

– so you can compare to see how you’re improving.

Howcanibesurei’m doing it right?

Each daily exercise plan comes with a set of videos showing Stirling demonstrating everything, so just follow him and you should be fine.

Which offers a better workout: Instagram or online platforms?

During lockdown I’ve also tested the paid online workout classes on Centr, and while there are some advantages to that platform, in terms of exercises alone I preferred the Instagram one. Being able to flick through the exercises in advance to see what was coming up was useful, and flicking on to the next demo video gave me a chance to take a breather between exercises! @london_fitness_guy

up workouts Mix Getcreative.ifyoudon’t have a yoga mat or dumbbells, replace them with items from around your home. Check out live events: Stirling does frequent live workouts on Instagram Stories, so keep an eye out for these for a community feel. Ask friends to join you – why not jump on a video-call so you don’t feel weird working out alone in your living room?