Introducing, the Leg Master; your answer to an enviable pelvic floor

I may only be in my late twenties, but apparently my optimal child bearing years are slowly starting to tail off (according to society, that is, not me). Even though I’m definitely not ready to pop out a kid, there are many women my age or younger who’ve already started a family, as well as all those women older than me who’ve done this too. So why is it, that when women give birth, no one really mentions the loss or partial loss of your pelvic floor?

We all hear about kegels and the desire to (for want of a better phrase) ‘get a tighter vagina’, but there isn’t enough emphasis on what having a weak pelvic floor can actually mean post-childbirth. We’re talking urinary incontinence (when you cough, sneeze, laugh), tampons falling out, farting when you bend over, and not being able to get to the loo in time. Whilst many women opt for sustainable brands like Modibodi who produce underwear to combat issues of leakage, that’s not the answer for everyone. That’s where the Leg Master comes in, allowing women to take back control of their pelvic floor muscles. 

I sit down with co-founder of Leg Master, Fiona Summers to chat through how and why she decided to create the Leg Master, how exactly it improves not only your pelvic floor muscles but 200 different muscles in your body and how creating a brand with her family at her side has meant the world to her. 

What made you decide to start Leg Master?

After the birth of my fourth child, my body was significantly different. I had gained weight. Parts of my body were starting to jiggle, ones which hadn't before having children. I was always tired. My pelvic floor was not on the floor, it was in the basement! I had started to need to get up in the night to go to the bathroom, the idea of doing a jumping jack or going on the trampoline was definitely, definitely not an option anymore. I was also scared to laugh and cough! I desperately wanted to find some way to start exercising, but was too tired and too lazy to contemplate going to a gym or fitness class. I had five young children, so there was no option to go somewhere else to start exercising or doing something for me.

The idea of having “something” I could do in my home was brilliant. I wanted something that would help in many ways, but most importantly something that would work, make me feel better, in a SHORT period of time, because then I would be able to commit to it. Treadmills and bicycles which needed 30 minutes would not tick that box!

I went to my husband Neil, a successful inventor who was busy inventing back products at the time.  I literally said “come on, you are an award-winning inventor, invent something for me, something that will really make me look and feel a lot better”. The result was the Leg Master, and it ticked every box I needed  -  something to use in my home, something I could feel working immediately (in all the areas I desperately needed help with), something I needed to only use for a short period of time...perfect, perfect, perfect.

The Leg Master’s USP is that it promises a full body workout in less than 60 seconds, which sounds amazing! How exactly does this work?

The Leg Master truly does give an amazing full body workout in 60 seconds, all thanks to the secret curve design in the base of the unit. By doing the simple lateral movement, literally for just a few seconds, means you are lifting your whole body weight up this unique patented curve. Waking up, activating, toning, strengthening and slimming muscles throughout the lower body.

If you gently move the upper handlebar, you activate all the upper body muscles too.

In between the upper body and the lower body lies the lower abdomen and the pelvic floor muscles, they are all connected, they are all woken up, they are all activated, they are all starting to strengthen when you use the Leg Master. It’s remarkable how much of your body it activates - over 200 muscles!

Does the Leg Master work for all ages, sizes, weights? 

You can use Leg Master standing up or sitting down, which means it really does work for all ages, sizes and weight.  

In the standing position it can be used by people up to 25 stone, if they feel stable. 

If you are over 25 stone, or do not feel stable enough to stand on it, you can use it sitting down with the handlebar, or without. Using it sitting down offers an “active sitting“ workout with no impact, and great results. 

If you have never done any fitness before, you can start with literally one repetition and slowly work up to 60 seconds a day, therefore perfect for the total beginner too. 

How has starting the business changed your life?

We invented the Leg Master, a product invented specially for me. I was so delighted with how it helped me feel better physically and mentally, I decided that I would really love to help other people feel the same benefits that I had.

After using the Leg Master, and quickly realising how it especially helped people with weak pelvic floors, this inspired me even more to develop a business, which would introduce my product to as many people as possible around the world.  

Having ageing parents who both keep their legs strong by using the Leg Master, it highlighted how perfect the Leg Master was for elderly people too, helping them to keep their mobility and independence.  

The knowledge that I’m helping so many makes me so pleased and gives me a tremendous sense of self-worth and a wonderful sense of fulfilment. It makes me incredibly determined to continue selling a product which I truly believe is a “must “ in peoples homes, one which is life changing, one which makes such huge fitness differences in such a microscopic amount of time.

