Keeping yourself fit and healthy has become big business here on the Gold Coast, but you may feel overwhelmed in amongst the swarm of gym-junkies and tricky looking equipment at the chain gyms. There’s something different about entering a smaller studio with regular friendly faces. Being a fitness — and espresso martini — focussed bunch of folks here on the Gold Coast, we have a smorgasbord of fantastic personal studios where you can work up a sweat and get those endorphins flowing. Slip into some lycra and grab your water bottle; here is our take on the intimate studios you need to visit to live your best active life.

Lighten Up
When you enter this Robina-based studio, the intention is set from the beginning: this is your sanctuary and a chance to nurture your body. Thirty-five classes run across the week, and a modest weekly membership fee means making up for all that tequila on the weekend is not only easy but affordable. Once signed up, you can enjoy a selection of reformer and mat pilates, plus yin and flow yoga sessions which give you the chance to completely mix and match the way you break a sweat!
Where: Suite 3, Level 1 Easy T Centre, Robina

Free Living Studio
So much more than just fitness, you’ll find a mindful movement community devoted to health, wellness, yoga, and more at this Palm Beach-based studio. The understanding here is recognising that physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing is all closely connected and each as important as the other. Classes are methodically split under the four pillars of Strength, Burn, Sculpt, and Restore; with a comprehensive schedule of classes and handy membership options, there’s no easier way to get/keep in top physical (and mental) shape.
Where: Shop 1, 32 Brooke Avenue, Palm Beach

Xtend Barre
Located with a leafy outlook on a backstreet of Burleigh Heads, Xtend Barre is the perfect studio if you regularly find yourself around one of the Gold Coast’s most happening suburbs. Workouts have been curated around combining the science of pilates with the dynamics of aerobic dance to thoroughly tone the body and revive the mind. And with the friendliest bunch of instructors you’ve ever come across, it’s little wonder this life-changing workout has been a smash hit with the locals.
Where: 3 Park Avenue, Burleigh Heads

Hustl
By their admission, this ultra-chic studio doesn’t do normal. Located upstairs above the rather epic BSKT café, Hustl is an inspiring minimalistic space with an incredible view over Nobby Beach. What a place to undertake a morning class as the sun rises! Their program cleverly fuses advanced pilates with resistance-based cardio to bring you a workout like no other spread out across two slightly different classes. Suitability is geared towards everyone, fitness fanatic or not. And if you join as a member, you’ll also have access to their sister studio in Byron Bay. (For when the borders open back up!)
Where: 4 Lavarack Drive, Mermaid Beach

Pilates + Co
Starting your fitness journey, or maintaining it, has never been easier than with the team at Pilates + Co. There is a wide selection of classes — with a maximum size of 14 participants — multiple week challenges, and private sessions in place for you to smash your goals and a uber approachable team to make it all happen. Their original location in Burleigh Heads is now joined by a newly opened space in Bundall, and should you find it hard to make it to either of these, they also have a state-of-the-art home workout platform with exclusive videos allowing you to work out on your terms.
Where: Unit 5, 75 West Burleigh Road & Units 8-10, 25 Upton Street, Bundall

Kbod Fitness
Do you love to dance like nobody is watching, but also love the high and good feelings you get from a high-intensity workout? Kbod is touted as Australia’s first dance-based fitness centre and is run by an ex-professional dancer of 24 years. Getting in great shape doesn’t have to be boring — Kbod is the studio where you can achieve a dancer’s physique and have a whole lot of fun along the way. Because the best sort of fitness is the fun type!
Where: Unit 4, 40 Ern Harley Drive, Burleigh Heads 

Words by Alex Mitcheson.

Okay so I’m sure we can all agree that there are some blissful bathhouses around the Goldy and northern New South Wales. There are also some beautifully restored historic buildings, srsly #trending watering holes, pumping pubs and exceptional eats spots. However, correct us if we’re wrong (we’re not), but we’re yet to unearth a place combining all of the above into one unicorn-like locale. Until now that is, and we’re tickled at least 50 shades of pink by this brand-new Mullumbimby trailblazer.

Set in the heart of the ‘biggest little town in Australia’, The Banya is a total #mood. Built upon the sun-baked bricks of a 1920’s bank, it’s a modern experiential twist on a traditional European bathhouse and we are crushing hard on this chameleonic venue. Inviting us to eat, drink, relax, rejuvenate and connect, it’s well worth a little trek south-west over the border.

