Six3Nine: The Ultimate Personal Training Practice Review

I recently spent a couple of months training at Six3Nine*; an impressively unique personal training practice in Covent Garden, London. At the practice, I experienced an incredible personal training service which was bespoke to the nth degree. And, with the help of my trainer, Russ, I achieved far more than I had anticipated...

The Practice + My Personal Trainer

From the moment that I learned of Six3Nine and their fad-free approach to health and fitness, I was excited to experience what the practice and their elite group of trainers had to offer. I had high hopes for Six3Nine and they didn’t disappoint!

The practice itself is a hidden treasure; at basement level behind a grey door on Drury Lane is a highly-optimised, ultra-functional, super-sleek space. There are no fixed-resistance machines here - only equipment that encourages free and functional movement. I love this concept.

Free initial consultation at Six3Nine

My first visit to the practice was for my free 60 minute initial consultation with the practice manager, Dan. As well as performing a full body composition analysis, Dan spoke to me about my current lifestyle, health, exercise, nutrition, goals and generally got to know me a little better.

This process assured me that I’d be assigned to a trainer whose specialisms and personality were best suited to me, to develop a highly-personalised plan.

Russ Harris at Six3Nine

Following my thorough consultation, I commenced my training sessions with Russ, one of the practice’s Senior Trainers. Russ is undoubtedly one of the best in his field. He has a degree in Sports Science, is studying for a Masters in Strength and Conditioning, and is constantly researching and learning beyond that. It is obvious that he is passionate about what he does, which is really inspiring.

Not only is Russ incredibly knowledgable, he is also amazing at applying his knowledge in innovative ways. Often during our sessions I could practically see cogs whirring inside his head as he developed exercise set-ups and movement patterns that would specifically target my needs. I always found this process completely fascinating and, although some of the outcomes looked like torture devices, Russ always explained exactly how they were beneficial to me. He ensured that every aspect of our training was fine-tuned to my requirements in a way that I couldn’t have imagined possible.

As well as being super talented, Russ is a really nice guy, incredibly patient (which proved crucial when teaching me handstands), puts up with my sarcasm, and is a complete pleasure to train with.

The Training

My first session involved a biomechanical assessment to screen for weaknesses and imbalances. I loved this process as I’m always keen to make tweaks that allow me to get the most from my training and prevent injury. I was really impressed with how Russ’s highly-trained eyes spotted everything!

From there, we worked a lot on making sure that I was getting optimal muscle activation, especially my glutes, which are particularly stubborn! We also did a lot of core work, including various crawling patterns, which left my muscles so sore that I was almost convinced that I had fractured ribs.

We focused a lot on bodyweight exercises, including some gymnastics-based work, which I loved. I feel like the value of bodyweight training is so often neglected by people (trainers included!) so it was really refreshing and insightful to have it incorporated into my programme.

Russ also put together a strength and conditioning programme for me. It was great to work on basic movements such as squats and deadlifts and really perfect my form so that I built the confidence to start increasing my weights again. Russ also encouraged me to use kettlebells as part of my training. While at first I was dubious, I’ve fallen in love with the dynamic movement patterns that can be done using them.

I loved that as I learned and progressed, Russ continuously adapted my training programme and encouraged me to try new things. I can’t believe how much we packed into my time training together at Six3Nine!

The Results

Body Composition

When I arrived at Six3Nine, I was in fairly good shape and weight loss was by no means one of my goals. However, after 2 months of training at the practice, I noticed that my weight had dropped quite a lot; 3.4kg to be precise. I was a little concerned, so Russ suggested doing a body composition analysis to compare to the one I had during my initial consultation.

The results were beyond what we had anticipated.

I had lost 3.7kg of body fat, yet still managed to gain nearly half a kilo of muscle! The reading also showed an improvement in my left-right balance and a reduction in visceral fat. I achieved this simply by training on average 3 times a week while eating a diet of whole, unprocessed foods.

Improved Lifestyle, Knowledge + Confidence

Although I’m really pleased and fascinated by the body composition readings, what’s more important is that I achieved a completely invaluable knowledge and awareness of my own body. My time at Six3Nine has transformed the way that I train my body, as well as some aspects of my lifestyle.

I can now go into any gym and train with confidence that I know what I need to do for my body, and can experiment with different exercises and set-ups (however unconventional) until I find what is right for me.

I have an intense awareness of my own body. I can tell when I have eaten too much of the wrong foods, or too little of the right ones. I can detect little niggles and understand how to customise my workout to avoid injury. I can recognise the areas that I need to focus my training on and, importantly, I know when I just need to rest.

Six3Nine excels at helping people to realise their goals. When I arrived at the practice I didn’t have a single, solid goal; I wasn’t aiming to improve performance at a particular sport, lose weight or rehabilitate an injury. Instead I wanted to improve my aesthetic, get a little stronger, a little fitter, a little less stressed. What I didn’t realise at the time was that I was essentially seeking the tools to make constant improvements to my fitness and wellbeing, and that was exactly what I got.

Team Six3Nine understand that, for whatever reason, clients are going to move on from training at the practice at some point, and they want to ensure that these clients equipped with the best resources for long-term success. Not only are the team knowledgable, they’re genuinely keen to share their knowledge.

Thank you to the amazing, inspiring, lovely team at Six3Nine for inviting me to the practice, and a special thank you to Russ for all of your support!

If you’re interested in training at Six3Nine, contact the team to arrange a free consultation - it could be the best thing you ever do!

Wearing: Top - T K Maxx, Sports Bra - Fabletics, Leggings - Sweaty Betty