It’s a sunny Saturday and I’m looking for excuses not to go to my first ever weight lifting class. Won’t it be full of pros who will scoff at my puny muscles? Is it suitable for complete beginners? And don’t I have a big load of washing I should be doing instead?
Half an hour before, I try to hit ‘cancel class’ on the sleek Virgin Active app I’ve recently downloaded, but find it’s too late to wimp out of it. I head reluctantly to Virgin Active Kensington, which is tucked away in a quiet street just off High Street Kensington, and am quickly reassured by the calm atmosphere, extensive facilities and absence of judgemental gym bros.
I’m here to have a go at ‘Lift Club’, a 45-minute class on offer in select gyms that runs in six-week cycles and is open to all levels — even, I am assured, complete beginners. The tagline runs: ‘Squat, press, pull and deadlift your way to a noticeably stronger body focusing mainly on barbell compound movements and short, sharp conditioning work.’ I had pretty much no idea what that meant in practice.
Luckily, the trainer taking the class was Tom Stone, who was on hand to explain everything. He immediately put me at ease with a balance of informality (plenty of warnings not to be scared of my legs falling off) and professionalism — you’re in the hands of a personal trainer, triathlete and physiotherapist when you train with Tom.
The class strikes a similar balance, with instruction that’s free from jargon but not so slow that it bores the more experienced in the room. After a warm up that hones in on proper squat formation, we focused on legs, starting with barbell back squats before moving onto barbell hip thrusts. Tom gives clear step-by-steps, then moves around the room assisting and offering small but immediately effective adjustments. You can go at your own pace here, adding weight and building up reps while your partner watches on, counting and offering support (I’m told this is called ‘spotting’).
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One of the class’s great strengths is its simplicity, as Nick Parkes, Virgin Active UK Weightlifting Lead and the expert who oversees Lift Club, explains. “We are not trying to say our classes have reinvented the wheel but that's exactly why I think they currently differ,” he says. “A lot of the industry is constantly looking for the next big thing, something new, something edgy. Lift Club follows the basic principles of strength training and we do them very well.
“For beginners, it helps develop proper coordination, balance, and form, which are essential for long-term health and fitness progress. Lift Clubs barbell training also stimulates muscle growth and boosts metabolism, helping your body burn more calories even at rest.”
It’s ideal to have what feels like constant supervision from a trainer, without the pressure of a one-on-one session. To my surprise, I complete the workout and build up to 10kg on the barbell (puny by some standards, but Herculean by mine). Even more surprising was the fact that I actually enjoyed the class and wasn't counting down the minutes until it ended, as I have in plenty of others over the years.
The only issue comes afterwards — my quads are so tight I have to stagger downstairs for three days following the class. Tom warned me that this could happen, and there was a warm-down to try to counteract the effect. But if I were repeating it, I’d stretch out a little more on my own, and carve out some time to sweat it out in the lovely sauna that awaits in the women’s changing room too.
Overall, it was well worth the pain. I could honestly see a little more muscle definition everywhere after a single 45-minute session, and it was exceptionally empowering to know that I could lift the weights I’d only ever stared at fearfully before. I’m looking forward to my next Lift Club class, and am hopeful that I’ll be able to build up gradually throughout the six-week course. Next time, I won’t let any excuse tempt me into cancelling at the 11th hour.
