London is in the middle of a fitness trend where people are trading in their gym memberships in favour of specialised fitness classes.
People are joining bootcamps, cycling studios and boutique fitness clubs, where intimate, targeted classes get results and where you are a name and a client not just a number. Here are our top boutique fitness classes in London.
Barry’s Bootcamp
Barry’s Bootcamp has been training Hollywood’s A-List since 1998 but arrived in London in 2013 with a studio opposite Euston Station. A second studio located on Finsbury Square opened in 2015 with a third on the way in 2017.
Forget the usual image of a bootcamp – this is a cool, sexy space (as are the trainers) with a series of daily classes that can burn up to 1000 calories in a 60 minutes session.
The training sessions at Barry’s Bootcamp combine high intensity treadmill work with strength training using free weights, bands and bars – either focusing on a specific muscle group or a full body workout.
KOBOX, Chelsea
A studio in Chelsea from trainer Shane Collins, KOBOX offers high intensity boxing based classes in a bespoke studio setting. Not a boxer? You don’t have to be. Boxing training is much more than just punching things.
Each hour long workout includes rounds of boxing combinations on the heavy bag as well as rounds of strength training using free weights, plyometric boxes, resistance bands, medicine balls and other equipment.
GymClass, Holland Park
Located on Holland Park Avenue, GymClass is a boutique studio launched by fitness expert Helle Hammonds. Gym Class offers 55 minute sessions which are split into High Intensity Interval Training and Resistance Training work.
Each day at GymClass focuses on a different body part, split into ‘Ass + Abs’, ‘Upper + Abs’, ‘Super Core’, ‘Glutes and Legs’ and ‘Signature Full Body’. Class sizes vary but capacity is 14 people.
Psycle London
Each 45-minute session at Psycle combines cycling with boxing and weight-lifting to tone the upper body while movement out of the saddle increases the engagement of core muscles and raises the heart rate.
Inspired by the popular American version, Soul Cycle, which involves pedalling away in a candlelit gym studio to a background of club music, Psycle is providing London with a new alternative to the traditional spin class with locations in Fitzrovia and Canary Wharf.
BXR London
Opening in January 2017, BXR is a state of the art, members-only fitness facility, offering the highest level of professional boxing training. Situated on Chiltern Street in Marylebone, the site has a 6-metre-high triple glass frontage and spans 12,000 sq ft, including a full-size boxing ring.
Investing partner boxer Anthony Joshua and the BXR founders have curated a team of elite trainers consisting of boxing coaches, ex-champion boxers, MMA fighters and some of the top sports therapists and osteopaths.
The Boxx Method
If you can’t make it to any of these classes, then you have a new option for a home workout from The BoxxMethod. Involving intense shadow boxing with high intensity interval training without needing bags, pads or a ring.
Watch online as your instructor takes you through a series of 3 minute rounds to create the ultimate boxing workout. Choose between 15 or 30 minute workouts and whether to target your lower, upper or full body, you can burn up to to 600 calories per session.
The BoxxMethod starts from £7.99 per month and they’re now offering a 10 day free trial.
The Best Boutique Fitness Classes in London
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