May long weekend is around the corner, and that means summer right? All of a sudden June is on our doorstep and I know my clients aren’t the only ones starting to step up their training so they feel super confident as the season for stripping down arrives! While there are definitely ways to give your fitness regime a boost and make some rapid improvements in your physique and performance, I hate the term ‘quick-fix’ because it implies that the results are equally ‘quick’ or temporary.

Here are my five rules for achieving your best body this summer, without compromising your health in the process or inviting your body on a hormonal rollercoaster that can only lead to erratic bodyweight and mild insanity.

Play the long game for lasting results

Wanting quick results doesn’t mean training for quick results. Instead, always set a long-term goal – for example, “I want to lose 5% body fat in six months” – and break that goal down into smaller stages. That way you can make substantial and impressive changes in the short term, while putting those improvements in the context of a greater plan. That ultimate goal will also hold you accountable for maintaining your progress and get results that last – because a six-pack is every bit as impressive in the winter as it is in the summer, and holding onto it means you don’t have to start from scratch again next year!

Stay safe and search smart

New Intel Security research found that the most clicked on online ads of the moment are related to losing weight, with search terms like “how to lose weight fast” attracting 34% of search engine users. Stop now. Avert your eyes! Seriously, the days of meal replacements and starvation fads are over. The messages, products and websites behind those ads are not your friend – they will not help you now, and they will not help you in the long run. Intel Security warns us that malicious software is also increasingly linked with these ads, with cyber criminals taking advantage of summertime weight loss panic. So while their products or services are unlikely to help you lose weight, they could lose you a lot of money. There may not even be a genuine company behind the website, so you could come away empty-handed.

Replace your searches with terms like “home workouts for strong abs”, “protein rich breakfasts” and “fitness classes near [your office or home location]”. Don’t click on anything that promises a quick fix, tries to sell you untested nutrition products or derails your efforts to exercise more and eat better. Taking this more positive and beneficial approach to weight loss and fitness means you’ll protect your health by avoiding potentially harmful products and you’ll steer clear of online scams, all while pursuing those long-term long-lasting results.

Focus on eating enough

I’ve touched on the issue of deprivation and meal replacement diets above, but I can’t emphasise enough how important it is to understand the link between eating enough and seeing results. Undereating is as much a problem as overeating, and focusing on what nutrition you are getting will be so beneficial when it comes to making a lasting commitment to healthy eating. Use this daily checklist to make sure you’re getting enough of the ingredients you need for to fuel your metabolism, boost post-exercise recovery and prevent binge eating.

Daily nutrition checklist

• 5+ servings* of vegetables
• 2-3 servings of fruit
• 3-4 servings of protein
• 3-4 servings of whole carbs
• 3-4 servings of healthy fats

*1 serving is roughly a palm-size portion

Want more clean eating advice, an easy-to-follow meal plan and recipes for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks? Check out my Lean Body Jumpstart ebook for a convenient and affordable total health and fitness kickstart.

Lift to get lean

Don’t rely on cardio alone to get lean. The fat burning benefits of cardio can lead to a breakdown in muscle tissue if all you do is put in loads of miles. The best balance is 50% cardio and 50% conditioning. You can focus on these in separate workouts, or combine your cardio and conditioning with circuits and HIIT style intervals. This is how I structure my own personal workouts. If you haven’t already, when you sign up to my newsletter you’ll get 3 free workouts cards to show you how to do the same.

Surround yourself with positivity

Set a motivational song for your alarm, so you wake up feeling pumped about the day! Leave your gym clothes lying out, so there’s no temptation to skip that morning workout. Set a reminder in your phone to make a smoothie before going to bed, so you have a healthy breakfast ready for you first thing. Set aside a specific time to complete your online food shop, and build a list of favourites so it’s easy to order all the healthy ingredients you need for a successful week. Creating a simple routine will keep you positive and help you set healthy habits as you pursue your summer training goals and continue building on your amazing progress.

Good luck guys. Here’s to smashing those summer goals and feeling inspired to set even more targets well into the winter!

Brit xx

This post is sponsored by Intel Security and inspired by their latest research, but all the advice I give is 100% authentic. Thanks for reading!

“Help me lose an inch off my thighs.”

“Why can’t I lose the padding around my bra line?”

“I just can’t shift the weight beneath my bellybutton.”

“I’m still carrying extra weight on my chest.”

(That last one is from the guys – most of the ladies I meet, like me, find their boobs are only too willing to downsize!)

I hear so many trouble spot specific complaints from clients, and these are just a few of the most common body woes I encounter. And never are these insecurities more evident than in the run up to summer. While I’m all for setting goals in your training and the desire to improve overall fitness and appearance, here are a few reasons I feel uncomfortable about this emphasis on trouble spot training:

1. The problem: Zeroing in on areas of the body we don’t like encourages self-flagellation. Exercise is meant to be an endorphin-releasing, confidence-boosting activity that makes us feel great. It is not meant to be something that reinforces negative thinking and turns up the volume on our self-doubts.

