STRENGTH & CARDIO SESSIONS

First up, how about a breath of fresh air in Sittingbourne? Fit Yard offers functional indoor and outdoor training, far from the typical gym grind. Its diverse class line-up includes YardFit, blending strongman-style exercises with cardio; Build, a strength-focused programme designed around four-week progression; Engine, high-intensity sessions to boost endurance; and a Saturday Hyrox class tailored to competition-style training. Prefer to go at your own pace? Open Gym access allows for flexible solo workouts, with every session scalable, supportive and set against the backdrop of the Kent countryside.

If you’ve struggled to stick to a workout routine, Top to Toe Fitness offer Small Group Personal Training and classes in Faversham. Designed for busy lifestyles, their programme encourages sustainable habits through structured training, with expert guidance from Charlotte Shaw and team at Macknade. Known locally for helping clients feel stronger, more energised and confident with FiTHiiT classes, beginners LIFT sessions and strength coaching focused on long-term results.

Sarah Best FindurFit fitness instructor lifting weights HIIT workout

Sarah Best, founder of FindUrFit and winner of the Best Fitness Instructor at the Muddy Awards 2026, helps midlife women build strength with realistic 15-minute workouts designed to fit around their busy lives. Get strong, stay consistent, enjoy your holidays, and head into September feeling on track rather than starting over! Get signed up to Summer Fitness Bites programme, starting 20 July. Short, effective online workouts created by Sarah Best, winner of Best Fitness Instructor in Kent – get your first month half price (just £12.50) using code SUMMER50.

There’s so much to explore at Kingdom in Penshurst with bootcamp classes, yoga, cold plunges and sauna, plus a fab café to boot when you need to refuel. MZ9’s Nature Gym sits deep within Kingdom’s surrounding woodland, offering outdoor fitness with bootcamp and personal training. Why not join their 6 Week Start? It’s a great package that includes unlimited training, nutrition support and 1-1 accountability. Kingdom also offers a wonderfully inclusive weekly Parkrun, every Saturday morning, and it’s free. Walkers, joggers, runners and volunteers are welcome with no time pressures and no last-place finishers.

Or if you prefer to be on the water to keep fit SUP With Us (Teston Country Park, Maidstone & Tonbridge), is your go-to destination for all things stand up paddleboarding. As well as lessons this summer there is a morning Floating Sound Bath on 26 July (£30), and planned Social night-time Paddles where you can cruise through the town from Tonbridge’s Lower Castle Field with fairy lights and head torches (it’s free for those with boards). See their events page for date tbc.

PILATES & YOGA

If you fancy something a little bit slower, overlooking the beautiful views at Kingdom, Flourish Wellness provides transformational classes, workshops, experiences and retreats for your body, mind and soul. Join a floating soundscape, half-day Yoga Retreats and sound bath sessions on the roof.

Wellness meets movement and mindful restoration at Muddy Finalist VWell Studio, in Hythe where a growing programme of events and new weekly classes invites you to reset both body and mind. Look at their 2026 schedule for regular sessions in Pilates, Yoga, Fitness including TotalTone, ZenFit & ChairFit classes, Dance and holistic meditation.

Get some some well-deserved self-care at Muddy fave MyTime Pilates, also in Penshurst, members of the Polestar training programme. A packed weekly timetable is designed to help you reset, recharge and move well. From gentle Stretch & Mat Pilates and beginner sessions to Dynamic Pilates, Pilates Flow and specialist Reformer classes, including Early Riser workouts, postnatal Mother & Baby Pilates and even Reformer just for men. Alongside the regulars, keep an eye out for monthly guided meditation sessions. This summer there is Open Studio Equipment classes on 23 and 27 July, 13, 17 & 20 Aug, Teen Mat-Based Pilates Workshop on 19 Aug, Teen Reformer on 5 Sep and Intro to Reformer on 24 and 29 July, 20th Aug. Plus Pilates & Soundbath Experience on Sat 29 Aug.

Movement coach Carolyn Atkins has 27 years’ experience across fitness, pilates and yoga, and is on a mission to make movement and wellbeing feel accessible, realistic and genuinely life-enhancing. Her regular classes are based at Manor Clinic in Sevenoaks or at her home garden studio, with additional classes at Chevening Church Hall.

How about Yoga with Goats, (no really) at Princess Christian’s Farm, Tonbridge on 11 July. This playful, nature‑immersed yoga + qigong session is followed by deep rest and sound healing.

