UNDERCOVER: PEDAL STUDIO

The Fitness Freak team know about all new studio openings in London. They’re just on the ball like that which works well for me as I’m the one that gets to check them all out. I was fortunate to be sent along to the brand new spinning studio in Wimbledon on a Friday morning for a very special class with Jennifer Sage, a world renowned Spinning instructor who had come over from Colorado especially for the studio launch day. Yes it was an early morning but with a rep like she has I just had to drag my butt out of bed to be put through my paces. The class was very different to any ‘spin’ class I have done before. It is taught in a very specific way which credited to the ‘spinning’ format or teaching. No press ups or bouncing around on the bike, just cycling and working with the resistance dial. So I got a pretty full on intense leg burn throughout and I loved it!

Pedal Studio in Wimbledon is the second studio opening under the Pedal studio umbrella. A brilliant concept… spinning bikes in a room that you can book and ride 1 hour slots from 6am to 9pm every day. My favourite part about this whole concept is that you have the option to use a heart rate monitor and watch your heart rate on the screen throughout the class. You can also track your performance against other class participants, and I’m going to be honest this is where my competitive streak comes out. It’s great motivation. The studio is on the third floor of a fitness filled building in residential Wimbledon. When I say fitness-filled, I mean that there is also bikram yoga and reformer Pilates in the same room. What a great combo…

After this particular class, there was a lovely breakfast put on in the bikram yoga social area. It was a great chance to network, learn more about the class offerings and how the studio idea came about! I nearly forgot to mention that we left with a goodie bag! So all in all I had a fab, guilt-free start to the morning!


Best bit… Jennifer Sage, I now love her!
Worst bit… nothing!
Good for… fat burning and working yourself hard.

CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT: Vita Coco!

Coconut water is the latest thing for health apparently. Itʼs meant to be the best hangover cure around, make you feel tip-top, and be better for you than plain, old, normal water. One carton has more potassium than two bananas, alongside other electrolytes. The point of all of those is to help keep your bodyʼs fluid levels balanced, make you feel less sluggish post-exercise, and stop cramps during exercise. They also do lots of other, very scientific things, apparently!

Rhianna, Courtney Cox, Madonna and Jessica Simpson have both been snapped drinking the stuff, and Demi Moore loves it so much that sheʼs invested in Vita Coco! So, bearing all of this in mind, I set myself a challenge...if it makes you feel hydrated and gives you an energy boost...could I replace caffeine with coconut water for a week?
A case of the stuff arrived from the lovely people at Vita Coco, and I popped it all in the fridge to keep it nice & cool - and I felt full of optimism, and ready to take on a decaffeinated world.

I started there and then, and I must admit, the taste is a little unusual. Itʼs a little thicker in consistency than water, but not quite like juice. If youʼve ever been on holiday somewhere with coconuts growing nearby, cracked one and drunk straight from the nut, then youʼll know just what it tastes like. Basically, donʼt expect it to taste like the inside of a Bounty bar! Luckily, they also do flavoured ones (pineapple, passion fruit etc) that are a bit more interesting - the regular plain one is a bit bland.
I normally start the day with a cuppa before I leave the house, and I decided to swap that for a vita coco on my tube journey to work. I must admit that I arrived at the office feeling much less thirsty than usual, and I didnʼt feel like Iʼd missed my cuppa, but I was still ready for my morning coffee by 9.30. And rather than power on through, I crumbled and had an Americano anyway!

On the mornings that I went to the gym before work, it did make me feel more hydrated afterwards than just a glass of water. Iʼm not sure if itʼs a psychological thing, or if it really does hydrate you better, but I felt like Iʼd just had a sports drink rather than water. And coconut water has to be healthier than a sugary, brightly coloured sports drink, doesnʼt it?


In conclusion, I must admit that I failed to give up coffee properly, as Vita Coco canʼt feed the beast if you have a caffeine habit! But I did feel less thirsty and a bit healthier. I easily replaced my morning tea with the coconut water every day, and felt better for it, but still felt like I needed to indulge in a few coffees and green teas as well. As for the hangover cure bit....yep, thatʼs true too. It definitely settled my stomach and got rid of that weird furry- mouth feeling. Not that Booty Blogger would ever normally drink too much, I just thought it was only fair to test the theory for you all!


If you want me or any of the Fitness Freak team to take on a challenge from your brand - email me at BootyBlogger@fitness-freak.com Iʼm happy to be your guinea pig!