The fix: I encourage clients and friends to turn these body woes on their head and tell me instead what they love about their bodies. Then I make sure to include exercises that will improve the areas of fitness or appearance that are less loved alongside exercises that will continue to improve the features they love (because acing an exercise or drill and getting even more awesome at something is super satisfying and keeps us coming back for more).

2. The problem: Targeting a very specific muscle or region can be next to impossible. The body is a complex machine of moving, working parts, and each supports the other. In order to exercise effectively, we need to embrace this working relationship and improve functional movement through a full range of movement. Trying to isolate one area can seriously impact the benefits of an exercise regime as you can weaken one group of muscles at the expense of another or reduce your overall energy output by overlooking the more dominant calorie-burning muscles of the body.

The fix: By all means, if you want to do isolation exercises (think glute kickbacks for a peachier bum; leg lifts for a firmer low tummy; supermans for leaner looking lats), include them as part of your overall fitness regime. In fact, each of the exercises I mention above are highly beneficial for posture, alignment and muscular coordination. But each of them are far more beneficial after practising more dynamic movements before them. Get your squats, planks, rows and press-ups in without fail – these will improve functional performance and strength and stimulate your metabolism. Bigger muscles require more energy, so working from bigger to smaller muscles keeps your overall output high. Plus, those little muscles you’re isolating will be more active and receptive to the smaller targeted movements that follow.

My new ebook The Lean Body Jumpstart also uses a lot of compound exercises, which allows you to hit the biggest and smallest exercises in a single exercise. The result is improved strength, a higher heart rate and bigger calorie burn. Which leads me to my third point…

3. The problem: In order to effectively burn fat – wherever it is stored – you absolutely have to get your heart rate up. That means tough, sweaty work. That means cardio, or a faster pace of conditioning such as compound exercises and circuits. Making muscles stronger and firmer is of course desirable, but make sure to pair your strength training with roughly the equivalent amount of cardiovascular activity in order to melt away excess fat inside the body (visceral fat lining the organs) and outside (that includes those niggly ‘trouble spots’).

The fix: Stop obsessing about whether a particular workout is helping to strengthen or tone a particular muscle or area, and get out and enjoy some cardio for the sake of feeling happy, free and fit. We have to think and analyse so much in our everyday lives, and cardio is the ultimate opportunity to switch off and escape. And yes, it is working. There is no muscle in your body more important than your heart. Treat it well. I promise, it will give back just as much.

It’s not all doom and gloom for isolation work. As I said, there is a time and place for targeted training within your regime. And there are plenty of positives, too. The abs are often a focus of isolation work, and anything that helps to strengthen and tighten the muscles around the spine will ultimately lead to better posture and safer, more efficient exercise. If you choose to track your results, it can also be immensely rewarding to learn you’ve lost X number of inches from your tummy or gained X number of centimeters in lean muscle around your arms. The important thing is to keep your fitness in perspective.

Ultimately, switching to a lighter summertime wardrobe should feel awesome. You should feel proud of your body and what it can do. And those assets – the ones you work hard for and the ones with which you are naturally gifted – are beautiful because they’re yours and help to make you who you are.

I’m very excited to announce that from 11 June I’ll be hosting weekly bootcamps on Wimbledon Common. To put all these lessons into practice in the presence of a dedicated community of Fit Brit Collective bootcampers, sign up now to join me. There will be extra incentives and rewards during the launch event, including freebies from some of London’s most popular sports nutrition and fashion brands. Spaces are limited and expected to fill up fast, so find out more and email me at brit@fitbritcollective.com to secure your place!

As I promised in my recent New Year’s Resolutions post, I want to do more this year to give back to my sweat squad (that’s you!). Which is why I am super excited to launch a new challenge. Get ready for it… The 2016 Reps Workout! Yep, a whopping (but totally feasible) 2016 reps await!

I’ve designed this workout using extremely effective full-body cardio conditioning circuits, targeting every muscle group and jumpstarting your heart rate so you’re firing on all fat-burning cylinders as you begin your 2016 fitness journey. Because you’re constantly moving between exercises with minimal rest, you’ll be burning calories from start to finish. And with bodyweight conditioning at the heart of every section, you’ll also be strengthening and toning the muscles as you move. Plus, stronger and denser muscle tissue means a higher metabolic rate, so the super good news is you’ll continue burning more calories in the long-term as well as the short-term.

Of course, these benefits don’t come without some effort, so prepare to sweat and to give 100% to every exercise. I know that everyone is at different stages in their fitness journey, so I’ve given this workout a flexible format suitable to all levels. You have the option to complete it in one go as a 55-minute full-body session, or to break it into 3 weekly 25-minute workouts targeting your legs, torso and core respectively. That means you’ll either be completing the whole 2016 reps in one workout, or in one week. Either way, you’ll be getting healthier and fitter with every workout! 

How does it work?

There is a 5-minute warm up and 5-minute stretch section you’ll need to complete every workout. Between the warm-up and stretch, there are 3 15-minute conditioning sections – which you can complete all at once or split up over the course of the week. Within every section, progress from one exercise to the next with minimal rest. If a section calls for you to repeat the circuit, you can take up to 60sec rest before starting again!

What do you need?