Introducing this quintessential Euro social experience to our ‘hood is local publican Brenden Lawless. Giving the space a new lease on life whilst preserving its original, old-world charm, The Banya is nothing short of a solid ten. The talented Mardi Borrack from Style Agenda was appointed to work her interior design magic, whose resume includes work on the big screen. Her creativity and attention to detail designing for specific periods in the cinematic world translated effortlessly to The Banya, giving Brenden’s vision the finesse it deserves.

Swell also came to the party and then some, with a transformative build catapulting the old bank into 2023. Integrating on-fleek finishes inspiring luxe relaxation yet respecting its longevity and original ‘roots’, it exudes contemporary fun and traditional wonder. Lofty windows and high ceilings have been lovingly restored, blending old and new to create an exciting and enticing aesthetic.

Think raw bricks fused with soft blush render, hexagon tiling, herringbone wood, terrazzo, marble, and coffered ceilings with chic pendant lights and plush leather. The Bathhouse features a tiled lap and three large hot mineral pools hugged by lush foliage and cobblestone pathing. There’s also a wood-fired sauna, a steam room, a cold plunge, five massage treatment rooms, and a rooftop sundeck for post-treatment relaxation. Namaste!

Once you’re fully zenned out, it’s time to partake in a cheeky tipple or two and a delicious feed. The on-site bar and dining are focussed on casual refinement with small share plates and nutritious staples which is precisely our kinda jam. In the dining room, indulge your tastebuds with Rock Oysters on Ice, served either natural, with finger lime mignonette, or with prosecco granita (side note: it’s the latter for us, coz who are we to knock back anything involving wine and sorbet?!). Or how about Ballina King Prawns on garlic butter brioche with cocktail sauce, cos and pickles crisps?

During the day or for takeaway, we suggest a Banya Bowl with greens, kraut, pickles, smashed butterbeans and marinated egg on brown rice with herbs and lemon and go on, add cured trout for the ultimate foodgasm. Wash it down with a Hinterland High Smoothie, combining banana, spinach, cucumber, coconut water, super greens and mint or for a bright, light and clarifying cocktail, you can’t beat the Kaffiroska with kaffir infused vodka, lime and a lick of sugar.

So, for the perfect mix of feel-good experiences (eating, sipping, chilling/pampering, and socialising) all under the one truly spectacular roof, all roads lead to The Banya.

Where: 35-37 Burringbar Street, Mullumbimby
When: 9am till late, Monday to Sunday

 Words by Bianca Trathen.

It’s Winter… which usually means it follows with the saying that “Summer bodies are made in Winter”… are we right? Well perhaps not! We recently had the pleasure of getting to know Ash Lane, GC local, Fitness Trainer and Nutritionist, and what we found out about fitness and health is well worth the read. Read on and thank us later!

How long have you been a Gold Coast local?
I can’t believe it but it’s been 14 years! My husband and I moved up from Sydney in 2008 and have not looked back since!

What do you love the most about the Gold Coast?
The people… there’s a much more relaxed vibe that comes with living here that I never found in Sydney among the chaos. When we do return to Sydney we’re blown away by the difference!

Tell us how your successful 12-week program came about.
My business success has 100% come from a combination of my passion and my struggles in my own journey. After spending years going through what I now know to be a typical yoyo binge / restrict cycle – where I would lose weight, only to fall off the wagon and regain the weight. I finally began my journey of further education. I didn’t realise it at the time, but the majority of what social media was telling us we should be doing and how to achieve our dream physique, was not evidence-based (so yes this meant literally most of it was just made up). Things like the 30-minute protein window, and no carbs after 4pm, and fasting for fat loss, and cardio for fat loss and the list goes on! All had absolutely no evidence to back up these claims. Now it’s not easy to find out what’s real and what’s not – unless you go back to the grassroots and start literally reading studies and research papers one by one on each of the topics… which is what I did. Through this process, I was able to discover why so many of the ladies that trained at the cardio class gym that I managed, would lose weight, only to then regain it (myself included). I combined this research with hiring an expert coach, and I had unbelievable success (which included eating more and training less than I ever had).

From there I started coaching ladies that had been exactly where I had been, and were sick and tired of losing weight BUT THEN gaining it all back… I call these ladies ‘BUT THEN’ girls… I lost weight BUT THEN. My tribe of ladies change this to ‘BUT NOW’ girls… I used to lose and regain the same 5kg, 10kg or more, BUT NOW I hit my goal and set a new one! It’s crazy to think that we consider it totally normal to set the same goal over and over! I just want to look how I did during my Bali holiday, or Christmas last year. This is called ‘GROUNDHOG GOAL’. You should be setting a goal, hitting it and setting the next one… Not setting the same goal over and over. Using a mix of this evidence based approach, and showing ladies how to become BUT NOW girls… Very shortly my 1:1 coaching program was full and I was forced to create a group program to run alongside it, which now has over 500 ladies at any one time, going through their very own life-changing process. This group program is called TWA (Train With Ash).

