MEET THE FITNESS 12 RETREAT TEAM

A professional fitness trainer for fifteen years, the Mirror.co.uk's health and lifestyle guru has an extensive client list consisting of many famous and influential people from the world of show business and industry. Steve spent time working in Hollywood and this success helped him develop the Fitness 12 Retreats at La Manga Club.

Steve is a Garmin Ambassador and has worked on a wide range of projects ranging from QPR women’s football team fitness coach, to designing a training routine for Cancer Research.org.uk. He has written for many magazines, online news and appeared in various television programmes.

After trials at Everton F.C, he became a semi-pro footballer and is now a keen cyclist and runner. He has taken part in many 10k, half-marathons, the 2005 London Marathon and the 2008 London Duathlon. At the moment he is in training for the infamous 2010 Etape cycling race in France and is taking part in various Triathlons as part of his rigorous training routine.

Tim competed at the first Olympic triathlon in 2000 where he came in tenth. In the second Olympic triathlon in 2004 he was placed eighteenth. However, in Lausanne in 2006, Tim became World Champion. He smashed it, finishing 17 seconds in front of second place. Following the swim, he was in the lead group on the bike but missed the initial break.He bridged the gap alone and caught the lead group on lap 5 out of 6. Then took the lead along with Carter on the run, breaking clear about halfway through. Tim also won the 2007 London Triathlon in a time of 1hr 42min 1sec on 5 August 2007.

Tim remains one of the most colorful characters of the Triathlon world. A relaxed athlete, he once astounded the experts when he and Greg Bennett ran away from a field containing the best duathletes on the planet, Tim chatting and laughing alongside the world's number one tri-athlete as they crushed the opposition, before Tim’s power laid the way for a famous solo victory.

With the “new breed” of British tri-athletes coming through, Tim has become a father of the sport but don’t be fooled. Tim’s drive, enthusiasm and motivation to achieve are still there for all to see, bring on London 2012.

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For more than 20 years, Spencer Smith was one of the world's top professional triathletes—successful in all distances (sprint, Olympic, ½ Ironman, and Ironman). When you sign up with F12TRI, you gain the advantage of having a coach who knows the complexities of a multi-sport discipline.

Spencer has won over half of all the races he has ever started a phenomenal statistic that is almost unparalleled in world sport.

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Dan Bullock has been coaching since 1990. He is a keen swimmer and triathlete who has helped thousands get fit and fast for adventures from their first novice triathlon to the swimming of the Channel. Dan's accolades include being National Masters Champion (2008,9,10 both in the Pool and Open-water), a British AG Record Holder (800m), European and World Pool and Open-water Masters Medalist and is a Double-Iron man finisher. His sessions are a great mixture of flawless skill, infectious motivation and general amenability. As well as teaching people how to move effortlessly and efficiently in the water, he’s a 9 year student of Bikram yoga and has swum inside of 45mins for 3.8km.

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After completing his MSc, where he gained a distinction, Roberto underwent his BASES (British Association of Sport and Exercise Scientists) Accreditation, under the guidance of his psychology mentor, Dr Costas Karageorghis of Brunel University. He is now studying for his Doctorate on the Applied Psychological Effects of Video in Sport.

For more than 20 years, Roberto has been involved in coaching and performance in professional sport. A recognised authority on the psychology of performance, group dynamics and tennis psychology. Roberto is a regular speaker on a variety of performance related topics around the world and holds many lecturing positions. He is a consultant with a Premiership football team and the LTA, where he remains working closely with British Number one, Andrew Murray.

Matt’s roots are firmly entrenched in both fitness consultancy and Mountain Biking. He has competed at Pro/Elite level as a Mountain biker, and having 10 years experience working in Men’s Fitness Magazine. Taking his own experiences as an athlete, combining that with the Honours degree in Sports Science, Matt set up TORQ.

The team at TORQ has developed a range of performance nutrition products offering the highest standard of support. TORQ critically analyze every product, and then improve upon them every little detail without compromise.