You can do this workout at home, in the gym or outdoors. All you need is the following:

• The 2016 Reps Workout Cards (print or save on your phone)
• A mat (optional)
• A pair of light dumbbells (or couple of full water bottles)
• A skipping rope (optional)
• A water bottle you can actually drink from!

Get started

Sign up to my newsletter to receive the full-page workout cards previewed below. On the front you’ll see the exercises and reps you need to complete. Turn them over for a detailed exercise description to help you perform each move with perfect technique. Or, if you’re familiar with all the exercises and want a more portable workout guide, you’ll also receive a print-friendly Pocket Edition.

Stay motivated

I’ll be posting regular Instagram videos to help you master your technique and achieve the next level of fitness. Plus, you can join others taking on the 2016 Reps Workout challenge by posting about your experience using #fitbritcollective #2016reps. Become part of the inspiration and let’s create an awesome, supportive community. Stories shared = results magnified! Don’t forget to tag me, @fitbritcollective, so I can follow along with your journey!

I’m not a natural born runner. I’m not bad in the speed department, but the thought of committing to weeks on end of long distance training runs has never appealed to me, so that pretty much rules out a marathon (although I am infinitely inspired by the drive and resilience of the long distance runners among you). I prefer my cardio short and sharp, so my heart screams and my pulse soars and it’s all over before I can blink. The post-workout endorphins after a challenging tabata session are like nothing else. I feel powerful. I feel light on my feet (even if my legs don’t always oblige). I feel like I can tackle anything that comes my way.

Aside from the incredible feel-good factor of the toughest high-intensity exercises, the physical benefits are also second to none. As someone who always feels short on time, the result to time ratio of every workout is hugely important to me. And incorporating high-intensity cardio supersets into conditioning workouts is the easiest way to reduce the time of your workouts while maintaining (or even increasing) the benefits of each session.

Here are just a few of the reasons to love cardio conditioning supersets:

• You sweat more – The body heat rises more quickly with the sharp increase in energy expenditure. Cue the opening of the pores and that gloriously natural detoxifying effect of a good sweat session.

• Afterburn is amplified – The more times your heart rate spikes and then drops off again (compared to steady state cardio like endurance running, which keeps the heart rate level), the greater the metabolic activity after your training. That means by working harder for less time, you can burn more fat and calories for longer.

• Faster muscle fatigue – While this may sound like a negative, tiring your muscles out faster during conditioning segments means they get rapidly stronger to meet your regular training demands. Your body also becomes more efficient, your lactic acid threshold rising to be able to sustain greater effort for longer. Yes, this means you’ll be able to get in an extra burpee or two, but you’ll also feel the difference as you race effortlessly up escalators or catch that bus just in the nick of time.

Convinced? Time to put your new knowledge to practice. Do 3 sets of 15 reps for each of the below supersets, with 30 seconds rest between each round. I selected these combinations for super-quick transitions, so minimise any pause between the two exercises in each superset.

Deadlifts to squat jack 

Holding a kettlebell or pair of dumbbells weighing at least 10kg, assume a hip-width stance and ‘switch on’ your abdominals as you bend with a straight spine towards your toes. When the weight gently taps the floor, slowly return to the top while keeping your legs straight – and say hello to your hamstrings. Quick, straight on to your squat jacks! Drop the hips back and down and touch the sides of your heels, then explode up as you push through your heels to jump up and jack your legs out to the sides. Land in a perfect mid-width squat position and transition smoothly between every rep.

Military crawl to side to side plank jumps

I have to credit one of my colleagues at Heartcore who inspired this military crawl plank. Warning: he does it on the Reformer Pilates Bed, with the carriage opening beneath you like the jaws of an angry shark. This floor-based version is far kinder, but similarly adds variety to your plank and challenges stability through your spine. In a flat back forearm plank, stack your forearms one in front of the other. Then take a few slow controlled crawls forward by alternating which forearm is in front, following with your feet behind. Continue crawling for up to 60 seconds before moving straight into your high plank on your hands, then get that heart rate high with side to side plank jumps. Keep your back as straight as possible and your feet together as you pounce from one side of the mat to the other. Light on your toes and steady through your hips!

V-sits to resistance band crab jumps

With a resistance band tied snug just above your knees, find your long spine position on your back and slowly peel your shoulders and legs off the floor in one simultaneous movement. Meet in the middle and hover for a moment in a V-sit. The addition of the resistance band will help to reinforce your straight leg position and keep your toes together, which increases the challenge for those lower abs. Feeling crabby? A set of crab jumps will set you right with a rush of cardiovascular endorphins and a satisfying extra burn in the sides of your glutes. Plant your hands behind you and lift your hips towards the ceiling so the front of your body forms a box. Maintain this position, squeezing your glutes and engaging your core, while jumping your feet in and out against the resistance of the band.

