Meet the Team: Anne, front of house

Get to know Anne Crump, one of our lovely front of house team who welcome you into Instinct with a smile every day…

I am a Cheshire Lass born and bred but was definitely born with the travel bug. After getting my degree in Marketing I worked for a large company in London and wasn’t happy living the corporate life so I gave up everything to travel to India.

On my return, I trained to be a teacher of Design and Technology which I followed for over 30 years living and teaching in some amazing places (Belgium, Norway and Malaysia). I married my childhood sweetheart, Alan, who I met at school in Malpas and we are blessed to have three grown up children (Luke 27, Chloe 25 and Milly 22) who make our lives complete.

My greatest achievement has been learning to run which I was always terrible at. We had an event at my school of a 1 mile fun run and I was dismayed when I couldn’t even complete one lap. I was only in my early forties at the time. I took it upon myself to just keep going. By increasing the distance and being consistent I hit my goals with a 5k, 10k and most recently a half marathon. It’s still in the back of my mind to go for the full marathon but my aging knees and boredom of running mile after mile isn’t a huge incentive. I am far happier climbing mountains instead.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

Walking is my main passion and we are so lucky to live in such a beautiful area that we can pop on a pair of boots and soon be immersed in nature. My favourite place to be is up on a hill in the Lake District – I just love it there. Currently we are busy working on a van conversion so we can escape into the wilderness more often. Creativity is central to my being and I love craft, cooking and anything practical. Outside of the gym I run my own arts and crafts events business so I am usually fully occupied even when I am not behind the reception desk.

Why did you decide to work at Instinct/Fuel and what do you enjoy about it? 

I was initially a client at the gym and loved my time here – it just felt so different to places I had been before. The day I found out my teaching post was coming to an end I commented that it would be so perfect if a job came up at Instinct and I couldn’t believe it when a vacancy popped up the same evening. Fate dealt me a lucky hand! The team make it a great place to be whether you need a shoulder to cry on, a kick up the bum or someone to laugh until you cry with we are here for each other. The team dynamics are simply amazing and I think that shines through to our clients. It’s a happy place to be.

What is your favourite Instinct class?

A close call between Method and Yoga Flow. They both are very different to each other but I love the structure and movement in Method balanced with the flexibility and relaxation of Yoga.

What is your favourite exercise/move? 

I know some people hate it but I have always enjoyed the prowler!

What is your least favourite exercise/move?

Press ups – definitely work in progress for me. I had a hand operation and it’s never properly recovered to be fully weight bearing.

Tell us 3 random facts about yourself

I used to be a mystery shopper.

I can juggle.

I used to teach a Prince who had his own tiger.

What is your quote to live by? 

Don’t be surprised by things you expect.