About | Uplift

Hi, I'm Alex, welcome to Uplift!

I'm a 37 year old mum of two little girls and a passionate fitness coach specialising in postnatal training and pelvic floor rehab.

I'm also a normal woman.

Yep, I'm not a retired gymnast or superstar ex professional sportswoman but a woman, like many of us who reluctantly start exercising as a way to lose weight, I'd done all the diets and was trapped in a cycle of eating, restricting, punishing exercise, self loathing and my body image was terrible.

As someone who only ever did cardio (as we all did then) with calorie burn my only goal, one day I tried a barre class. The mix of strength and conditioning and Pilates was totally different to what I was used to and I soon started to see real progress in my strength, a change in my body shape and for the first time I was learning about why I was doing what I was doing.

I was hooked, learning more about strength training, I started lifting weights, doing more Pilates and running regularly and consistently.

I went from exercising to training, from having weight goals to fitness goals and the process of getting fitter and stronger was changing my body and my relationship towards it in a way that improved my self esteem and confidence exponentially.

I realised how immersed I was in diet culture, how much I'd bought into the toxic message of pursuing being small and lean rather than being fit and healthy and wanted to share my new found healthy approach with others.

So in 2014 I retrained, first as a fitness and Barre Concept instructor starting my career in full time fitness. Over the years I've qualified as a level 3 Pilates teacher and level 3 Personal Trainer completing a number of prestigious, internationally recognised courses in pre and postnatal fitness including Dr Sarah Duvall's Pregnancy and Postpartum Corrective Exercise Specialist, and Low Pressure Fitness (Hypopressives) Levels 1 & 2.

It was witnessing first hand the lack of postnatal/women's health care in the UK and the confusing advice on exercise, especially for those dealing with pelvic floor dysfunction, prolapse, and diastasis recti, that further inspired me to change the narrative and challenge "bounce back" culture, focusing on women's recovery and regaining strength as the primary goal, rather than just weight loss.

Combining my passions for women's health, bridging the gap between physio and fitness and offering women the uplifting, positive fitness experience they deserve, Uplift was born!

Outside of the gym, I am a pretty unskilled but very enthusiastic dancer mostly in the comfort of my own kitchen but occasionally make an appearance at a dance class. Other than that I can be found walking the dog with my lovely husband and kids or watching a true crime series or Friends (again) with a few bourbon biscuits for good measure.

I hope to meet you soon, Alex x