Slider side planks to mountain climbers

Sliders* are a go-to for me when I need a home workout or want to slow down and think about form. However, they’re also great for speeding up. This combination of side pike and mountain climbers does both. Place your hands directly beneath your shoulders and the sides of your feet on the sliders, top leg in front. From here, keep your legs together and your shoulders directed towards the floor as you squeeze the sliders as far in to your torso as possible. Think about reaching your hips high towards the ceiling and exhaling into the working oblique. After up to 15 slow controlled pikes, square your hips and position your toes on the sliders, then drive one knee at a time in towards your chest. The extra resistance of maintaining contact with the floor adds a subtle core conditioning element to the classic cardio superhero that is the mountain climber.

*You can also perform this exercise using paper plates or face cloths.

Press-ups to vinyasa jump throughs

Inspired by the most challenging vinyasa yoga classes, this press-up / jump through combination will give you a gleeful burst of energy when it suddenly clicks and you can begin to speed up your transitions into your V-sit or ‘boat pose’ at the top. Start in press-up position, your hands beneath your shoulders and your glutes and hamstrings active. Bend your elbows to 90 degrees and slowly lower your chest to the floor. After you’ve completed all your reps here, fire through the core to shift the weight into your hands and kick your feet up and through to the front of the mat. Try not to let your feet touch the floor, but straight away lean back with your shoulders and lift up through your toes towards the ceiling. Hover in V-sit, then reverse. Voila!

As I leave you with my favourite fat-blitzing supersets to help you feel the burn, I’m off on the next flight to Australia. I’ll be giving my body a little rest, so I can come back to my own supersets feelings fresher and stronger. I look forward to catching up on the other side, when I’ll have lots of holiday news as well exciting Fit Brit Collective updates to report ;).

Brit x

I’m not one for making excuses. But if I were, my radio silence over the last couple weeks might just warrant your forgiveness. Two major life events happened. Firstly, my husband and I successfully bought our first house. Which means in three short weeks it’s goodbye to East London and hello to a shiny new SW postcode. It also means there’s a lot to do and not a lot of time to do it.

If that wasn’t enough, I’ve also been squeezing in training and assessments at London’s Heartcore fitness studios – best known for ruling the roost in Reformer Pilates, and becoming increasingly famed for its high-intensity TRX classes and limb-lengthening Barre programme. For those of you who know me well or have spent some time perusing my posts, you can probably guess where you’ll find me! As of this Saturday, I’ll be teaching at least five TRX classes a week in the Chelsea and Fulham studios. Which means my official foray into professional fitness instructing marks life event number two, and gives me the opportunity to bring some of the passions I’ve shared with you here to the realm of real-life! Check out the schedule here, and don’t forget to say hi if you come along to a class.

To celebrate the end of an era, I did something a little naughty… I really wanted to film one last workout for you in my East London surrounds, just somewhere a little different. So I snuck into a private garden I’ve recently stumbled across in my weekend adventures. One with fountains, ponds, lily pads and marble benches. It was seriously serene, and proved a lovely backdrop for the following bum-toning workout… That is, until I had to take cover when the site security guard made an appearance.

But don’t be fooled – even a pretty setting won’t distract you from the day-after burn these bodyweight moves will deliver. They will remind you that your bum is not just for sitting. It is also for standing to attention and looking incredibly pert – a major win during the final weeks of bikini season prep. Even if you’re not in possession of a sunseekers’ holiday itinerary, autumn is just around the corner and your favourite jeans are waiting for you to fill them out with your best-ever bottom!

4-Step Kickback Series

Step 1: Time to give yourself a real kick in the bottom. From a table top position, with your shoulders stacked over your hands and your belly button scooped in, bring your right knee into your chest then point the toe and extend it as long as possible behind you. Do this 15 times.

Step 2: Now hold the foot out behind you and slowly lower and lift it to the ground. Think about firing from the glutes throughout – you’ll know you’re doing it correctly when that right cheek starts to burn. 15 reps here, too.

Step 3: OK, now hold the foot out long and flex it as you curl the heel towards your bum. You should feel the heat spread through your hamstrings. You guessed it – 15 times.

Step 4: Finally, hold at the top and keep that foot flexed as you pulse the heel towards the sky. Keep this movement small and controlled – your hips should stay squared to the ground throughout. Go on, give me 15. All done! Best do the left cheek, too…

Plank Leg Lifts

Get into your perfect plank position on your forearms. Remember your checklist: glutes clenched, abs engaged, back flat. Ready? Now slowly peel your right foot off the ground and lift it a V-motion over your left foot, tap the ground, and return to the start. Keep those hips stable throughout. Yep, you’ll feel this one through the core, too – but who ever said no to a flat, toned tum? Work to fatigue, then take a rest before repeating with the left foot. I recommend 10 reps on each side.

Hip Bridge Pulses

Roll over to your back and plant your feet on the ground a few inches from your bottom. Reach for the stars – literally! Point your right toe to the heavens and peel your bum and lower back off the floor by clenching your left glute. After 15 full reps, hold at the top of the movement and try to pulse the hips one inch higher for a further 10 reps. Switch sides! No cursing – the gods of great glutes are watching!

Side Squat

By taking your squat into one leg and out to the side, you’ll activate deeper into your gluteus medius – the muscles down the sides of your hips. The more toned these are, the better you’re going to feel in sexy high-cut swimwear. Body confidence spells uninhibited beach fun, and you deserve nothing less! Stand with your feet together, then take a wide step to the side with your right foot. Keep your feet on an even plane as you sink back through the right hips. Try to get your thigh parallel with the ground before pressing off the heel and returning to the start. Complete all your reps on one side (12-15 should do the trick) before switching.

