Core Values

How are those New Year's resolutions coming on? Stopped smoking? On the wagon? Lost weight? Well of course not but you mean well. Starting - or sticking to a diet and exercise programme is so hard at this gloomy time of year. And that expensive gym membership looks a bad idea when you're sharing sweaty changing rooms to the sound of ear-splitting disco music and your office reeks of damp training clothes and smelly shoes. So it's a welcome relief to find an alternative in Core, a small, quiet exercise studio with fresh air, natural light and the wonderful new Power Plate machines that can work magic with surprisingly little effort. You'll have seen ads for these machines in all the glossies before Christmas but frankly who, other than Madonna and Elle Macpherson, has room for a private gym at home? The whole body vibration training offered by these machines will strengthen muscles, enhance metabolism, increase bone-density and improve circulation, resulting, hopefully, in a lean, toned and firm body. The Core studio suggests 25-minute supervised sessions either by yourself or in small groups of three maximum. You wear comfortable clothes with socks or just bare feet so no vile trainers. Core is dedicated to overall wellness and offers massage therapy, one-to-one jetlag treatment, and advice on nutrition and supplements as well as Power Plate training. The studio promises an attractive package of strength, vitality, health, privacy and exclusivity. What more could you want? Sessions cost £60 for 3, £100 for 5, £200 for 10, and there's a year's unlimited pass for £1,700. If you have invested in your own machine, Core can arrange tuition and training in your home or office at whatever time suits you. Core, Studio 03, 98 Wardour Street, Soho, London W1, 020 7494 9469; www.corelondon.com