When the fireworks fizzle out on New Year’s Day, most of us start to make mental notes of what we want to achieve in the 365 days ahead.
January 1 is the perfect opportunity to plan career moves, set fitness goals, and draw up our big, ambitious blueprints for the future.
But none of that really went to plan this time around.
2020 well and truly put the cat amongst the pigeons – leaving all our imaginative to-do lists in tatters.
Very few of us have ended up where we imagined – and Meg Harbon is the perfect case in point.
If you’d told her in February that she’d soon be spending her working days inside a shipping container, she’d have laughed you out the room.
But here we are, riding the second wave of a global pandemic, and this former Pure Gym PT is leading training sessions from the confines of a steel cuboid in Pollard Yard.
Meg converted the container – titled ‘The Training Yard’ – into a makeshift fitness space when red tape was wrapped around the gyms back in spring; initially launching online sessions before inviting her clients inside when the lockdown lifted.
It’s proven to be a refreshingly unique kind of workout environment.
Free of prying eyes and shiny mirrors, The Training Yard is a spot where anxious clients can train without feeling self-conscious; but also where more experienced gymmers can take their sessions to a whole new level undistracted.
Meg was one of several local PT’s who launched their own fitness regime when the big gyms closed; but she also dedicated hours to building a document that ultimately turned into Manchester’s lockdown fitness bible.
At 69 pages, ‘Isolated Fitness’ is an absolute unit of a read – providing the kind of insightful, practical home training advice (with step-by-step instructions and images) that didn’t just carry locals through quarantine; but actually got them fitter and stronger.
The book is structured so readers can pick out their favoured exercises and work out the way they like; focusing on particular muscle groups or parts of the body.
And that’s exactly how Meg’s sessions function: She lets clients have a say in shaping their own fitness plans.
Many PTs take a somewhat unforgiving approach to training – with exercises, plans and diets all set in stone. Working out is exactly that: Work.
But Meg doesn’t quite see it that way.
“If you don’t enjoy it, you won’t do it,” she explains.
“I try to build a plan alongside people so they can achieve their goals, get a sweat on, but actually look forward to their sessions.
“For me, it’s about finding the best plan for the individual – so they can develop a healthy relationship with exercise.
“I want working out to be the best part of their day, not a chore.”
Meg understands how hard it can be to get into a productive fitness routine.
She spent over a decade working in hospitality, where alcohol, fatty foods and late nights were part and parcel of a standard evening.
It was only when Meg approached her third decade that she started exercising more regularly.
It began slowly, too. A run here. An exercise class there.
But it turned into something more serious when she started seeing results.
Recognising a transformation in her physical and mental health, Meg opted to turn her hobby into a career.
“It was mainly about changing habits,” Meg says, explaining her transition from night owl to early bird.
“We’re all habitual creatures. It’s just about establishing that routine.”
Patterns are a big part of Meg’s lockdown workout philosophy.
She looks after a wide range of clients all looking to achieve different things (packing on muscle, losing baby weight, trimming belly fat) – but the reason they’ve all seen success is down to their ability to weave workouts into their routine; so it becomes as normal as brushing your teeth or taking a shower.
“The hardest part for many people is actually doing it,” Meg says.
“Some people who step into the gym… they feel self-conscious. Some women are afraid to pick up weights. Others just feel a bit silly doing a new exercise for the first time.
“But when you’re at home or in the shipping container – it’s just you. You don’t have to worry about feeling stupid.”
People flocked to Meg’s online sessions during lockdown – where she helped her clients plan sessions around whatever equipment they had at home.
Dumbbells were like gold dust right throughout the summer – but Meg found a way around it by encouraging her clients to buy 5L water containers to use as substitute weights instead.
It’s proof that top training doesn’t have to be expensive to get results.
“Getting a sweat on during the day means you’ll sleep better at night, have more energy the next day, and just be equipped to tackle life’s challenges better,” Meg tells us.
“You’ll find you want to eat better, too, to improve your training.
“It makes such a huge difference – especially in this climate.”
According to Meg, as little as 20 minutes working out every few days can lead to results.
“Focus purely on exercise and shut out the world – even if it’s just for 20 minutes a couple of times a week.
“It can make such a huge difference.
“Sweat it out and you’ll see how much better you feel.”
Learn more about Charla Fitness – and grab a copy of the Isolated Fitness guide – here.
More info about the Training Yard – Meg’s shipping container exercise spot – is also available online.
Sport
Gymshark is opening its first standalone northern store in Manchester this weekend
Emily Sergeant
A huge new Gymshark store is opening in Manchester tomorrow, and it’s the brand’s first standalone store in the North.
The global sportswear and fitness brand will be setting up shop at the Trafford Centre and taking over a large 7,500 ft space on Upper Peel Avenue with all of its iconic Gymshark ranges, including the massively ‘Vital’ and ‘Power’ collections, as well as some exciting new exclusives for Gymshark Trafford Centre.
The store itself is said to have Gymshark’s ‘increasingly trademark’ look and feel throughout it, including mannequins that are created from the image of real people in the community, different destinations for its hero products, and spacious changing rooms with bespoke lighting.
Unfamiliar with Gymshark? Since it was founded by Ben Francis from his garage in 2012, the brand has gone on to become one of the UK’s greatest business success stories of the 21st century – with more than 20 million people across 200 countries now counting themselves as members of the Gymshark community.
