Resigned to step aerobics and the like, ladies mostly feared lifting anything heavier than a one pound dumbbell let alone entering the hugely daunting weights area of a gym.

If you were pregnant then again the advice was to ‘take it easy’ and post birth was a similar story, with guidance mainly given to work on your pelvic floor and let your body naturally heal and return back to its former glory... As if it were that simple!

18 years ago I began working for Morgan Stanley as a personal trainer, it was here I began my love of lifting and I never looked back.

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Not only did it help to transform my shape and body composition at the time, it also really helped my mindset and confidence.
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It is still thought that strength type training can cause 'bulkiness' and many ladies still avoid it, however slowly over the last 10 years this myth is beginning to wane and I find lots of ladies are now well and truly hooked. There are so many benefits to this type of exercise it would take a while to go through them all but to name a few, strength training promotes:
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- Better body composition (less fat tissue)
- Staying injury and pain free
- Athletic & toned shape
- Healthier blood glucose
- Improved flexibility and mobility‍

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Fast forward to 2016 I had my first daughter Bobbi. Luckily I had kept active in pregnancy despite there being very conflicting advice on how to do so and I realised just how important having a strong foundation was once she arrived! Strength training was essential in helping me to recover, stay injury free and deal with the physical demands of motherhood - which any new mum knows is pretty relentless.

It was very soon after becoming a mum myself that I changed the emphasis of my personal training business Fitness Fox London and became passionate and dedicated to helping women, especially mums to be and new mums. I felt it was extremely vital that mums are equipped with the right information in order to help navigate their way through this hugely transitional time.

Since then I have up-skilled a lot and as well as an accredited personal trainer I am now a certified pre & post natal corrective exercise specialist.
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I have been working in Forest Gate and its surrounding areas for six years and feel extremely lucky to be a part of this wonderful community of mums.

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We offer many services including 1-1 training, prenatal and postnatal group exercise and the popular ladies lifting course ’Strong Not Skinny’. Working with ladies from pregnancy and beyond the focus of our coaching always remains to help improve health and movement with smart and realistic exercise strategies.

Throughout life every women’s body is going to change shape, be different, feel different, especially after you have had a baby. The one thing that we know that will keep it functioning, feeling fit and support these changes is being strong

Both lifting weights and using your own bodyweight can be liberating and if you are looking for long term health then this is it!


Kelly will be hosting her Fitness Fox London classes every Wednesday 7pm throughout March and April at Tracks. For further info you can contact her here and follow her on Instagram for the latest updates.