Looking for a gym in Nairobi? New shiny gyms are popping up all over town. There's Ignite at the Village Market, SmartGyms at Junction and Crossfit at the Galleria but for Karen residents there are a number of really cool places to get fit, right here.
Best Gym in Nairobi: The Dojo
Shiny new wellness centre and gym, The Dojo, has all mod cons and as the newest kid on the block is THE place to get fit in Nairobi right now. Their gym is fully equipped they have a fabulous parkour area for something different. A huge range of killer classes including arial silk, HIIT, boxing, calisthenics, Yoga, pilates and kickboxing. They do group classes and personal training.For parents, the best thing about this gym is the inclusion of kids classes, my kids go for Ninja Warrior Training and Parkour they can also do boxing.
The club has a beautiful steam room and sauna area, onsite physiotherapists, masseurs and nutritionists. It's a luxurious one stop shop for all your wellness needs. It also has the advantage of being right next door to the Talisman so you can pop next door for lunch after your workout.
Best boxing club and gym in Nairobi: The Fitness Cocoon
The Fitness Cocoon in Hardy is as far away from a Virgin Active as you can manage and what a breath of fresh air. There are no airs and graces. You are there to get fit. I’ve not once been when I can walk properly the next day, it's exquisite agony that delivers results.
Salim and his team Rashida and Jax run this hidden gem, a boxing gym tucked away in a small room in Hardy. This is hardcore work out. A full-speed mix of weight training, cardio and endless squats interspersed with boxing. Man, it’s tough. Man do you feel amazing when you leave. Its suitable for men and women who mean business, This is the place to come if you really want to see results. They also do boxing lessons for kids from 8 years up.
Best Yoga App: Yoga Studio
Yoga and I have a love/hate relationship. I know it’s good for me but if I’m giving up my precious time to exercise I want sweat, a lot of it and calories burned. There are a few yoga classes around town but man do they cost.
I was hesitant about using a Yoga App. Doing exercises alone in your house takes me back to the ’80s and my mum and her friends doing ‘Jane Fonda’ videos. But as with so many other things, I was wrong and the app is awesome.
The Yoga Studio app caters for all abilities and has loads of different routines, from a 10-minute post-run stretch to a full hour of sun salutations. It has sequences that aid back pain, for pregnant women, for mental health. It has Hip Hop yoga if you have a sense of rhythm (I don’t) and meditations if you want to take it down a notch.
I like it because you can use it as and when you want rather than waiting for a scheduled class. And you can do the Yoga that you want to do rather than what the instructor fancies.
I am doing more Yoga than ever before. Slightly hung-over and too tired to exercise? I'll just do 20 minutes Pranayama. Feeling super stressed and struggling to resist wine? 20 minutes of balances will sort that out.
Yoga Studio is my favourite but if you want a free app then try Simply Yoga, which is also very good.
Best Mindfulness & Meditation App: Calm
Mindfulness is for people with time, right? And who has time? I'm a bloody housewife and I don’t even have time. My friend first introduced me to a mindfulness app when my little boy couldn’t sleep. He loved it and listened to it every night for weeks until his insomnia was cured. He now falls asleep as quick as a baby. The App was Bunny Mindfulness: meditation for kids of all ages.
So I thought I'd give it a go being an insomniac myself as well as a super stressy anxious worrier. I’m not saying it solved all my problems but I’m finding my anxiety much easier to managed and a few minutes a day or night is all it needs. I've been using Calm: meditate, sleep and relax
Best running App: Strava
Running in Nairobi can be scary. There are Matatus and trucks to dodge and the quiet lanes can be intimidating if you are alone, but around Karen, there are some routes that are used by many people and feel safe to me.
A while ago I put a few very short running routes up on the blog which I'll link to here.
Ololua Ridge 5k
Karen Country Club Circuit
8k from Banda
Running is my go-to sport. I’m not very good at it. I've been running for 15 years and I rarely go above 10K but I love it. The best and only app to use for running is Strava. There is a free version and a pro version. The free version is all you need. I’m sure only pro’s use the pro version and certainly not people for whom a half marathon was their crowning achievement
Best Physiotherapist: Karen Physiotherapy Clinic
When you’re as old and battered as I am sometimes you need a bit of help now and again. That’s where Julia from Karen Physiotherapy Clinic comes in.
There are few sports-related injuries that she can’t fix. After all athletes all over the world have put themselves in Julia’s capable hands. She supported the European & Asian Golf Tours and Women’s and Men’s Tennis – if its good enough for Rafael Nadal then its good enough for me.
Julia’s emphasis is on thorough assessments. She will look at biomechanics and the functionality of the body, ensuring you to get the right diagnosis,
She also runs private Pilates classes for core and strength training, which is essential if you are really jacking up the training.
If you are serious about fitness but new to sports then a visit to a Physio is a great way to ensure your posture and alignments are correct and to avoid injuries in the long run.
Best diet App: My Fitness Pal
Gah! Don’t you hate the word diet? I can’t diet I’m the greediest person known to man. I try now and again and lose a few pounds and then binge myself on cake and wine and pie right back out.
After years of experimentation, I figured the only thing that keeps me on track is keeping a food diary. I tried Noom recently on their trial but it's so expensive to subscribe and all your really need to is log meals. I've been using MyFitnessPal for years and it works a treat so why fix it if it ain't broke. Even better it’s free.
For a more traditional approach, you could try the Slimming World App.
Or you could just cut yourself a break and make some tasty healthy meals but downloading the Yummly App. They have endless gorgeous recipes and the app is totally free and you can burn off the extra carbs at the Fitness cocoon or by pounding the streets
For a further list of personal trainer and wellness practitioners within the Karen area check out my Karen Contacts list here.
Namaste
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