Small Group Strength and Conditioning For Women

It’s likely that you’d really benefit from these sessions if you are already doing any mix of other activities such as running, hiking, walking the dog, plying tennis, badminton or another sport, or if you do yoga and pilates. While you may already be incredibly fit, these sessions will give your body something different and even improve your performance across the other activities you do. The work we do considers how your body moves as a whole with a view to making you more athletic, strong and toned across the whole body so it will transfer to the activities you love!

Yes! Even if you don’t do a sport, you will benefit from training your body in the way that respects how a human body likes to move and function, as this directly correlates to how you feel in your body. Aches and pains tend to reduce or even disappear when we understand how to train in harmony with the body, not against it. And I’m a firm believer that the kind of toning or changes in how your body looks and feels in clothes will come as a result of training hard, consistently and most of all, enjoying what you’re doing so it becomes a fun and essential part of your life, not just another thing on your “To Do” list that you feel like you have to drag yourself through.

Yes! Your technique is watched closely and modified if things don’t feel right. Depending on your age, there are changes in the body such as reduced mobility, muscle and bone density and this is why it’s even more important to do this kind of training now than ever before! When we find a safe entry point where you feel confident, you will begin to improve your muscle strength and tone, which supports joint health and in many cases reduces aches and pains by taking pressure off the joints and using the muscles to their full strength instead. Even some diagnoses of arthritis can improve once the muscles are doing their job! Bone density requires you to work hard to improve it - and you’ll learn how in a safe step-by-step approach. The focus we have on mobility and flexibility will also help your joints to feel fresh and mobile, so you can keep doing the activities you love without feeling stiff.

Definitely! We work across the whole body, and we also do some cardio for your heart and lungs (and feel good endorphins!) and roughly half of the session is dedicated to upper body. All movements will consider your core, and we do train core in sessions. If your main priority is core strengthening and you’d like to learn how to recruit and engage your core from the first step, I recommend taking a look at the post natal core recovery program as well

I understand that not everyone is as into jumping, running and sports as I am! There will always be low-impact options available, and I will never force you into doing something you’re not comfortable with. I try to make sessions tailored around YOUR goals - whether that’s strength, toning up, or getting back to a sport you love. It’s worth mentioning too, that sometimes women I work with have written off their ability to jump, run and be athletic due to leaking and bad experiences in the past. If this is the case, and you DO want to eventually get back to doing these pain-free and leak-free, I have carefully planned out and gradual progressions to guide you each step of the way. We work slowly and steadily without overextending yourself or feeling worried about doing too much too soon while we build you up to have the strength and skills to be able to do them safely and enjoy the process too!

If you have an old or recurring injury, then you’re someone I’d love to coach! Many classes avoid the injured area, or worse, tell you to push through even if it’s bothering you. My sessions are different. I will assess how you are moving in real time, offer technique tweaks to help unlock new movements in your body, and strategically take you through exercises that are the right level for you at the right time. If traditional fitness or physio approaches haven’t worked for you, or you’re looking to take things to the next level, signing up to my sessions would be the one thing that would make a massive positive difference to you.

Because of the small group sizes of 5 people max, I am able to tailor the sessions to each person giving relevant technique guidance but also monitoring how hard you’re working so you don’t overextend yourself. There will be options for every ability which are equally as effective, with a path to progress and get even stronger and fitter but at your own pace. We also integrate jumping movements later on in your training -but don’t fear! The way I program these is very gradually to let your body get used to the movements in small doses so you can build up tolerance each week, and so you’ll be getting more and more ready for the next stage in manageable chunks.

Many PTs are doing fantastic work, and deeply care. What makes me different though is my extensive knowledge of how the body functions from thousands of hours and thousands of pounds paid to study with the best in the industry. I believe I fundamentally have a different view of the body to most PTs. Most exercise instruction focuses on the “right” technique without considering your resting posture and how to explain it in a way that you will understand. As an example, it’s like following a map on the “right” road - but without knowing where you are right now, you’ll still be lost. Movement can be the same. If you’ve ever wondered why the “right” technique doesn’t feel right, doesn’t seem to be recruiting the right muscles, or actually makes you feel more tense than before, it’s often because you’ve been taught a list of rules rather than someone holistically looking at your body how you are moving, pin pointing where you are starting from and from there, explaining the details of how you will find YOUR right technique that works for your body.

Because of the small class sizes (no more than 5 people per class) these sessions are suitable throughout pregnancy if you are feeling well in yourself, and from 6 weeks postpartum. The work we do in the small group strength and conditioning sessions on improving your flexibility and strength will help with your postpartum recovery, and movements will be modified to your stage of recovery and fitness, with consideration of the fact that you have recently been pregnant and given birth. However, if you are seeking more specific postnatal rehab with a focus on mainly core and pelvic floor work, you may prefer to start with the core recovery program or do both programs alongside one another.