Sweeping Squat Hold

As you’ve just nailed your dynamic squat form, take the next step and challenge yourself with a static hold. Sink into a narrow stance squat and take the weight into your right foot. Now sweep the left foot from front to back, keeping the movement slow and controlled. Pull the shoulders back, switch on the core and try to sink a little deeper towards the final rep (that should be roughly the point your thigh starts to shake).

Single Leg Deadlift and Split Kicks

No one knows the way to a pert bottom and long lean legs like a ballerina, so the final move is inspired by traditional ballet training. From standing, slowly bend from the hips and lift your left leg straight behind you. When your body forms a perfect T, plant your hands on the ground and take the leg up even higher. Ballerinas and barre regulars call this the ‘standing splits’, but my tight hamstrings don’t take me into anything quite resembling the splits. However high you can take your leg, turn out and pulse the foot just a centimetre or two higher. Go for 3 pulses, then return to standing. Slow and steady – your core and hamstrings will keep you in control. This is one rep – aim for 10, then switch sides.

Enjoy your workout! Wishing you booty confidence for the beach and beyond – don’t forget to send me the evidence on Instagram ;).  

Brit x 

Before I present the many merits of the workout du jour, I’m going to put my own bias on the table. Yes, I work in marketing for Sweaty Betty. And yes, I am among the team of trainers who will be teaching the fitness fashion brand’s free in-store classes. But all that aside I would still be singing the praises of Body By Simone – LA-born dance-based cardio workout founded by global fitness superstar and ex professional dancer Simone de la Rue.

I had the incredible opportunity to train with Simone a couple weeks ago, and in a few short hours I tried to bottle up as much of her endless enthusiasm and energy so I can unleash it this September. Why then, you ask? Because that’s the month of Sweaty Betty’s next Get Fit 4 Free campaign. And what exactly is that, you ask? Twice a year, Sweaty Betty launches a new workout programme with four weeks of free in-store classes, online workout videos and nutrition support to give a new and inspiring twist to your training. This September, that new twist is Body By Simone!

Here are five reasons to get excited now…

1. The LA crowd knows best

As the reigning world capital of wellbeing, countless fitness trends and top studios have come from LA. If you’ve sprinted on the Woodway treadmills of Barry’s Bootcamp, pulled off The Wheel in SUP Yoga or ordered a kale smoothie from your local juice bar, you’ve followed in the footsteps of the West Coast thought-leaders. And in such an exciting centre of knowledge and activity, Body By Simone has cemented its place as the ‘it’ studio. Those Los Angelites won’t lead you astray.

2. The endorphins feel fan-flipping-tastic

There’s no actual flipping in the Body By Simone workout, but you will feel your mood do a complete 360 in the 50 minute session. For everyone who took part in the preview workouts in Sweaty Betty’s headquarters, or the lucky Women’s Health readers who successfully won a place in the exclusive Sweaty Betty X Body By Simone Ace Hotel event, the most consistent highlight was the happiness factor. There’s something about Simone’s exercise and music selection that inspires you to leave your inhibitions at the door and throw your body into the workout. You’ll shimmy. You’ll sweat. You’ll smile from ear to ear. What’s not to love?

3. It’s a full-body workout designed to challenge everybody

Simone de la Rue is 40 years old. I know, that little factoid brought my jaw to the floor, too. Her glowing skin and sculpture-like abs have a Benjamin Button effect that attracts Simone’s loyal celebrity following including her LA studio regulars Reese Witherspoon, Sandra Bullock and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley. But what’s most wonderful about her workout is that it’s both accessible and challenging to absolutely everyone. With low and high intensity variations of every exercise, there’s a progression guaranteed to get your heart rate soaring. Plus, the high-rep conditioning tracks use light dumbbells and your own bodyweight to strengthen and chisel every muscle below the neck.

4. You can say ‘I tried it first’ before its impending arrival in London

During my conversations with Simone, she revealed that London is next on her radar for a new studio. With packed locations in LA and NYC, fitness and dance enthusiasts in London are in for a treat. All that remains is to pin down an address – as a former Broadway dancer, I’m betting Simone has her eye on the West End. Make room, Soho.

5. I’m representing BBS and Sweaty Betty in Kingston

OK, one of my two biases is also my fifth reason to join the campaign. Although not a dancer in the classical sense, I have so much fun conjuring what rhythm remains from my teenage years practising belly dance. I took to the workout like a bee to honey, and I loved the super-sweet high that lasted for days after. The moves are athletic, performed to simple choreographic counts, and matched to upbeat music you’ll carry on singing all the way home. If I can do it, you certainly can too. And I’m so excited for the opportunity to roll out this high-energy workout for Sweaty Betty and Body By Simone. I’ll be taking the class in Sweaty Betty’s Kingston boutique on select dates in September – stay tuned for specifics!