Or ease into golden hour at Chapel Down with Sunset Yoga, a blissful blend of movement and wine set among the vines. Taking place on 26 Aug, the experience begins with a calming one-hour yoga session (either out in the vineyard or overlooking it from the beautiful Wine Sanctuary), before flowing seamlessly into a relaxed, tutor-led tasting of five Chapel Down wines. £35pp, just remember to bring your own mat.

If you’re feeling depleted and need a reset the Yang to Yin Workshop in Sevenoaks on 27 Aug is maybe just the tonic. Head to the Quadrangle, Shoreham Road for the two hour qigong/yoga session ending with deep rest and sound healing.

WOMEN’S HEALTH

Nathalie Romain and Dr Diane Biondini co-founders of The Nest Wellness Hub in West Wickham

The Nest in West Wickham is a new lifestyle‑medicine‑focused centre powered by women and co‑founded by a GP and a practicing solicitor who is also a registered reflexologist. Their clinical expertise, lived experience, and a deep understanding of personal transformation has created a holistic space where they offer wellness consultations and tailored reflexology. For pop-up event dates follow their socials.

Struggling with leaks, heaviness, pelvic floor tension or pain in midlife? Carolyn Atkins’ based in Sevenoaks offers six-week Pelvic Floor Restore programme (late summer dates tbc), is your go-to plan to rebuild strength, improve bladder control, and feel more confident. Designed specifically for women navigating menopause and beyond, this supportive, judgement-free programme helps you understand symptoms and how to improve them. Through a combination of targeted pelvic floor training, full-body strength work, breath practice and education around nutrition, supplements & stress, you’ll learn how to support your body. Get in touch to register future interest.

RETREATS

Set on the Isle of Sheppey, Elmley Nature Reserve offers the experience to view vast skies, abundant wildlife and rich heritage – plus there are beautifully designed places to stay. Alongside its signature escapes, they offer popular Self-Guided Wellbeing Retreat Packages, various dates available through 2026. Enjoy a two-night stay in a hut or cabin, all breakfasts and dinners, an indulgent Elmley Signature Treatment using Votary and Verden products, plus a personalised walking map and journal.

Nature lovers can opt for a Birdwatching Retreat, including meals, a guided wildlife walk, and a bespoke birdwatching map created by Elmley’s lead nature guide.

Green Farm’s 2026 wellbeing events offer the ultimate countryside reset, blending spa indulgence with nature-led calm just outside Ashford . The Spa & Stay escapes feature ESPA or Bramley treatments, outdoor saunas, hot tubs and a seasonal farm-to-table lunches, before a cosy night in the secluded Orchard Cabin and a farm-fresh breakfast to start the next day. Upcoming dates include 10, 31 July or 11 Sep for 2 day Spa & Yoga retreat. There are also half day retreats available.

Escape to the peaceful surroundings of Mount Ephraim Gardens in Faversham with a beautiful collection of restorative retreats designed to help you slow down, reconnect and recharge. Their brand new Sunset, Sauna and Stay experience offers a calming one-night wellness escape in the elegant West Wing, beginning with a welcome glass of Kentish fizz, overnight accommodation with garden views, two hours’ use of Hettie the horsebox sauna, a relaxed home-cooked evening meal and continental breakfast, (from £300pp), with optional add-ons including yoga or Pilates, massage and reflexology treatments.

For a deeper reset, their Wellness Weekend invites small groups or friends to enjoy a two-night restorative stay combining beautiful accommodation, nourishing food, yoga or Pilates, personalised massage and reflexology treatments, sauna sessions and time to explore the gardens and local countryside.

Nearer Gravesend? Head to Nurstead Court, for their Yoga Day Retreat & Sound Bath on 19 July. A full‑day immersive retreat with Yang & Yin yoga, a silent meditation walk, mindful art workshop and a full sound bath. Set in a countryside marquee overlooking fields and horses.

CULTURE & CREATIVE

The Ceramic Studio Brenchley Kent The Grain Store

The Ceramic Studio based in Brenchley is hosting a Pottery Experience Day on 26 Sep, offering a thoughtfully curated introduction to pottery in an intimate, small-group setting. Explore both wheel throwing and hand building while enjoying the calming, mindful benefits of working with clay. The day includes refreshments, a two-course lunch, and your own glazed and fired pieces to take home.

