I’m best friends now with my drug addict dad, his mistakes have taught me to be a good father, says Joe Wicks

JOE Wicks has opened up about his incredible "bond" with his drug addict father - saying they are now "best friends" after reconnecting.

The fitness guru, who announced last week that he is expecting his third child with wife Rosie, said the mistakes his dad made during his childhood taught him to be the best dad.

Joe, 36, said his parents are over the moon to be grandparents and his dad will play a role in his kids life - despite being "absent" when he was growing up.

Speaking exclusively to The Sun, Joe said: "When your father is absent as a young kid, it makes you want to be stable.

"When you’re a kid all you want is someone to be there and be supportive.

"It’s made me be very committed to Rosie for one and to work through stuff - if we have an argument I don’t want to drag it out.

"When things get tough, I don’t want to go let’s not chat and let’s not talk and argue.

"I’d try to work through it instead because I want the kids to see that we can argue and you can work through it."

With a heroin addict father and a mother who struggled with OCD and eating disorders, Joe said he has tried to maintain a good relationship with his parents in his adult life.

The star said he is now closer than ever to his dad and explained that the time they share together now is precious.

"We’re like best friends now – my dad obviously was a drug addict, he is a drug addict and will always be a drug addict but he’s in recovery," the nation's PE teacher said.

"We just have this really wonderful time now where we have this new found hobby where we go out on our motorbikes together, we’ve bonded again.

"We go to Scotland and Wales – we’ve got this thing in common where we can get together and hang out and it’s nice.

"If he doesn’t want to go for a gym workout, we can go for a bike ride. Our friendship and relationship is brilliant."

The Body Coach star said his parents are overjoyed with his recent baby announcement and can't wait to welcome another grandchild to the family.

"The grandparents has a new sense of purpose, we don’t spend as much time as we used to and then when you get the grandkids, they feel that love and purpose," Joe said at his Feel Good Food book launch.

Last week Joe announced the happy news that his wife Rosie is pregnant with their third baby.

Either way, boy or girl, I will love them whoever they are

Joe Wicks

Joe has revealed that they've decided to keep their baby's gender a secret until the birth - admitting that they want it to be a "surprise".

"So Rosie’s having another baby., We don’t know what the gender is, I want it to be a surprise," the TV star said.

"It was planned, we’ve always said that we want a big family.

"We had two quite close together and then we had a bit of a break and then I said I was ready and she said she was ready too and that was it and we’re having a baby.

"Either way, boy or girl, I will love them whoever they are."

As the Wicks clan gets a little bigger, Joe revealed one small challenge with having all three kids under the age of five.

He said: "I’m a bit nervous about travelling, we love going on holiday and travelling to far away places, so imagine getting to the airport with a three-year-old, a two year-old and a one-year-old.

"It’s going to be pretty hard - but it’s not going to stop me because I love travelling with the kids around the world."

Former glamour model and Page 3 girl Rosie, 32, and Joe got engaged in 2018 and married the following year.

The pair are already parents to Indie, three, and two-year-old Marley.