Still not convinced? You can’t not love the look of this sneak peek into Body By Simone in action… 

For Body By Simone updates and to book in for classes, look out for more official campaign info coming soon on sweatybetty.com/getfit4free. For news about where to take my classes and more ways to get involved in Sweaty Betty’s biggest ever Get Fit 4 Free campaign, keep an eye on my Twitter and Instagram feeds.

If you’ve got an eye for detail, you may have spotted a change on my Meet Brit page. But then again, I like to think you all spend more time working out, cooking healthy meals and generally enjoying life more than you do studying my pages for minor editorial changes. So this will be news to most of you – I have now moved on from studying and am officially an all-singing all-dancing all-jumping personal trainer!

Since I first dipped my toe in the water and guided my friend Basma through her flat stomach transformation, and taught my first class at Sweaty Betty, I’ve relished every minute spent helping people get better results and more enjoyment from their workouts. These 1-2-1 and group sessions are genuinely my favourite part of the week – the high I get from seeing clients’ proud faces after a hard workout is second to none. And I couldn’t be more excited to have achieved a massive bucket list goal and become qualified to take my passion for fitness to a professional level.

Better yet, I’ll be starting off my career as an instructor in one of London’s top boutique fitness studios. I can’t reveal much yet, but look out for more news and a timetable of my classes coming soon. Suffice to say, I’ve been going to this studio for the best part of a year and have never once left feeling I could have worked harder. I hope I can set the bar just as high, and I’ll be nervously inviting you all to come down, try out my classes and give me your feedback in a few short weeks!

For now, I will be focusing on group fitness and taking on just a small handful of private clients. I’m spinning around lots of exciting ideas to grow the Fit Brit Collective, and I can’t wait to take you all along for the journey. In the meantime, keep an eye out or follow me on Twitter and Instagram for more updates about how and where you can join me for one of the best workouts in London!

Emily and I talk for 60 minutes straight, bar the odd lactate inflicted silence when my brain can focus on nothing but the final few reps of barrecore’s trademark high-rep conditioning sequences. Work, travel, fitness, boyfriends/husbands – we cover off most topics of conversation, and still she keeps a perfect rep count. That client repertoire is what elevates the experience from a busier in-gym personal training session. It’s therapy and exercise in one. And it’s just one of the tricks that barrecore PTs employ to distract you from the Garuda’s unique form of torture.

An offshoot of the Reformer Pilates Bed, with a wider frame and greater variety of attachments, the Garuda is a comprehensive strength training machine that would surely have a place in the Red Room of Christian Grey. But its primary and most beneficial purpose is functional multidirectional conditioning, which is at the heart of barrecore’s PT offering.

I tell Emily that I’m building up my core strength to master my yoga inversions, so she starts me off with a lengthy series of teaser variations generic viagra for sale in usa. I complain how I rarely feel any form of DOMS in my abs. Accepting the challenge, she increases the effort until there’s so much heat through my rectus abdominis and deep-set transverse abdominis that I have to watch TV in a permanent upward dog position. I’ve been a long admirer of the ‘barre burn’, but this is a more personalised kind of pain altogether.

Recognising one of the most common curses of a deskbound professional, Emily also identifies a subtle muscular imbalance and targets my ‘lazy glutes’. She orders a set of double and single leg bridges, with the added task of chest pressing a pair of dumbbells and keeping the Garuda platform perfectly stable. My hamstrings briefly cramp up, which leaves me with the satisfying certainty that my muscles are working to exhaustion.

Every barrecore PT session is carefully choreographed to create balance through the body, so to complement my bridges I complete a set of step-ups with a killer stiletto toe calf burn to finish. And to round out my teasers, Emily hones in on my upper back muscles with a full-body row that requires me to pull the carriage towards the frame to activate my lats, scapulae and rhomboids. The motion is delightfully fun – think pull-ups but lying down – and I stand up from the Garuda feeling my posture noticeably improved.

Finally, it wouldn’t be barrecore without without an abs blast to finish. These carriage knee crunches are a breeze to begin with, but the single leg variations take me by surprise with their full-body activation. Soon barrecore’s signature muscle shakes course through my abs and legs simultaneously. The final rep comes as welcome relief.

Whether you’re a regular at the barre, a Pilates enthusiast or a master yogi, personalised sessions with barrecore are a natural way to progress your training and learn dynamic and isometric sequences tailored to your goals. Every programme and every session is unique to you – so HIIT fanatics like me would get a kick out of extra cardio bursts at the barre or using the in-studio trampoline or sliders. While those who like a slower more controlled pace can meet all their workout needs with a combination of barre, weights and Garuda exercises.

“Sometimes clients come in and just want a solid hour of stretching,” says Emily. “That can be really beneficial too, especially when you just need dedicated time to release tension from the body after a particularly stressful day.” Whatever the goal, I get the impression every session with Emily would be a pleasure. With a gentle cool down and big hug to celebrate a tough workout in the bag, she feels more like a skilled and knowledgeable friend than a professional there to provide a service. Which, I think, is a service worth every penny.

barrecore PT sessions start from £70, with the option to add nutritional counselling to identify your intolerances and complement your workouts with bespoke nourishment.