Or if you fancy a laugh, The Comedy Store is bringing a legendary stand-up night to Dreamland in Margate on 17 Oct. With 45 years at the forefront of British comedy and a reputation as the launchpad for stars including Eddie Izzard, John Bishop, Jimmy Carr and Sarah Millican, The Comedy Store continues to showcase global talent and the next generation of headline acts. Expect a fast-paced, expertly curated night of world-class stand-up.

Alongside their wonderful spa Rowhill Grange in Dartford has a spiritual event this summer – Medium Night on 7 Aug. This intriguing evening promises spiritual connections with gifted Psychic Medium, Sue O’Brien.

Step away from your phone and get hands-on in the kitchen with a course at The Kent Cookery School in Ashford. Spice things up with a Curry Night for the chance to prepare authentic Indian curry from scratch, or master delicate French classics at the Macaron masterclasses. Whatever cuisine you’d like to master there is a class for you from Thai to sushi to doughnuts! Enter your chosen course to see 2026 dates and availability.

BEAUTY

Winner of Muddy’s Best Wellness Break 2026 The Granary Spa close to Ashford has a couple of real treats available this summer. Their new Waterless Back & Scalp Ritual is a deep relaxation treatment created for guests experiencing stress, tension, poor sleep and the feeling of constantly being “on the go”. This deeply relaxing ritual combines a therapeutic back, neck and shoulder massage with a soothing scalp treatment helping to ease muscular tension and calm a busy mind. Enhanced with aromatherapy oils, therapeutic massage tools and holistic touches, it’s the perfect treatment to escape the demands of daily life.

Alternatively, until 31 Aug, their Seasonal Signature is a personalised experience whereby guests choose three treatments from a selection of soothing scalp rituals, tension-relieving massage, hydrating facial experiences, eye treatments and nourishing hand & foot rituals, helping to pause and reset this summer. For an extra touch of indulgence, the 75-minute option also includes a dry body brush exfoliation with nourishing oils. Book us in!

Over at Terri Gilham Hair Spa in Ashford, they’re experts in Japanese Head Spa which Muddy was one of the first to try earlier this year. Choose between the Harmony Head Spa (£85 for 75 minutes), for deep cleansing and total relaxation, or the Rejuvenation Head Spa (£110 for 90 minutes), which adds LED therapy and an expert facial for targeted scalp rejuvenation.

Each experience features camera-led scalp analysis, exfoliation, therapeutic massage, hydrating masks, steam therapy, and the signature Halo Waterfall rinse – all delivered in a private 1-to-1 setting. It’s sheer bliss and great hair begins at the root after all!

The Vaults at Broome Park is a serene wellness sanctuary just outside Canterbury, perfect for some well-deserved me-time. Led by Lottie, formerly of the acclaimed Haeckels, the spa offers quick treatments to full days of pampering. Must-try is the indulgent Afternoon Escape, £95 which includes a choice of two 30-minute spa treatments followed by a delightful Afternoon Tea in the elegant surroundings of the historic manor house, (and for that extra touch of indulgence, a glass of fizz!).

Green Farm is a small, rural spa on a working farm also just outside Ashford – think birdsong, fields, woodlands and a very un‑hotel‑like, personal feel. Later this year they partner with Bramley skincare for a special evening The Magic of Apple, 17 September 2026 to learn the rituals behind the British made apple based skincare brand. Includes a mini treatment and a gift, for £25.

Unwind at Brandshatch Place Hotel & Spa with some of their special spa offers for summer 2026. Escape to this haven of relaxation with treatments to soothe your body and mind including a lovely spa and afternoon teas escape.

NUTRITION

Health and fitness coach Carolyn Atkins based in Sevenoaks is offering a 21 day nutrition support programme Summer Reset for 2026 focussing on simple meal planning and gut health habits. Contact her for more details.

Finally, Registered Nutritional Therapist, Virginia Hills, is on a mission to support women to feel their best and boost energy levels – whilst balancing stress and hormones with a specialty in peri-menopause. She’s pretty qualified with a suitably long list of letters after her name – Virginia Hills DipION, mBANT, CNHC – to be precise! Keep an eye out via her socials for workshop dates in 2026 to address your nutritional needs and the recipes you need in your life.

Diaries synched! Your wellbeing what’s on for summer 2026

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