One of the things I love most about setting up Swell Fitness is meeting so many different people and hearing their stories - how they found themselves on the path to fitness and what keeps them motivated. There is never a straight line, nor one solution and it’s always fascinating to hear how people discovered their own steps to ‘Swellness’ – fitness and wellness - and what they learnt along the way.
Meeting Lynsey Suzanne was no exception. 36 years old, fit, nearly six foot tall and strong (very strong), Lynsey Suzanne is an intelligent, articulate and inspirational Personal Trainer, as well as an online fitness coach. She believes everybody has the right to feel good, inside and out. As such, she promotes healthy and nutritional choices alongside a regular exercise regime. In our chat, I asked Lynsey Suzanne what her own journey to Swellness had been.
At school, Lynsey Suzanne admits that she would do whatever she could to get out of PE and that her diet was very ‘beige’! Later, she worked in investment banking, sales and as a dog walker before falling into fitness after a relationship break up. Like many people, at a turning point in their lives, she threw herself into the gym. However, she soon realised that she had no idea what she was actually doing! But, did that hold her back? It did not!
Over ‘coffee club’ at the gym, she met, and was fascinated by, a fellow female gym-goer who was entering a body-building competition. Inspired, and spurred on by what I’m coming to realise is her boundless enthusiasm and drive, Lynsey Suzanne signed up for her own body-building competition in nine months’ time. She turned to You Tube for tips, admitting now that she made lots of mistakes along the way. She entered a strict regime of cardio and weights and a calorie restricted diet.
Nine competitions and lots of success later (but often feeling quite hungry) Lynsey Suzanne started to question whether she wanted to continue down this path. Under the wing of a new coach, she began to change her perspective and started to focus on how she felt rather than how she looked.
So, Lynsey Suzanne qualified as a PT and wanted to share this new approach – wellness led fitness – with others. She now shares her knowledge about nutrition, strength training and metabolic conditioning (also known as Met Con) with her clients. Take a look at her website to find out more www.lynseysuzanne.com
Predominantly woman, her client-base are often those who are intimidated by the gym. Worried that it will be filled with muscular men who all know what they’re doing, most of Lynsey’s clients don’t feel ready to attend their local gym. But, Lynsey Suzanne changes all that. In her private gym, where they don’t feel embarrassed and they can start to build their confidence, she starts them off on the small kit (think kettles bells or the Swell Fit Bag), before moving them on to the Olympic bar. Until, after a few sessions, they’ve learnt how to use the kit safely and can combine it with some basic moves, such as squats and lunges. Then, they head out to the gym and invariably become addicted!
Lynsey Suzanne explains why weight training is so addictive. “It’s the results that are achieved and the confidence that comes from feeling fitter and stronger. Weight training, whilst carried out at a lower heart rate to cardio, is done in the fat burning zone. Also, the benefits extend beyond the period of the workout as the muscles are continuing to ‘do their thing’ long after the workout session has finished.” Not only does strength training build muscle mass, there are numerous other benefits (all backed up by medical science): it can make your joints and bones stronger, help you to lose weight (although you may gain some muscle) and boost your mood and mental health - all of which could extend your life!
Whilst Lynsey Suzanne is passionate about strength training, she also acknowledges the need for, and promotes, different forms of exercise to both keep her clients motivated and to benefit different aspects of the body. Her fitness in fifteen programme will get the heart pumping with HIIT work outs and she will use metabolic conditioning (or MetCon) methods to boost a weight training session. A typical workout might be comprised of 20-25 minutes of weight training then, once the heart rate is elevated, a MetCon session, working at full tilt for around 10-12 minutes.
When I asked Lynsey Suzanne about her preferred workout routine, unsurprisingly, she said strength training. She apparently hates cardio (she is human after all!) and would rather not workout indoors. Her happy place is walking with her dog, Forest, preferably up a mountain, riding on her mountain bike or wild swimming along the Dorset coast. We hear you Lynsey Suzanne, we love nothing more than time spent in the wild too!
Lynsey Suzanne’s love of the outdoors, her passion for promoting strength training for all, particularly weight-shy women, and her belief in excellent nutrition to aid fitness goals, aligns her principles perfectly with Swell Fitness. We first met Lynsey Suzanne at our very first festival, Wellbeing by the Lakes, in our launch month and she’s inspired us with her knowledge and creativity in how to use the Swell Fit Bag.
Imagine my delight, then, when she agreed to record some of her industry-renowned 15 minute HIIT workouts (which will be on Swell Tube soon – including one on her trademark moves for amazing glutes!) and a metabolic conditioning workout for The Swell Hub going live on 12/12/22. We’ll be giving all Swell Fit Bag owners private access to this one too so if you’re an owner already and you haven’t had a chance to check out Lynsey Suzanne’s work, reach out to our swellbeings@swellfitness.co.uk for more details.
Given our shared love for wild workouts, we’ll also be hatching plans for some awe-inspiring workouts for spring 2023, so watch this space, keep your ear to the ground (or your finger to the phone) for more details. We are really excited to be working with Lynsey Suzanne; she is definitely helping us to find more Swellness so we hope she can help you find yours too.