And of course on top of that we have group coaches, other 1:1 coaches and of course I do some very limited 1:1 coaching too! Most of these ladies start by going through my free 5-day challenge, where I give away all of my biggest tips, tricks, hacks and most importantly show them step by step why they are where they are, and why it’s not their fault, and then what they need to do to fix that! I try to give enough information away so that the ladies don’t have to join my paid group. But for the ladies that want a little more support on their journey – that option is there.

What are 5 tips you would recommend to someone looking to be their healthiest self?
1 – Think about what your goal is. Be specific. And then ask whether the track you’re taking is actually the right way to get there. So often I see ladies using cardio for a fat loss goal, which we know while this might be useful short term – it’s not sustainable or scaleable long term, and is one of the main reasons ladies are continuing to start over and over again. AKA – BUT THEN girls.
2 – Place your physical goal first. So if you have a fat loss goal – rather than tackling both fat loss AND nutrition at the same time – let’s tackle the fat loss first. Now often along the way nutrition comes into line too. But attempting to turn your whole life upside down and eating in a way you don’t enjoy can be a big reason for failure. Learn energy balance (macronutrients) and get the process moving first, then let’s tinker with the micronutrients.
3 – Motivation will fade. SO make sure whichever track you take that you’re changing habits as part of the process. Now this doesn’t have to be a huge life change. Even just 1 new habit per month is 12 new habits per year. But that 1 new habit could be the one that keeps you on track when the motivation stops.
4 – Focus on raising the floor rather than the ceiling. Most people plan for their best days… for when everything is going right for them and again motivation is high. But what about your worst days? When everything’s going wrong? And you want to quit? If you can raise the floor just enough to stop you from giving up, then that’s 1000% more valuable than trying to improve on your best day.
5 – Educate yourself. Lots of ladies embark on a journey that has no education involved and where you’re essentially ‘tied’ to that program basically forever (like meal plans for example). What you really want is to be able to do this on your own – and the only way to do that is through education. So hire a coach that you click with and that you trust to help you get there. Don’t be scared that you’re not going to pick the right one – you don’t know what you don’t know and until you try someone you won’t know whether their approach is correct for you.

Can you really eat more but still lose weight – or is this a myth?
As ladies, lots of us have been dieting for years. 5 years, 10 years, some ladies it’s been their whole adult life! I call this group of people ‘lifetime dieters’. It’s a constant cycle of restriction followed by a binge. The length of the diet might vary, but the result is always the same. Binge. Restriction always leads to binge. This constant diet cycle year in, year out, can lead to a downregulation of your metabolism (metabolic adaptation). Which just basically means your metabolism is slower. This is usually where ladies are at in their journey when I work with them. Some ladies wonder whether they’ve broken their metabolism (this is honestly how I felt too). The good news is that no you can’t break your metabolism, and yes you can reverse that metabolic downregulation. Which does mean that over time we’re increasing the amount you can eat and during that process, you’re either maintaining your weight while eating more, or some ladies do lose weight too. This process is called ‘reverse dieting’. And became well known in the bodybuilding community well before the ‘lifestyle training’ community. Most ladies start a new program or challenge in a dieting phase, and often that’s the entirety of the program! Just another diet! If that was going to work then it would have worked by now (yes calorie deficits work – bare with me).

There’s usually a missing piece though. A calorie deficit (diet) is only a part of the puzzle, and it should be the smallest part. Most of the IG models that we might look up to or bikini competitors etc – these ladies, spend the least amount of their year dieting (in a calorie deficit) and the majority of their year either building or maintaining. And that’s where the magic sauce is! It’s not in the diet. Anybody can cut calories in half and lose weight (usually through the latest fad ‘named’ diet – like Keto or Carnivore or Fast 800 or any one of the 1000s of diets that use the same method) but the magic sauce is in the building or maintaining / maingaining phase. This should be step 1. Dieting is step 2. This might sound harsh… But lots of ladies have to earn the right to diet. If you’ve been dieting for most of your adult life – then the solution to fat loss for you isn’t more dieting. It’s time to give your body some love and earn the right to diet.

