LJ Flanders was sent to prison when he was 21 for his role in a fight but refused to let this mistake define him.
Instead, he chose to turn his life around during those 16 months, using the four walls of his prison cell as inspiration for his now successful business.
LJ, now 32, created the blueprint for his exercise book, Cell Workout, while he was in Pentonville prison in London.
Full of workouts that people can do just using their body weight if confined to a cell, LJ's book was the springboard for him to create a social enterprise where he hires former prisoners to train others and recently launched a clothing line with Next.
LJ, who is from East London, was incarcerated in 2011 and initially confined to his cell 24 hours a day.
“In terms of keeping fit in the cell, I’d do some press-ups, or do some sit-ups or do some squats. So I only really knew three exercises,” explained LJ.
His mental health began to suffer so he decided to enrol in a personal trainer qualification which gave him a purpose.
“I felt like I was bettering myself to increase my chances when I got out,” he said.
But while working as a trainer within the prison many people came to him for tips, as they only had around two hours of gym time per week.
This sparked a brainwave: “I wanted to try and create a bodyweight training manual that can be done in a confined space,” said LJ.
“And another thing that I’m thinking about is accessibility as well, the exercises range from beginners to advanced so that everyone can take something away from the book,” he explained.
LJ then spent the rest of his months in prison going to the library to gather information and drawing illustrations for his easy-to-follow guide.
It was while in the library that he had another stroke of luck, spotting a poster by The Prince’s Trust, a charity that helps young people get their lives on the right track.
After he left the prison in 2012 he began working at a gym and contacted the charity which suggested he enrol on their enterprise programme, learning the ropes of entrepreneurship.
With the trust’s mentorship, he was able to get the book published, and began doing prison tours.
“People were asking me the same question. ‘I want to go into the fitness industry, but I’ve got a criminal record. How do I get more qualifications?’ All those worries that I had, I started to hear people have the same concerns,” said LJ.
For this reason, LJ started his social enterprise, Cell Workout Enterprise CIC, which is a network of 50 fitness trainers from around the UK who are ex-offenders.
Profits from his Next athleisure line go back into this enterprise as well as to The Prince’s Trust so as to help more young people.
“People make mistakes and I remember my employer at Virgin Active gym actually said, ‘Who am I not to give someone a second chance?’ That has always stayed with me,” he revealed.
“I was given a second chance and that’s what I’m constantly trying to do for other people.”