Matt absolutely refuses to use ingredients that are not derived from a NATURAL source, or don’t naturally occur within the human body. He is firmly of the opinion that artificial ingredients like sweeteners offer no performance advantage and could potentially harm you. Every ingredient we use is included to the levels recommended by available research. Matt, like Fitness 12 Retreats, doesn’t cut any corners or accept any compromise in the pursuit of excellence.

Nigel is Performance Director for Optima-life. He is a Sports Scientist with a background in elite sports physiology and biomechanics. After graduating with a First Class Honours Degree in Sport Science in 1990, he combined further study (for a Masters) with lecturing and coach education work. His research work not only earned him a Fellowship of the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust but also a Young Investigator of the Year Award from the International Society of Biomechanics in Sport. A five year stint at Lilleshall Sports Injury and Human Performance Centre followed. During this time Nigel provided physiological support for the National Football, Cricket, Rugby League and Hockey squads as well as leading stars from the world of professional Tennis, Athletics and Windsurfing. It was during his time at Lilleshall that Nigel also became BASES Accredited in both Physiology and Biomechanics.

Taking on the role of Performance Director for Optima-life in 2009, Nigel is firmly establishing the company's position in the worlds of elite sport and corporate performance. Relishing an opportunity to combine his knowledge as a scientist with his skills as a coach, in the diverse worlds of sport, health and wellness, Nigel is keen to further explore the numerous potential applications of the optima-life products incorporating First beat technology.

Outside of work Nigel's interests remain mainly with sport and exercise, including a keen interest in racquet sports, an avid interest in golf and a slightly more relaxed approach to mountain biking and other (relatively short) endurance events.

Natalie graduated from the University of Kwa Zulu, Natal in South Africa in 2006 with an undergraduate degree in Sports Science and post graduate honours degree in Biokinetics. She specialises in exercise therapy and her focus is on improving the individual's physical status and quality of life in the dual context of clinical pathology (acute and chronic) and performance enhancement.

Natalie worked in health and wellness in South Africa for many years before moving to the UK and is also a qualified Sports Massage Practitioner and Pilates Instructor.
Natalie is also the lead HealthPod Lifestyle Consultant at the Hospital of St John & St Elizabeth.

She is an adventure sports enthusiast and particularly enjoys wakeboarding, scuba diving and mountain biking.

Mat is a hugely experience cyclist and triathlete who has been editor of Cycling Plus, Triathlon Plus, and 220 Triathlon magazines in the past, as well as working on the staff of various other bike publications. These days, when he’s not leading Fitness 12’s rides he spends most of his time working as a freelance journalist employed by various cycling and triathlon magazines and websites, so he’s out testing the latest bikes and gear every day of the year. He also works as a personal trainer with a whole range of different clients, and is a qualified sports massage therapist.

As well as taking part in many triathlons and sportives, Mat recently completed a 330km (206 mile) ride in the Pyrenees , including 6,000m of climbing, in a single day to mark the centenary of the first time the Tour de France went into the high mountains.

Pavlina brings a wealth of experience and specialist knowledge to the F12 Team. She is a skilled Nutritional Therapist, Detox Specialist and an authority in Personal Fitness. She has completed a University Degree and Post-graduate in Exercise Science and has achieved a professional qualification in Nutritional Therapy. She is currently in the process of completing yet another BSc in Nutritional Sciences where she is carrying out research into the physiology of various detoxification pathways and how these processes could be improved.

Pavlina uses nutritional strategies and detoxification principles, tailored to her client’s individual needs, to support the process of detoxification and reinstate optimal health. Her nutritional approach is based on the functional model, which looks at how different body systems interact and affect each other. Through identifying specific areas for improvement and correcting imbalances, she strives to restore wellbeing and improve physical functioning on all levels.

During her career, expanding for more than a decade, she has successfully helped countless people to change their lifestyle, exercise and nutritional habits for the better. As the Director of Bodyworkz Wellbeing, a dedicated health consultancy, Pavlina manages a busy nutrition clinic offering one-to-one consultations to private and corporate clients and also runs various nutrition related talks and workshops.