Celebrity personal trainer Sarah Lindsay shares weight lifting tips for an A-list body

A personal trainer who gets celebrities in shape has revealed why she makes A-listers lift heavy weights when they need quick results — and how it’s key to achieving a leaner physique.

Sarah Lindsay fans include Strictly Come Dancing pro Katya Jones, model Amy Jackson, presenters Nick Grimshaw, Vogue Williams and Graham Norton, singers Mel C and Paloma Faith, and Gossip Girl star Ed Westwick.

Former British speed skating champion and three-time Olympian, Lindsay owns gyms in London and Dubai – but you won’t find a single treadmill or cross trainer in sight.

She explains how heavy weights can be more beneficial than cardio and help anyone achieve their dream body in just 12 weeks.

Sarah, who specializes in body transformations, said: “Strength training can result in a higher metabolism.

“If you manage to gain muscle, even a few pounds, it will increase your metabolism, making it easier to get and stay lean — which is clearly what most people want.”

“Strength is easier to sustain than cardio training results, so strength training will benefit you in the long run.”

But she told FEMAIL why customers — especially women — often think weightlifting just makes them “bigger.”

She added: ‘Ultimately it’s very hard to add muscle and get ‘bigger’ as a result – people will spend years building a physique.

‘It’s just not easy, there are certain elements that you need to build muscle mass.

“You have to lift enough weight to challenge the muscles and stimulate enough to grow.

“Then you have to eat enough of the right things, at the right time, to help the muscle repair and grow — so to gain muscle you have to be mindful.”

‘You don’t just do that.

“You have to train very intensely for weeks – if not months – a few times a week, so it has to be deliberate, it won’t happen by accident.”

But she says lifting heavy weights the right way can actually make clients slimmer.

Instead of forcing people to do burpees, her PTs instead focus on shape and weightlifting — the heavier, the better.

Carbohydrates and sugar are not banned, but customers are encouraged to follow a high-protein diet, with all their macros worked out.

Sarah added: ‘Food plays a big part in our contribution to our own health because it’s something we have control over.

“I try to eat as naturally as possible and make my own food unless I eat out, and encourage celebrities to do the same.

“Customers still enjoy all the good stuff – pasta, desserts, champagne, but in moderation and with portion control.

“If you have a great social life, you don’t always have control over what you eat, but how much.”

Made in Chelsea star Sophie Hermann told MailOnline: ‘Training with Sarah is like switching from ready-to-wear to haute couture.

‘It’s another level. I’ve been training for 10 years – PTs and classes – but no one comes close to my personal Lara Croft and her meticulously tailored sessions.

“I’ve seen results after only a few weeks with her, which motivates me so much more than dragging myself to a trainer or classes where I see a hint of six months from now.”

Graham Norton said he ‘feels fitter than ever’ after completing the programme, while Nick Grimshaw said strength training was now ‘an important part of his life’.

The ex-Radio One DJ added: “They have made me feel stronger, healthier and more focused than ever.”

Fashion designer Henry Holland, who completed the Roar program before and after the lockdown, attributed the gym to improving his physical and mental health.

Lindsay added: ‘You don’t always have to be motivated and it’s unrealistic to expect that of yourself, but consistency is key – so you have to be disciplined about showing up.

“Our health is everything and I always think about longevity. My grandmother was almost 101 when she recently died, but she was playing sports in the garden with me at the age of 97.”