The owner of a gym in Old Hurst has decided to start closing off the facility for one-on-one sessions, in an effort to help people suffering with mental health issues.

Liam Rushmer, 36, runs the Fitness Rush gym in Warboys Road, Old Hurst and has decided to offer personal training session in the gym privately, to help people overcome their fear of the gym.

Liam, who has been running the gym since 2015, said that he wanted to offer the service as he had suffered with depression and anxiety in the past.

He said: "I know how hard it is to have mental barriers in the way, including stress, anxiety and depression.

"So I have a plan which reduces the worries of training in a busy gym environment.

"There are no members or anyone watching, it is just me and the client, and I am hoping that this way people will be encouraged to come along and train without feeling anxious.

"I have been there, and I have not wanted to go out the house, and train, but this way I hope people know that I understand how they feel.

"By becoming more active and moving more it can really help your mental health, and so we really want to encourage that."

"So far it is going really well, people aren't looking around worrying and are just focusing on themselves, which is great."

Liam now shuts the gym down during the day so that he can focus on his clients and help them tackle their "gym anxiety" and fear of training in a busy environment.

He added: "Hopefully, half of the worry about coming to the gym has now been taken away, and I can train with like-minded people."

Liam began training more than 10 years ago from his parents' garage where he learned the art of bodybuilding through nutrition and exercise. Between training family and friends to build upon his knowledge and trading gym equipment, his first business was born.

After two years of training, the current home of the gym in Old Hurst was acquired for the expansion of the business, which grew for a further two years before the decision was made to open the facility up to the community.

To find out more about the initiative, visit: www.fitnessrush.co.uk or search for Fitness Rush on Facebook.