Cannot rate Paul Whitrod's teaching highly enough. He lives what he's learnt, spending every day…read moretrainging and teaching. As such, it's a pleasure to learn from him. Given that he's mastered so many styles of martial arts, from China, India and Thailand, there will be something here for everyone. I started learning his Southern Mantis style before moving to Xing Yi, and this suits me and my body much better. The classes are quite intense and cost much less if you pre-book a lot at a time. But for anyone interested in Martial Arts in London, I don't think they could do much better than to look here. I can't rate this highly enough

Bill Judd opened KO Kickboxing over thirty years ago. In that time he has trained the likes of…read moreMadonna, Pink and numerous World Champions. KO is a force in Muay Thai boxing and the Bethnal Green gym is well respected. Training is physically demanding and respect must be shown at all times, to instructors and fellow students. In return for your hard work, the gym operates like a family and you can expect vociferous support if you take the ultimate challenge and fight for the club. You will never be pushed to fight though and Thai boxing is a sensational way to keep fit and build self-confidence. KO is a full-time gym. It is open everyday and along with the full size boxing ring, you'll find kick bags and all the equipment you need to get started.

This is a great gym to study Muay Thai. The only reason I…read morestopped goin to this place was because my new job clashed with the gym time table. The instructor here is called Bill. I don't know much about his professional career, but I know he was a champion muay that fighter, and he is a good teacher. One tip from me if you start to go here regularly is invest in your own equipment! In the beginning I did not have my own gloves, so I had to use their public gloves.... they were all sweat drenched, and trust me, it takes ages before you can wash the stench of sweat off your hands! Same goes for the shin guard... they were so wet with sweat that they soaked through my nike jogging bottoms! Also, be careful if ur a newbie. It seems that Bill makes it a point to "demonstrate" on newbies, showing them how powerful Muay Thai is by using his "weak" left leg to kick you "lightly" on your arm... hurts pretty bad! lol. But dnt worry, we have all been there... its like a right of passage.

I am training Southern Mantis Chow Gar Kung Fu with Sifu Paul Whitrod since last April it's very…read moregood for self defence and building strength and of course confidence. Come and join us on every Mondays and Wednesdays 19:00 20:00 and Saturday 12:00 13:00 hours. It's great fun! Ps: there are other martial arts classes here too!

It is like walking on to the set of a Rocky film. If you want a plush, shiny gymnasium to try out…read moreyour new spandex pants, this is not the place. The décor is worn out and old, but remembering you are here to train and not hold a dinner party you can focus on the tuition. The classes are taught by an ex boxing champion and you can tell by his in-depth knowledge of the boxing profession. These sessions are not for wannabe champions but for those who want to get fit and get fit quickly. Boxing is a fantastic way to do this. You practice all the punches on bags and pads and don't lay a finger on one another, so don't worry about getting hurt. Boxing London is a fantastic class that gets you fit, builds confidence and gives you a pair of guns to be proud of. Great class for men and women.

Proper old school boxing gym. The training is hard, ruthless but yet comfortable. No…read moreOnes going to push you to spar untill you're ready, and everyone is extremely helpful and friendly. It can be quite nerve racking when you first enter a gym like this, but after meeting Enzo (the owner) he will make you feel right at home. There's no heating or air conditioning, just the heat of people boxing to warm the place up, and windows to call the place down. The lights flicker from people running about and punching bags. It's definitely not a place for time wasters, just for people who want to get fit fast and learn the art of boxing. If you want to go past the boxercise side of things you can enter the ring and learn to box properly from excellent coaches. If your a beginner then go on a Monday, Tuesday, Thursday or at the weekend. Wednesday and Friday are more hardcore. Give Enzo a call and he will make you feel welcome. Anyone is welcome here! Yes boy

I have attended The Escrima Club since they first opened, 6 lessons in and i am thoroughly enjoying…read moreit. I was a little bit concerned as i am female, most martial arts clubs i have attended before seem to be macho affairs, this however was a lot different. The instructors are very friendly and helpful and the gym has a very nice and relaxed atmosphere in the hustle and bustle of London Fields. The instructors ensure that students are comfortable at all times and there is always a lot of attention on students learning, which i really appreciate. Escrima for those who are not sure is a weapons martial art, however, i have since learned that everything we do with weapons we also do unarmed, so this was an added bonus for me. I am loving learning this and cannot recommend this highly enough.

Moved to London - check! Found a new nest in Limehouse -…read morecheck! Stocked up on booze - check! Signed up for a gym - ............. check!! Being new to this land of strange English vocabulary and fried chicken at every block, I needed to find a new place to get my eye-of-the-tiger fitness on! Especially working at Canary Wharf there were so many places to choose from! HOW TO CHOOSE! Well... I can tell you what's important for me: Price: Some of these gym prices in London could be mistaken for home mortgages... Douchebags: You know these guys... they walk around the gym acting like they own it while they chat with people or use their phone whilst hogging 3 machines at a time... I need a place with as LEAST number of d-bags as possible Screamers: Keep calm and scream less... says the queen. I'm not a fan of super serious places where people need to scream and grunt as they lift weights too heavy for them Ooooooohhhhmmmmmmmmm.... Ooooooohhhhmmmmmmm - Love me some Yoga. I need some classes to get my downward dog ON! Alternative Workouts: I really like to diversify my workouts so the more kettlebells, trx, rings, plyo, etc stuff a gym has, the better! After going through these criteria, the best choice in my area was........... ..............drum roll please......... Limehouse Marina Elite (which I shall now refer to as LiME) The price is a little higher than I wanted and after telling the gym this, we worked together to find a price that was agreeable for both of us. Now with the unpleasantries of price negotiation out of the way, I can tell you some things about this gym: Electronic keypad locks (hallelujah I don't have to bring a lock with me) Towels provided (again hallelujah I don't have to bring a towel with me!) can you sense my laziness here... Fingerprint entry (last hallelujah and a throw-my-hands-in-the-air AMEN I don't have to bring a pass with me) By now, my extreme laziness is fully transparent At the busiest times, I think I've seen maybe 20 people in there... so it's a PERFECT size almost family-like gym. Sometimes I have the entire gym to myself! WEEEEEEEEEE!!!!! This place is always squeaky clean and has all new shizzle for me to get on my fitness fizzle The oh so zen locker room area has nature sounds, plenty of lockers (this is a big problem for some gyms), always smells like tea tree (instead of being forced to smell the hard labors of others), nice showers and of course a nice steam and sauna room to relax those muscles after a hard workout! I would say more things I like about this gym, but I think it's time to get off my lazy ass and work up a sweat over at LiME!!