Best for…Getting pert breasts and toned arms

Active Isolated Stretching (AIS)—an exercise technique just arrived in the UK from Hong Kong—is the least hard work way of toning the 17 back, neck, and chest muscles that directly lift your breasts and the 14 you use to move your arms.  So says Ellie Gonzalez, of Stretch London gym which specializes in AIS therapy.  It’s a muscle-by-muscle stretching method that’s taught one on one.  Runner Paula Radcliffe’s instructors got her into it to lengthen muscles shortened by training.  The upper body contains over 65 percent of our 600 muscles, but its often ignored by women because they think they’ll have to do macho weights, says Gonzalez.  AIS works all these muscles, but far more gently.  The aim is to get the muscle flexing correctly, and learn how to move in your daily life.

So what’s the visible effect?  Within a few weeks, the four pectoral chest muscles and the eight major muscles on each arm will begin to visibly lift, and that will lift your breasts too.  We do 10 repetitions per muscle and we can work out the whole body in two hours.  A complete upper body session including postural assessment, takes about 90 minutes.

How often do I need to do it?

You’ll need two sessions a week until you’ve learned the movements, then you can do it at home.  For more, call 020 7034 3340 or email info@stretchasia.com.  Or try Stretch Your Life by Tim Noonan and Chris Watts (SDV Media) available via Stretch London.