I first encountered Pilates during a babysitting shift as a young teenager. The family’s two kids had gone to bed and I was rifling through their DVDs to fill the last couple hours of the night. Right between Ghost and Clueless was a somewhat retro-looking Mari Windsor workout DVD that promised lean legs and a sculpted tum. I popped in Clueless but made a mental note to check out Pilates videos during my next trip to the video store.

In those days, Pilates was thought by many to be the preserve of middle-aged housewives. But in the noughties, the rest of the world woke up to the benefits of strengthening and lengthening muscles via small, controlled bodyweight movements. For my 13th birthday I received an MTV Pilates mash-up, featuring 20-somethings with taut bodies and cheesy all-American grins. I could choose to isolate my arms, abs, bum or legs – or to build my own workout using any of the above sequences. And I could select a soundtrack of pop, rock or R&B songs. Had Pilates got cool? It was well on its way…

Fast forward 15 years and classic floor Pilates has evolved to include many more branches of Pilates-inspired workouts using a greater variety of apparatus than a medieval torture chamber. But victims of the specialist Pilates studios in London enter by their own volition, and walk away with the glowing faces of someone who’s just completed one of the world’s most effective workouts.

Here are the must-try disciplines to tick off in your search for the school of Pilates best suited to you…

Classic Mat Pilates

This is Pilates as it was conceived by Joseph Pilates. Using nothing more than your bodyweight for resistance and your core for support, you take on a sequence of moves designed to target both major and minor muscles in your body. The foundation for all other Pilates disciplines, this is the best place to master your ‘neutral spine’ and ‘corset abs’.

Where to try it? @TriYogaUK – Not just a yoga destination, TriYoga’s team are experts in functional movement and its four citywide locations are a great place to learn Pilates, whether you’re just starting out or progressing your Teaser.

Reformer Pilates

Invented to advance the art and skill of Pilates, the reformer bed adds another dimension to your workout. Complete with a sliding platform, cables to pull or push your bodyweight in a variety of different ways, and weight selections to increase or decrease the resistance, Reformer Pilates is a full-scale gym in a single unit.

Where to try it? @Heartcorelife – With seven locations in London, Heartcore reigns strong in its dominance over the Reformer Pilates market. Expect best-in-class beds and beautiful venues.

Chair Pilates

The Pilates chair is another development since the reformer bed. You complete the workouts whilst upright and engage every muscle using bars and steps designed to increase or decrease the weight of your body for resistance. My favourite move on the chair is the pike, using mostly your core and a bit of your arms for stability to shoot your bum up to the ceiling. In my head I’m a gymnast. Even if the mirror doesn’t necessarily agree…

Where to try it? @TransitionZone – Run by the always glamorous Claire Finlay, this trendy Fulham studio combines the best fitness innovations with tried and tested exercise principles. You can even pair Chair Pilates with cardio on the Powerplate for a super-efficient session you can squeeze into the work day. And the on-site Recovery Cafe provides a comfortable place to hang out post-workout and treat yourself to homemade healthy treats.

Tower Pilates

If a Transformer and reformer bed had a baby, the result would be the Pilates Tower. As well as the varied weight selections and pulleys to engage even the muscles you didn’t know you had, the tower has extra structural components you can unlock to add new angles to your workout. Some experience in Pilates is recommended, as there’s less support for advanced moves compared with the reformer bed.

Where to try it? @BePilates – Easily London’s most pristine Pilates location, this Marylebone studio is so well-equipped it’s evolved into a training centre for Pilates teachers-to-be.

METcore Pilates

Little more than a foam roller with cables at one end, the minimalist METcore reformer is far more challenging than it appears. Your balance will be tested as you perform the exercises barefoot and move through multiple planes while staying in complete control of your body plus lightly weighted cables. Core stabilisation is key. And a welcome side effect is the myofascial massage you get from the foam roller as your rest your feet or back against the METcore base.

Where to try it? @FormStudiosLdn – Launched this year by an original Heartcore instructor, form combines the minimalist METcore machine with HIIT intervals on the TRX and Ski Erg. The result is a full-body, all-purpose workout that ticks all your boxes for strength, toning and cardio conditioning.

Cardio Pilates

If, like me, you don’t feel that you’ve worked out unless you’ve worked up a sweat, Cardio Pilates is the thing for you. As well as all the best tum toning moves from mat or Reformer Pilates, these sessions introduce heart-pumping cardio intervals on the floor or using other equipment like weights, kettlebells and TRX to maximise fat burn and multiply the benefits of your workout.

Where to try it? @PilatesPT – Founder of the well-known conditioning-meets-HIIT Model Method training technique, Hollie Grant’s private Pilates studio in Fulham is without doubt the most premier place to experience Cardio Pilates with a pro.

Bootcamp Pilates

When I think about bootcamp I think about camouflage and mud. Or of the peanut butter milkshakes at Barry’s Bootcamp in Euston. But Bootcamp Pilates is somewhat different. There are no cruel drill sergeants – only well-trained Reformer Pilates instructors who fit a ‘jumping board’ onto your bed so you can push off it during explosive exercises like horizontal jumping squats. It’s similar to Cardio Pilates, but you don’t even have to get off the bed. Mind you, getting out of bed is a prerequisite.