Gymshark is opening its first standalone northern store in Manchester this weekend / Credit: Supplied
The new Trafford Centre will be Gymshark’s first standalone store in the UK outside of London, and follows recent openings in Dubai and Amsterdam, as well as coming ahead of the opening of Gymshark’s first flagship store in the US later this year.
Most importantly, it builds on the brand’s long association with Manchester, as one of the first-ever Gymshark meet-ups was in the city, as well as its first ‘Lift’ event post-COVID.
Gymshark also credits the public’s reception to its space inside Selfridges at the Trafford Centre as one of the driving forces behind its choice to open a permanent store within the shopping centre, calling it ‘nothing short of spectacular’ and adding that the new opening genuinely solidifies Manchester’s role as a ‘big brother’ to a Brummie brand.
“We’re thrilled to welcome Gymshark’s first Northern store to Trafford Centre this weekend, joining our growing athleisure and sportswear offering at the centre,” commented Simon Layton, who is the Centre Director at Trafford Centre.
“We have no doubt that Gymshark will prove immensely popular and can’t wait to welcome them on opening day.”
Gymshark is opening at the Trafford Centre tomorrow (Saturday 12 July) with a grand ribbon cutting at 10am, followed by goody bags, refreshments, and merch being handed out for those waiting in line.
There’ll also be different fitness challenges to take part in too, in true Gymshark spirit.
Featured Image – Trafford Centre
Sport
Explaining the ‘Poznań’ and why Oasis fans are doing it at their Live ’25 reunion tour gigs
Danny Jones
The sun is shining, Britpop is back on top and, more importantly, Oasis are BACK – plus, they’ve got thousands of people that aren’t even Manchester City fans doing the Poznań. Here’s why.
Before you jump down our throats, yes, we’re fully aware of what the popular Man City supporter celebration is (including the fact that it’s nicked); however, we have seen plenty of people confused over what it’s all about.
Including a few in our office who couldn’t give a monkey’s about football, which is fair enough.
So, if like lots of other non-footy-obsessed Oasis fans, you’ve also been wondering A) what the Poznań is and B) why people on the Live ’25 reunion tour have been doing it, here’s a brief explanation.
What is the Poznań celebration?
For starters, if you’ve been keeping off social media completely to avoid any spoilers whatsoever, first of all, well done, your willpower is much stronger than ours.
Secondly, if you’ve never seen it before at all, here’s what it looks like:
It came out of Poland, hailing from the place of the same name and popularised by Ekstraklasa (a.k.a. the Polish first division) football team, Lech Poznań, who have been doing it since the 1960s.
As you can see, the group – and in this case, stadium-wide celebration – sees supporters turning their backs on the pitch/the centre of the arena and linking by wrapping arms around each other’s shoulders and jumping up and down in one, massive, continuous wave.
It is quite a striking visual, no question about that.
Why are Oasis fans doing it?
Come on, you must have put two and two together by now.
Manchester City fans adopted this now iconic celebration more than a decade and a half ago, and have been doing it regularly during big games, big scorelines, and big trophy wins, of which there have been a lot since then.
In fact, aside from the Burnage boys being massive Blues, Liam Gallagher himself actually instructed the Cardiff crowds on nights one and two.
Gallagher brothers kick off Oasis world tour with Cardiff show, as Liam tells fans 'do the poznan'.
It’s actually said to originate from Turkey or Greece, where it is also fairly commonplace, being simply referred to as ‘la Grecque’.
They’ve even used some pretty biblical official photography from the opening weekend of the reunion tour as the cover art for a live recording re-released of ‘Slide Away’.
It might be the coolest album artwork we’ve seen in a while, to be honest.
The history of the Poznań and its connection to Man City
Be it at Wembley for a cup final or at the Etihad Stadium, where the majority of fans saw the supporter stunt for the first time, it’s become arguably even more synonymous with City than its creators.
It was 2010, and the blue half of Manchester was hosting Lech Poznań in the group stage of the Europa League, but despite a 3-1 victory on the grass itself, more eyes were fixed on the stands themselves.
An army of 6,000 loyal Lech Poznań fans travelled for the game and had the ground quite physically bouncing with a shade of slightly darker blue, so when Emmanuel Adebayor wrapped up a hat-trick, the home support decided to turn the jubilation on their opponents and do it themselves.
It was all in good spirit, of course, but it went down a pretty instant hit with City fans and has only grown more prevalent and regular ever since.
Perhaps one of the funniest sights in recent years is Noel Gallagher being too hungover to join in, which also led to one of the coldest-looking images of the songwriter ever, and one that was quickly dubbed a perfect album cover for the next High Flying Birds album or, who knows, maybe another Oasis record?…
Ok, this is still up there in the cover art competition too.
So, yeah: that’s pretty much the long and short of it, we just thought it would help if we quickly explained the Poznań to anyone wondering why Oasis fans have been doing it.
Basically, if it was that big over in Wales, don’t be surprised if you see a literal sea of people flood Heaton Park before turning their backs to the stage, which seems to be triggered once Liam introduces ‘Cigarettes & Alcohol.’ It’ll be interesting to see if Man United fans get involved.
And finally, just imagine how much more epic this is going to be back home in Manchester as we brace for quite possibly the biggest headline gig the region has ever seen…
The Manc -
30th November 2020 
