Biography

Name: Barbara Latimer
Occupation: Event Host, Presenter, Performer, Boxing Instructor
Age: 28
Height: 1.58m
Weight: 57kg
Personal Trainer: Alex Salihin
Time with Level: Since March 2019

As an event host and presenter, Barbara has been heavily involved in the sports scene.  She is also a boxing instructor, and most recently became a SportSingapore ambassador. When she isn’t busy with all that, you can find her training, twice a week, at Level, where she has been working with her personal trainer, Alex Salihin, since March 2019.

There were a few things Barbara wanted to achieve through personal training – she wanted to build her overall strength, reduce body fat and gain muscle mass. She was also hoping to strengthen her back after suffering from a stress fracture in her L4/L5.

“Training at Level has definitely helped me create an acute sense of balance when it comes to managing my workouts. Prior to joining, my routine would be 75% boxing, 25% anything else. Now I manage a good balance between strength, boxing and yoga.”

Alex developed a personal training programme that would help Barbara attain her goals, while bearing in mind her previous back injury. For example, he introduced paused squats, an isometric exercise that reinforces positioning, especially for individuals who have back issues. He also took into account her current exercise regime and included front foot elevated split squats (a unilateral movement that deals with stability and mobility) which would help with her Muay Thai.

“I think the biggest difference is my mindset towards my training regime.

I used to shy away from heavy weights, not because I thought they’d make me big, but they were just downright intimidating. Plus with a history of back problems, the automatic mindset is that weights would do more harm than good. Things couldn’t be more different now.”

Given her experience, Alex knew that Barbara was no stranger to High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) and incorporated time on the Airdyne into her workout – something he wouldn’t introduce to complete beginners in the gym.

In the last nine months, Barbara has seen vast improvements in her overall strength. For someone who could barely do a back squat or deadlift given her back injury, she can now back squat 68kg and complete three reps of deadlifts at 72kg. She has also developed a stronger core and can hold a Copenhagen plank for 30 seconds.

“I appreciate technicality, sustainability and practical functionality, which is exactly what Level provides.”

“I’ve been training there on the regular since March 2019, and the results show for themselves. It’s not hard for others to see the benefits and want in on it too.”