From spin-loving Soho swans to the warrior posers of West London, Society
knows where, and who, will maximise their workout time. Francesca White
hits the capital’s finest fitness studios to crown this year’s crop of championsG y m Aw ard sTatler October 2019 tatler.comFast & FuriousBEST FOR...
THE NEWCOMERWinner: Rathbone Boxing Club,
Fitzrovia
Rathbone Boxing Club is Fitzrovia’s
answer to Fight Club. Tech entre-
preneurs and fashion editors alike
swear by their sparring, jabbing,
right-hooking workouts – not just
for the obvious sculpting advan-
tages but because nothing clears
busy heads quite like it. Novices
and pros both are welcome in the
ring, and the light-flooded space
offers one-to-one training as well as
45-minute group classes, all based
on the principles of power, agility,
core strength, stamina and rhythm.
Try ‘Fighting Fit’ – circuit training
interspersed with punchbag drills,
or ‘Anatomy of a Fight’, which
screens and analyses the strategy of
famous boxers. You’ll be floating
like a butterfly and stinging like a
bee in no time. Classes from £20.
rathboneboxingclub.comHighly commended:
Soul Cycle, Soho
After years of speculation, Soul
Cycle has touched down in Soho,
and the LA-born spin studio has
whipped Londoners into a frenzy.
It’s about getting to connect with
the music – as well as disconnect
(phones are banned in classes).
When you do find yourself in the
63-bike studio (which has beenblessed with healing amethyst,
naturally) you will veer between
furious pedaling and a slower and
more sustained pace, your dial
cranked up to maximum resistance
(plus punishing reps with hand-
held weights). You’ll leave exhaust-
ed and high on endorphins. The
changing rooms, stocked with
Drunk Elephant and Le Labo
products, are a welcome respite.
Classes from £24. soul-cycle.comBEST FOR...THE REGIME (^)
Winner: Workshop at Bulgari
Hotel, Knightsbridge
The gorgeous and gleaming Bulgari
Hotel is where stars and socialites
(such as Lady Clara Paget, Gala
Gordon and Lady Amelia Windsor)
work up a sweat – but don’t expect
to only see them inside the actual
Workshop Gymnasium. The body-
and mind-focused programmes
whizz you from the weights section
(rowing on the TRX is a surefire
route to your very own Duchess-of-
Sussex triceps) to the golden-tiled
pool (the watery resistance adds a
new dimension to a leg-lengthening
s ession of barre) then on to the
massage bed (book a session with
Niki Bird, who delivers a limb-
loosening, tension-dissolving round
of Fascial Stretch Therapy). Pro-
grammes start with a top-to-toe
movement analysis and end with
breathing exercises (plus a well-
deserved protein shake). Consistency
is key. The chicest part is that you
can transition seamlessly between
trainers (or even between gyms –
there are Workshops in Milan,
Dubai, Bali, Beijing and Shanghai)
- and reap rewards that go way
above and beyond the length of
your workout.
Annual membership from £19,000.
workshopgymnasium.com
Highly commended:
Roar Fitness, The City
Roar is the go-to gym for the fash-
ion set – Christopher Kane, Pixie
Geldof and Charlotte Olympia are
all regulars, thanks to its no-non-
sense approach and lightning-
quick results. The one-to-one,
eight- or 12-week programmes fo-
cus on weight loss and muscle-
building, while tackling persistent
problem areas such as ‘champagne
wings’ and postpartum tummies;
proof that they work can be found
in the inspiring – and blessedly
optional – before-and-after Insta-
transformations. Expect an initial
movement screening (to assess
your biomechanics, posture and
injury history), and personal diet
plan. Thrice-weekly nutritional
follow-ups will keep you on the
straight and narrow (this is a gym
for the focused as much as the
well-dressed, with stealth black-
and-grey workout wear the unof-
ficial dress code) whatever your
fitness goals – and regardless of
your starting position. Membership
from £2,244. roar-fitness.comBEST FOR...THE RECOVERY (^)
Winner: Bodyism, Notting Hill
Bodyism’s secret power lies in making
its clientele into stronger, happier,
more mindful versions of them-
selves (thanks go to the smiley staff,
the chlorophyll-infused water and
the excellent buckwheat pancakes).
And classes follow suit. Step-ball-
change and hip-wiggle in Sculpt
with Deanna (a high-energy dance
class, with a gruelling lower-body
section – your glutes will thank you)
and emerge from Suzie’s YogaSculpt
with weary limbs and a blissful
sense of wellbeing (minute pulses,
ankle weights and Indian music
combine in a tough yet profoundly
healing hour). Then disappear to
the downstairs treatment rooms,
where facialist Tarryn Warren will
strap you into her brilliant Body
Balancer (compression-based trou-
sers, which encourage lymphatic
drainage) and administer a skin-
clarifying and mood-brightening
facial. Good vibes all around.
Classes from £130 a month; facials
from £245. bodyism.com
Highly commended: KXU,
Knightsbridge
When KXU – younger sibling to
the members-only KX on Draycott
Avenue – opened in 2017, it put
Pavilion Road on the map (Lady
Kitty Spencer swears by the spin
classes). But the strip-lit, subterra-
nean space is also home to some
surprisingly restorative practices.
Stretch out in the spacious studio
with Paola Di Lanzo’s new Dy-
namic Pilates Flow (it combines
her signature waist-defining, bot-
tom-shaping moves with plenty of
stretching and deep breathing), or
Kathryn’s Power Yoga, which fires ]
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