City Fit Girl

Today, 24th  September 2018 I tried out my first Gymbox   class. The gym just opened at Cannon Street and I was lucky enough to have a taster of the facilities. See below what I got up to, what I thought of the class and if I would recommend it as a top workout spot in London. What class did I do? I did the BadAss class Who was the instructor? Phoebe What was the class like? Described on their website as 'the next level workout for your derriere', I can confirm that this class certainly does make your booty burn! The class was 30-minutes and consisted of a dynamic, cardio warm-up and then 2 sections of weight-based workout. Squats, lunges, pulses were, as expected, all included in the workout. The 2 sections of workout were made up of 3/4 exercises which you did for 1 minute each before switching, complete all the exercises and then have 30 seconds rest. You then repeated that section through again before moving on to the 2nd section. I definitely struggled...

Circuits. A word that can fill you with dread as you think of running round the gym floor to different stations with someone shouting 'go' and 'faster' for what seems to be an unbearable amount of time. Circuits in classes always seem to be made up of your least favourite exercises. And you have to do loads  of them. I used to hate circuits until I started making my own. The beauty of circuits is you can do them with as much or as little equipment as you like. I think there are 4 types of exercises that are essential in creating a quick and effective circuit: Plyometric exercise also known as jump training are exercises in which muscles exert maximum amount of force in short intervals of time Cardio exercise is any exercise that gets your heart rate raised Resistance is an exercise that adds resistance, usually in the form of a weight to help strengthen the muscles  Core. Pretty self-explanatory, exercises that work your core/abs  I like to include a ...

I hate cardio. Okay, let me rephrase. I hate the traditional   forms of cardio. Running, swimming, sitting on a bike for hours at a time. I have been weight training for a year and a half now and whilst I have seen improvements in my strength and my physicality has changed, I wasn't as lean as I thought I could be. So, I decided to an experiment with myself. I dropped the weights sessions and instead I decided to do 5 days of cardio-based training for 5 weeks. I made a sheet so I could tick off my workouts and keep myself accountable. I also measured my body fat using calipers. This is what my training schedule looked like in those 5 weeks: Monday - home circuit Tuesday - zumba Wednesday - treadmill circuit and abs Thursday - legs, bums and tums Friday - rest Saturday - full body circuit and abs Sunday - rest Zumba and Legs, Bums and Tums are easy way for me to get cardio in, class-based workouts work really well for me as I don't need to come up with my own ...

I know a lot of people often struggle to come up with ideas of what to eat and, working in an office with a commute home, it is almost too easy to just abandon cooking a fresh meal and order a takeaway. Top tip: Find 5+ meals that you know are easy to prepare, don't require a lot of time and you can make in bulk. Leftovers are great for lunch the next day! I've put together a list of some of the things that I eat throughout the week to hopefully help you come up with ideas! Breakfast I eat breakfast at work so always have something that requires minimal effort to put together. Currently I eat 70g Shreddies Max Oat Granola cereal with skimmed milk. kcals 370 protein 18.1g carbohydrates 58.9g fats 5.4g This is quote a high carb content however, I like to get my carbs in towards the start of the day and have a lower carb dinner. This is just my preference! Overnight oats are also a sta...

Staying motivated. Something that a lot of people struggle with. Whether that be motivation to go to the gym or staying on track with your healthy eating, we all hit those low points where we just cannot be bothered. THIS IS OKAY I am fully of the belief that the key to staying on track is: balance. That being said, I think there are a few things you can do to help yourself stay motivated and allow you to reach your goals in a happy, healthy way. Routine It takes the average person 66 days to make a habit. That is 2 months of consistency that you need to achieve in terms of your routine. Decide which days of the week you are going to go to the gym. Decide what you are going to do on those days. Repeat. If you can get to the gym knowing what you are going to do whether that be a weights session, a gym class or a session on the treadmill, you are already one step ahead. If you like a gym class, go every week. They'll be at the same time and I find that if you're...

Let's face it, that first trip into the weights area of the gym can be pretty intimidating, especially as it's normally full of huuuuge  guys, picking up really heavy things and grunting. Nowadays you will see a lot more women doing the same thing, which is amazing but if you've never been in the weights section before and aren't too sure on what you're doing then it can still be a little bit of a nightmare. 'What if I'm not doing it properly?' 'Why is everyone watching me?' 'What if they'll laugh at me because I'm not lifting heavy enough?' Just a few of the things that can run through your head when you take that first step into the squat rack. I know a lot of girls who struggle with this mentality and will probably let it put them off even stepping foot in the weights section... So here are my tips for getting over your gym anxiety and rocking your workout: Outfit " I don't like to match, but I like t...

Tonight, 15th  February 2018 I tried out my first  KOBOX  class. I went with my friend  Amy , who I met at a  Lilly Sabri  fitness event. See below what we got up to, what I thought of the class and if I would recommend it as a top workout spot in London. What class did I do? I did the CORE class Who was the instructor? Miranda - you can find her  @fitnesswith_mk What was the class like? This class was unlike anything I've ever experienced. It was tough, sweaty and so. much fun. If you like burpees (does anyone like burpees?) then I can 100% recommend this class to you. As it was the core class, there were LOTS of burpees, crunches, planks... all the core exercises you can think of. The class is split into 2 sections: the bag and the floor/wall. On the bag you follow a 'box-by-numbers' sequence on the wall, working out your frustrations on the bag. On the floor section, we did ab circuits, both weighted and body weight only...

Welcome to City Fit Girl - your one stop shop for keeping on top of your fitness goals in the city of London To get us started, here are my top tips for keeping fit in the city: Routine Finding a routine that works for you is so  important. If you are a member of a gym, maybe find a couple of classes that you enjoy - perhaps someone from your office is a member of the same gym and you can go together, keeping yourselves accountable! Or maybe it is about changing up parts of your routine to make yourself that little bit more active. Do you get the bus/tube a distance that you could possibly  walk? If so, maybe try walking that distance to/from work. I find that walking to/from work really helps set me up for the day and clear my mind once I leave - much more relaxing than stuffing yourself onto a hot, overcrowded tube Meal planning This also filters into a routine and will (hopefully!) help you save some £££ Eating in London is so expensive and eating healthy in ...