What meal are you loving at the moment?
I am going to share my fav meals… BUT – it’s important to consider these are my individual favourite meals… They might not be yours. And they don’t have to be! The types of foods we eat should be foods we enjoy. There’s no magic foods when it comes to fat loss. It’s simply total calories in vs calorie out! I hear people talking about bad foods vs good foods and cheat days for example. This is not going to create a good relationship with food. Imagine if we treated our relationship with our partner like we do food? I am just going to have a cheat day from my partner. That doesn’t instill much faith in the relationship. And the same goes with the foods we eat. If you want a good relationship with food, remove the ‘titles’.  There’s no such thing as good foods or bad foods. Unless you have an intolerance, like if you’re lactose intolerant, then yes lactose might not be good for you. But for me it’s fine. Sure – most people could do with more veggies in their life – but if we don’t balance it with both whole foods AND soul foods, then we’re heading down a track of restriction. And restriction ALWAYS leads to a binge (starting to see a pattern here..?) Currently I am loving a simple marinated chicken meal that takes a few minutes to make. I buy a jar of Thai Spicy Satay marinade from Woolworths (brand is Marions Kitchen) mix it with diced chicken, throw in some Jasmine rice and veggies and voila! Dinner for tonight and lunch for tomorrow!

What does your typical day look like?
Every day is vastly different, as I’m admin, coach, accounting, marketing, etc etc, but this will give you a rough idea.
4-5am: Wake up, get dressed, grab a coffee and go for a Mental Health Walk. This is my favourite way to start the day, the experience of going to the coffee shop and walking up Burleigh Hill to watch the sunrise brings me so much joy to start the day.
6.45 – 7.45 am: I’ll reply to my 1:1 clients private messages that have come in overnight and run through questions in my Train with Ash Facebook group – I call this reactive work.
7.45 – 9am: This is school drop off time (yes school drop-off is just over an hour round trip morning and afternoon)
9 – 12pm: Make a smoothie for brekky & continue on with 1:1 client private messages, Train with Ash Facebook group, Instagram DMs and new client enquiries & emails.
12-12.30pm: Lunch – I’ll either eat leftovers or prepare something new at home.
12.30 – 1.30pm: I will spend 1hr creating content, whether this is for an IG story, an article, or a social media post.
1.30 – 2.45pm: Gym – I train 3 times per week, and 1:30 is my gym time on those days.
2.45 – 4pm: School pick up time.
4-6pm: I’ll do another run-through of 1:1 client messages, Train with Ash Facebook group and if there was any other admin work that needed to be done to close out the day.
6-8:30pm: This is usually dinner and family time, maybe homework with our son, and some downtime too. However, on occasions, depending on the month, the workload will differ and I may dedicate more time here to admin, client replies, programming etc.

Tell us the best piece of advice someone has ever given you and why you consider it the best?
Picking one is hard!! I think that following your passion would have to be it. And that’s because it was a turning point in my life. When I let go of what I ‘should’ do, and started following what I was passionate about, it was so much easier to get out of bed and ‘feel’ like doing whatever I had on my to-do list. I think that the people that are most successful in life (and not just in business, because success can mean different things to everyone) understand their passion and find a way to spend as much time as they can there. Before I ever charged a single client – I gave away everything that I had learnt, for free. And I still do this today (in the 5-day challenge). Because it’s my passion. Find your passion – and follow that road! The rest will work itself out along the way.

What are you looking forward to the most in the next 12 months?
Our next family move! We haven’t revealed just yet what that is (sorry!) but in October this year our whole world is going to be turned upside down and at the same time business will continue as normal (and continue to grow)! Follow my IG if you want to see what this is! Trust me – it’s big!

What are your Gold Coast favourites…
Café/coffee spot: Morning Coffees at Quest Burleigh!
Restaurant: This is hard! There’s so many! Hail Mary, Rick Shores, Light Years. And I can’t miss Pizza Fridays in our house which is usually Dominos Pizza!
Bar or place for a drink: This will be a shock – but I recently discovered a place called ‘The Miami’ that has the best Margaritas on the Gold Coast! Totally unexpected but if you enjoy a Margi then give them a try!
Beach: Burleigh beach – it’s our local and while the sand in my toes isn’t my most favourite thing on earth – walking on the path around the beach is up there!

How do you choose to spend your days off?
With my family! I have a husband and a 9-year-old son. And I read something recently that you only get 18 summers with your children. And that really hit home for me! Especially as half of those have passed already! So when it comes to downtime, it’s going to be with my family and quality time. Honestly, I don’t care where we go or what we do! It could be as simple as walking along the path next to the beach in the afternoon at Burleigh. That family time is my love language and fills my cup!