Tag Archive for: Menopause fitness

The HIIT Workout Workshop

/in /by

High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) can be a valuable part of every woman’s workout week. For peri- and post-menopausal women, it’s close to essential.

But it sounds a little intimidating right?

  • What’s involved?
  • How can I modify the workout to match my fitness level?
  • Can I do a HIIT workout at home?
  • How often should I do HIIT and what benefits will it bring to me?

The answers to these questions are best presented in a practical setting, one in which you can try things for yourself.  Read on to find out more about this workout workshop…

Where: Movéo Fitness Studio,

2 Touraine Close, Constantia, Cape Town

In this space dedicated to women’s health, you’ll find energy and motivation to do something amazing for your physical and mental well-being.

The Studio is a private, peaceful sanctuary and the perfect space in which to take time to move; to move in the moment and to move forward with intention.

When: Saturday 3 May 2025

Doors will open at 08:30 and we start at 09:00.

For whom: women

Women seeking to optimise their health and well-being as they move towards and transition through their menopause and age with grace. This workshop is intended for those who are curious to know if HIIT is right for them; for those who want to experience it for the first time in a safe and supportive environment.

What you will do: move with purpose

The workout is a form of interval training. The class is structured in a way that meets you where you are today and challenges you by just the right amount. You’ll be able to complete each exercise at an intensity, complexity and duration that works for you, with your instructor, Deborah, on hand to guide you.

There will be a comprehensive warm-up, a gentle and progressive cooldown, and that wonderful moment at the end when you walk off your mat tired but energised.

There’ll be time for healthy refreshments, and to ask questions and learn more about the many benefits this form of training will bring to you.

Leave with: the best feeling

  • energy and a wonderful sense of achievement
  • the power to support your health, to manage your menopausal symptoms, to remain vital as you age
  • the awareness that while as a woman you are unique in your hormonal journey, you are not alone in making it
  • an invitation to join a HIIT class at Movéo Fitness before 30 June 2025

The investment: time and energy

  • 2 hours
  • energy and curiosity
  • R650
  • a water bottle, sweat towel and post-workout layer
  • if you own one, please wear your heart rate monitor – if you don’t, just bring your heart

Take your place

Movéo Fitness’s Studio really is small and private, and spaces on the workshop are limited to six. Contact us today to reserve your space and look forward to moving with purpose.

Terms & Conditions

  1. Payment in full is required to secure your place on The HIIT Workout Workshop. Payment instructions will be provided at the time of booking.
  2. Once confirmed, we require 48 hours’ notice if you can no longer attend the workshop, at which point you will be fully refunded.
  3. Cancellation after 9am on Thursday 1 May 2025 will incur a 100% cancellation fee.
  4. The HIIT Workout Workshop will go ahead with three or more participants booked to attend.
  5. Should Movéo Fitness need to cancel, postpone or reschedule the workshop, for whatever reason, all registered participants will receive a 100% refund and a 25% discount to attend the next or similar event.

Deborah Savin-Curnier: personal trainer

founder of Movéo Fitness

Deborah is an internationally qualified Personal Training with a Masters in Exercise & Nutrition Science and specialist certifications in corrective exercise and women’s fitness. She is passionate about the therapeutic benefits of exercise in the management of menopausal symptoms and the safeguarding of health and wellness in older age.

Deborah has created the Movéo Fitness Studio, a small private space in the Southern Suburbs of Cape Town devoted to the health and wellness of women.

Step Aerobics 2.0

/in /by

How it all began

Step aerobics emerged in the late 80s and peaked in popularity in the mid-90s with an estimated 11 million people participating in classes regularly. Gin Miller, an aerobics instructor looking to rehab her knee injury, is credited with its invention. True or not, her partnership with Reebok Step was the platform (pardon the pun) that created the buzz around this cardio craze.

But like all crazes, it had its day and was pushed into the background as the next “big thing” in fitness took centre-stage. After all, why would the fitness industry be different to any other industry in that respect?

Back in the day I was teaching 4 or 5 classes a week and attending more besides – the size of my calves testimony to this! Instructor or participant, I loved the atmosphere, the synchronicity of the group, the smiles on everyone’s faces, and the music with its perfect tempo. But it was the creativity in the movement and the endless possibilities when it came to building a routine that got me hooked.

Back in the limelight

Fast forward to today, and step classes are making a comeback—minus the thong leotards! But my excitement isn’t just about reliving my twenties, it’s what we’ve learnt over the last 30 years that makes Step’s return so welcome.

Step is a cardio-strength workout that can be low or high impact, medium or vigorous intensity. It will move you in all three planes of motion and demand some mental focus too. It’s a “multi-vitamin” when it comes to delivering health benefits.

Heart health at its core

As a cardio workout, Step can be modified to meet you at your current fitness level and challenge you in a way that builds on this. It will improve your heart health and lower your risk of heart disease, especially important during and post menopause when we lose the heart-protective benefits of oestrogen.

Brain boosting

Research suggests a strong connection between leg strength and cognitive health. Well-choreographed step routines will engage every major muscle in the lower body, enhancing both physical and mental health.

Bone protective

In time you can add impact and intensity to your workout, positive stress that will strengthen your bones. You’ll be training you balance and agility too, lowering your risk of a fall.

Muscle, the organ of longevity

When fashions return, they often do so with a twist, and this is certainly true for the Step revival. The twist is that classes are now including strength-specific training to create an even more rounded workout.

Movéo Fitness’s “twist” happens around minute 45 when the pace slows, the Step becomes a workout bench and the focus shifts to muscle strength.

There is strong (oops!) evidence linking muscle mass/strength with longevity. But it’s not just about living longer, it’s about living better for longer. Your muscles support your body in so many ways, helping it to remain in optimal health or get back there as quickly as possible.

The feel-good factor

Step comes with a healthy dose of endorphins, improving your mood and reducing feelings of stress and anxiety. Plus, moving with people you can connect with and feel supported by will enhance your emotional well-being and add to your sense community.

Join us

Movéo Fitness runs a Step n Strength class every Friday at 11am. Join this group of wonderful women, move in sync with them and know that you’re doing something truly amazing for your body, your mind and your soul.