Where to try it: @MoveYourFrame – The ‘it’ studio of the East End, FRAME Shoreditch and FRAME Queenspark have dedicated space for Reformer Pilates and Reformer Bootcamp classes. I love that they keep numbers to a handful so the teaching remains highly personalised.

Piloxing

Another fusion Pilates workout you may have heard of in recent months is ‘Piloxing’. As you’ve probably guessed, it combines the principles of Pilates with those of boxing. Which makes perfect sense, because when have you ever seen a boxer with anything less than a six-pack? Piloxing is still limited to a few of gyms in London and I have yet to try it for myself, but it’s top of my to-do list!

Where to try it? @PushStudios – A Southeast London multi-discipline gym that has received plenty of press since introducing Piloxing to its timetable. (Here one Daily Mail journalist gives her first-hand report.)

Ready to take your Pilates to the next level? Have I missed your favourite studio off the list? Leave a comment below to share your own experience! 

Cast your mind back to your teenage years when your after-school sport of choice determined the label with which others identified you. Badminton: geek. Pennyfarthing: class clown. Hockey: jock. Dance: untouchably popular. Netball: all-rounder. Archery: a little left wing. Chess boxing: seriously, who does that?

Well, now London’s scene of emerging boutique fitness studios lends itself to similar labelling. There’s a workout for everyone, but this time no one’s judging. The labels are interchangeable and there’s something fun about adopting a new fitness persona du jour. Here I round up three of my favourite guises and the new-this-year places where you can try them for size.

The Badass

1Rebel: This super edgy East London studio operates a strict “retox to detox” ethos and caters to your inner punk who wants to sin hard by night and sweat yourself virtuous by day. The Reshape class is a hardcore combo of circuit training and treadmill intervals designed to expel some toxins before your liver self-destructs. Meanwhile, the Ride class takes the party to the spin bike. There are even live performances for those who love to rock out while they ride.

Challenger: But watch – there’s a rival rebel on the scene. Barry’s Bootcamp will soon be opening its doors in a nearby location off Old Street and promises to bring its already cult followers in tow. OK, so Barry’s diehards’ idea of retoxing may be a shake containing dairy milk instead of almond milk, but it’s promise to be “the hardest workout in the world” is enough to tempt anyone drawn to adversity.

The Science Nerd

Orangetheory: If you like to measure your workout with statistics and have a firm grasp of the processes at play to generate ATP for energy, produce sweat and stoke your metabolic furnace, Orangetheory is the perfect place to indulge your inner geek. While you migrate between the treadmill, the water rower and the weights floor, a personal heart rate monitor sends data to visible screens around the room. Your goal is to remain in the ‘orange zone’ for as long as possible, which equates to at least 85% of your maximum heart rate. Do that and you can mathematically predict how many calories you’ll burn post-workout thanks to the scientifically recognised afterburn effect. It’s an ego trip for any lab rat. And while it’s been in Islington under the David Lloyd umbrella for almost a year, it’s now also a hop and skip away for anyone living near Aldgate (lucky me!).

Challenger: To channel your inner Darwin, you may also be inclined to check out Virgin Active’s new class ‘The Grid’. It’s a 30 minute workout that takes you back in time before evolution and human advancement planted us on our backsides for 8 or more hours a day. Combining primal movements practised by early man – all variety of pulling, pushing, bending and twisting – it will have you going ape to burn up to 900 calories a class. You won’t even have to think particularly hard, because the workout is mapped out on a pre-delineated floor that takes you step by step toward fitness success. They don’t call it the scientific method for nothing.

The Prom Queen

Form Studios: If you’re always the first to hear all the best gossip, then you’ve probably already trained at Form Studios in Notting Hill. Following a soft launch just last week, word is already spreading about the new London workout that’s both exclusive and trend-setting. Founder Elissa Elhadj, celebrity trainer and former Heartcore instructor, travelled across the US to discover and claim for her own the revolutionary METcore. A minimalist offshoot from the reformer Pilates bed, the METcore acts to offset your balance and engage multiple muscle groups as you work with built-in resistance cables. She also throws in some fat-burning HIIT using a SkiErg – an upstanding cardio machine half way between a rower and battleropes. The class is very cool, extremely effective and accommodates a maximum of 8 people. Get in early to be on the right side of the whispers.

Challenger: Although barrecore is already one of London’s (and Manchester’s) most respected fitness institutions, it is upping its game with double newness. Its new studio in Kensington has been open just two weeks, and already it’s home to an exclusive new class that won’t be rolled out to other barrecore studios until next month: barreASANA. Fusing the best of Vinyasa yoga with classic barre moves, barreASANA offers a spine-opening sequence perfect for an in-the-know prima ballerina who wants to limber up both her body and her reputation. Stiletto toes, girls!

Let me know which new studios you’ve been frequenting and feel free to comment on your favourite ‘face of fitness’. And remember that this post is written in the spirit of fun and nostalgia – Fit Brit Collective is a stereotype-free community open to everyone! Thanks for reading.