CYCLING CHAMP KEEPS CITY IN TRIM

Those sleekly suited legal eagles of the City don’t just stay young and beautiful on a diet of slim pickings and exquisite deals. Follow them from their offices, quite a few speeding off on bicycles, and you will find them heading down into a subterranean labrynth in Hatton Garden, where they come under the influence of Graham Sharman and his team.

This erstwhile antipodean and one-time silver medallist in the world cycling championships runs The Gym here along lines tailored to individual needs rather than upon a Charles Atlas-style bodybuilding regime (look up Atlas on Wiki if you are too young to know).

No lesser cycling giant than Sir Chris Hoy recognises Sharman’s talent.

“I’ve trained and raced with Graham for many years,” says Hoy, in one of a long list of impressive testimonials. “Coupled with the knowledge he has gained as a world class sportsman, he has truly unique skill to help you reach your goals.”

Sharman won his Silver Medal at the World Championships in 1998 and has a string of others successes.  In recent years he has been concentrating upon building up his gym business but is now itching to get back on the saddle. “Certainly by next year,” he says, recognising that he has some extra training to do.

He arrived on these shores some ten years ago from Australia where he was brought up, but was born in London. At something of a loose end after his World Championship success, he came here to join his banker brother and just sort of fell into the gym/training sector.

Top, trainer Graham Sharman; above, deep massage provided by Viva Therapies; below, Raquel Vaccioli, who heads up Viva; and bottom, one of the gym rooms for personal sessions.

“I worked for another gym for a while but then started up my own personal training business in 200. I hadn’t got a clue really, about starting a business, finding premises, planning laws, buying equipment, and all that, and I didn’t have any money.”

Undaunted by these minor details, and with the help of some existing clients, he started off  at premises by the Thames and, largely by word-of-mouth, soon had a loyal following among City gents keen to improve their physique. His present site within London’s diamond district of Hatton Garden is handily placed for these clients.

“They come for various reasons,” he says, “some to lose weight, some to improve their looks, some to feel fitter, stronger. We build up a long term relationship, geared to the individual needs.”

He is rather more qualified than your average gym instructor. As a top level athlete himself, he has always taken a keen interest in the methods and directions given by coaches – and their effects on his own body.  He knows what does and doesn’t work, whether it is for other top athletes, like world champion rower Colin Smith, or someone like Dee Wood, who had had a ski accident and was told he probably wouldn’t walk properly again.

To complement his efforts, his soon-to-be bride, Raquel Vaccioli, lovely lady from Brazil (where the nuts come from )  runs her own massage and beauty business, Viva Therapies, from the same place. This is also very much a bespoke service, with Vaccioli and her team providing treatments for hotel guests and in private homes, strictly on a one-to-one basis.

Glowing references from a raft of hotels, including the Intercontinental, the Dorchester and the Atheneaum, vouch for her special skills, where she has treated such star guests as Ridley Scott.

“I set up my own business in 2008," she says, " and now have a 40-strong team of fully qualified massage therapists, beauty specialists and hairdressers ready at half hour notice to attend clients wherever they may be."

“The majority of our customers are men,” she says.”Either at the hotels or in luxury homes in London.

"Massages are the most popular treatment but more men are becoming interested in beauty treatments, in facials for example. And particularly in demand are haircuts. It saves time for top businessmen to have a haircut in their hotel room rather than having to go out for one. Time is important.”

The couple’s future plans are somewhat dominated by their marriage, to take place in Brazil in December, with family and friends flying in from around the globe. But another important task on the horizon is to find new premises as the lease of their present place expires next year. It will stay close enough to still be handy for its City clients. www.thegymhattongarden.com and vivatherapies.com