It was a cold winter’s night when Amy and Mo left the comfort of their sofa, hot water bottle ( aka Humphrey the Puggle) and an episode of True Detective to try out Enlite Fitness bootcamp in Maida Vale – here’s how it went!
Amy and Mo attempting pike push ups…..
So off we went to Paddington Rec to try out the Enlite Fitness bootcamp in Maida Vale…. I always think that there is no better recommendation than from someone that has been going a long time, getting results and wants to spread the joy by telling others about it, so I decided this was a must-try.
Enlite Fitness is the combination of 2 men, Clifton and Edo who originally met whilst both working separately in the area and later decided to put their minds and experience together to create Enlite. Clifton and Edo can be spotted in their purple shirts down at Paddington Rec every Monday & Thursday evenings and on Saturday mornings to run their 45 minute bootcamp sessions. They also offer personal training and semi-personal training (small group training). When I first heard it was in Paddington Rec at night I was a bit dubious – I had never been there before and although had assumed there must be floodlights, I did have visions of myself lying in a muddy field struggling to avoid doing press-ups next to dog poop. This could not have been further from the truth; (thank goodness) Paddington Rec is a hive of healthy activity…. As you walk down the well floodlit path and turn the corner next to the pavilion there is so much going on it has hard not to get distracted by people watching! There is a great running track going around some central astro pitches – and also in the centre there is one of those outdoor gyms. There were people jogging, chatting, playing hockey, skipping and then us doing a bootcamp in one corner of the track (so out of everyone’s way). With all this activity going on you cannot fail to be motivated. Fresh air and everywhere you look people doing their own fitness thing. Amazing.
Paddington Rec…
So back to bootcamp! There were 4 of us and our session was taken by Clifton. Edo was taking another small group at the same time for semi-personal training. We did a gentle 10 minute warm up and then down to the track to start the main part of the workout. There are no breaks except for a handful of chances to sip some water but each of those lasted about 10 seconds then straight back into it…and with the short time given it needs to be. For the next half hour we squatted, lunged, press-up’d (don’t think that’s a real word), did shuttle runs, pike push-ups (see picture – never done these before!!)…. All sorts! It was all good classic working out and it definitely got me sweating. It was unbelievably refreshing being outside, and in my opinion, a fantastic start to the week. At this time of year it is all too easy to go into hibernation and hide from the cold but the autumn and winter months are beautiful and we should embrace them….. just wear a few layers while you do so! All exercises were done using our own bodyweight so no apparatus. Perhaps a few bits of equipment thrown in would be fun but as Clifton explained to me, he wants his clients to know how to work out without gym equipment and a specifically designed space so that when they are away from training sessions they can keep up with their fitness regime and incorporate it into their lives wherever they may be.
The bootcamp ended with a final shuttle run where I got to witness for myself why Mo plays on the wing in rugby – I know I am bias – but wow the man can run! (Proud girlfriend moment!) So after Mo sent a gaggle of hockey girls dashing to the side of the track for fear of being ‘mo’-wn down (sorry) we ended with a decent cool down stretch session – this made me happy as often cool downs can be too brief resulting in sore muscles the next day – so it felt it was a good finish to wrap up a thorough little workout. The 45 minutes went past so quickly as you are constantly on the move and frequently changing direction and exercises, there is no time for boredom or thinking about much which is brilliant. I also felt just so great just for being outside – Clifton emphasised to me that their bootcamps go on whatever the weather, so even if it is pouring with rain there are no excuses – it is still on, just go and get stuck in. I think this is a great attitude…. In the words of Billy Connolly…
“there is no such thing as bad weather – only the wrong clothes.”
Happy post-workout (sweaty) face
My thoughts and tips…
- Take some training gloves – doing a lot of the exercises on the running track is hard on the hands. It was suggested to me before I went but unfortunately I didn’t have any… I wished I did!
- Working out outside is so refreshing and at a succinct 45 min you really don’t have any excuses not to go and get your sweat on.
- Every session is different (according to the other people training with us) so this is great for those of you, like me get bored very easily!
- If you like the idea of no-frills straight forward training, this will definitely appeal to you, out in the great outdoors, training using your own bodyweight. Makes a very refreshing change from the gym!
- Brilliant for those on a tight budget – if you want to do their standard bootcamp: you could pay £52 for a month, making each session £6 and you get:
- Each session will last 45 minutes
- Nutrition plan monitored daily for 1 month
- SMART goals set every month
- Phone / Email / text support between sessions
- Fitness Test
- Save £83 per month
Pike push ups… ouch.. I’ll use them from here on in. Not sure my campers will thank 😉