I love the fact that I’m helping people improve their fitness, their strength, their energy levels, hopefully also allowing them to cough, sneeze and laugh without having embarrassing moments! Basically feeling all  the benefits of the Leg Master, which I have felt over the last 10 years of using my product.

What other women and females do you admire and take inspiration from?

It is very easy to choose women who have achieved huge notoriety, women either in the world of business, politics, or sports - I could easily reel off 10, 20 of these such women. I don’t however look that far away, my own success was within my own home, it literally was one simple small step that I took outside my comfort zone. After that became another step, then another and so on and so forth.

I feel that every day there are so many women that are incredibly challenged, by financial constants, abuse, racism, religion, women that defy their obstacles, and defy their challenges. Many of these women have no self-worth, no confidence, yet somehow keep moving forward, keep striving towards goals and achieve really amazing things in their own world. Women that take their children on treacherous journeys to find better lives. Women that literally walk miles and miles to find freshwater for their families. Women that work four jobs to put food on the table. Women that fight for their rights in a “man’s world”. The list goes on and on and on. These are the women that I truly admire, the ones that go against all adversity to achieve greatness in very challenging situations, many who live in very impoverished and deprived worlds.

What’s the best piece of advice you’d give to other women looking to start their own business?

Having been a woman with little confidence, no self-esteem, no degree, no profession, and whose only aspiration was to bring up children, working was a massive change and challenge for me. Going back to work as a mother was like sending me to Pluto! It was so far outside my comfort zone, it was inconceivable. I was incredibly anxious and felt convinced that in no way could I possibly succeed. I did however take the plunge to step outside my comfort zone, feel the fear and take small small steps towards tiny goals. Having been on a path when I needed to overcome many setbacks, I managed to gain momentum in the world of business, I gained confidence, and indeed sales, the company started to grow and develop and after three years, make money!

My advice to other women would be to nudge a few centimetres outside your comfort zone and truly believe in yourself. Trust your instincts, and even if you’re presented with obstacles, find ways to get over them, not ways to stop! Often your biggest disasters can be your greatest learning curves. They definitely were with me.

When you could’ve given up, success might just have been around the corner .......just out of sight. So keep going.

Please tell me how you have found time to start and run a business as a full-time mum?

Yes I am a full-time mum, however my five daughters are no longer all under the age of 12, which definitely helps! I speak with them every day, their needs change as they grow older, but I always prioritise the needs of my children over my business where I can, especially if they are urgent. Which means I work a 25-hour day sometimes! If there is a choice I would always be with one of my daughters over working. Sometimes work can wait.. other times it can’t, and in those instances I’ve always explained to the children carefully why I can’t be there. By giving explanations, by always communicating with them, has made them respectful and appreciative of the time I do spend with them, also of the time I am unable to spend with them.

Having my own business now has allowed my children to come into my working world, my 13-year-old daughter adds incredible value on all my Skype shows .....now from my house, her IT expertise are way beyond mine (and my husbands). Providing her technical support for my shows is a job that she relishes and does incredibly well.

Stepping inside my world of working and business gives her a great understanding and appreciation of life as a working woman, seeing and assisting on live TV shows is a great life skill for her at such an early age.

Having older children has allowed them to work within the social media aspect of the business, four of them have also done modelling on my shows. On so many occasions the balancing act of being a full-time mum and a working mum, means bringing the children into my working schedule! I therefore have my cake and eat it, time with my children together with working! To me, that’s perfect. 

What is the future for Leg Master looking like? How can we use/buy it?

How do I see Leg Master in future? As a “must” in every home.

We are an ageing population, we all need to keep ahead of our functional fitness. Especially in the world we live in now, nobody should take good health and wellbeing for granted. Unfortunately you have to do “something“ to keep your physical fitness and your mental fitness as good as you would like it to be.

With the Leg Master it is possible to get so many benefits, in such a microscopic amount of time. That makes it the perfect product for everybody. Young girls who want to look good and have great looking legs. Young mothers who often don’t have time to go to the gym, or don’t have time at all for themselves. Many of them are suffering with elements of incontinence as a result of childbirth. To be able to use something in the home is just spot on.

As we age, keeping fit going into our 40s, 50s and 60s can be a challenge. There is always a reason “not“ to exercise. The Leg Master slim offers great results in one minute today, there are 1440 minutes in each day, just one of them to help you look and feel so much better…must be worth it.

The elderly is a category I feel very strongly about helping, we are all getting older, we are all living longer, we all need to keep our strength and mobility, to keep our independence and keep us strong on our feet so we do not fall. The Leg Master is a brilliant small affordable piece of fitness equipment, one which can be used by absolutely everybody in their own home, it’s available on our website, Amazon and QVC.