In their Pilates era! From Love Island's Georgia Steel to Strictly's Kristina Rihanoff - a look at the stars who have quit reality TV to become fitness instructors

Daily Mail​

2 days ago

Popular reality TV shows such as Love Island, Made In Chelsea and Big Brother have produced a host of celebrities.
Many often go on to live glamorous showbiz lives as influencers, actors, TV stars or models - but others have embarked on a brand new path away from the limelight.
Over the past few years, TV stars including Georgia Steel, Coco Lodge, Verity Bowditch and Kristina Rihanoff have retrained to become Pilates and yoga instructors.
The exercise classes have been around for decades, but are starting to boom online and have become the hot girl workout of choice.
The hashtag #pilates has more than six billion views on the platform, where devotees showcase their skills and toned bodies.
Classes can exceed £35 a time and instructors advise people to practice three times a week, making it an expensive hobby popular with the middle classes.
Georgia Steel
Alongside the snaps, she wrote: 'Pinch me!!!!
Georgia first shot to fame on Love Island in 2018 and later appeared on Celebs Go Dating, Ex on The Beach, Love Island Games, and Love Island All Stars.
Now, the beauty - who also works as an influencer - has shared on Instagram she's officially a qualified Pilates instructor.
Dressed in a stunning white summer dress, she posted a carousel of photos celebrating her new qualification alongside her parents and boyfriend Harry Clarke.
Alongside the snaps, she wrote: 'Pinch me!!!!
'Can't quite believe I'm a qualified Pilates instructor.
'The most incredible day yesterday celebrating with family. Feel like the luckiest girl in the world right now.'
Georgia hasn't yet shared her plans for teaching, or where her classes will be held.
Coco Lodge
Coco shot to fame on Love Island in 2020 as a Casa Amor bombshell, but quickly became a Pilates instructor.
And back in January, Coco took her fitness career to a whole new level by opening up her own studio in Surrey.
People can purchase three reformer classes for £60 at Poise Pilates, or a drop in class will cost £30, with expert instructors, 'tailoring your workout to your goals'.
Coco often shares workout videos with her 185k Instagram followers, and even got her boyfriend Joel Corry involved recently.
Claudia Fogarty
Before announcing her pregnancy, Claudia shared with fans how she is swapping her reality TV roots for a new career in the fitness industry.
Claudia has embarked on a new journey as a Kore Reformer Pilates instructor, having recently gained her fitness qualifications.
Sharing several stunning snaps of herself in a fitted black activewear set while teaching a full class, Claudia wrote: 'In my Pilates girl era… I have started a Pilates page where I'm going to put all my reformer content on.
'I would love for you guys to give me a follow and come with me on my Pilates journey.
'I'll be sharing lots and happy to chat to anyone who wants to come to classes or book in with me for a 1:1.
She concluded: 'So excited for this new chapter and to see where it takes me (love heart emoji)'.
On her Instagram story, she reposted the announcement, writing: 'Just me finding a new path in life. Loving this new journey already.
'So much to look forward to and share with you all. I've got a feeling this year is going to be a good year (love heart emoji).'
She also posted her class schedule, which includes sessions from early morning to late evening, urging followers to book quickly as 'spaces are filling up fast.'
Following in the footsteps of her mother, Michelle, a fitness coach, Claudia is now making her own mark in the wellness space.
Verity Bowditch
She teaches in person classes twice a month in extraordinary locations around the world such as in London, Bali and Dubai
Verity is best known for her role on Channel 4's Made In Chelsea, and in 2020 qualified as a Pilates teacher.
It comes after she stepped back from her and Mikey Pearce's business Clean Kitchen after the plant-based restaurant added meat to their previously 100% vegan menu.
Prior to going on the show and starting her business, Verity studied Biomedical science at Kings College, specialising in anatomy and physiology.
Verity now has a Pilates app called Pilates with Verity which is used globally and includes classes for all levels and programs for specific goals.
She teaches in person classes twice a month in extraordinary locations around the world such as in London, Bali and Dubai, and has a retreat in Ibiza in October and one in Bali in November.
Kristina Rihanoff
Since leaving Strictly Come Dancing in 2015, Kristina has been embracing a new career as a yoga teacher in Northampton.
Kristina and her ex Ben Cohen started Soo Yoga Group together in June 2017 - four years after falling for each other when they partnered on the 11th series of the hit BBC show.
The Russian-born dancer has 20 years of experience doing yoga after falling in love with it at a class in Seattle in 2001.
Speaking to the Daily Mail in 2021, she said: 'We invested everything we've ever had, we went into business for very serious reasons, we'd never refer to ourselves as celebs, like, 'Oh I'm going to do some wine business or cheese business just on the side for fun'.
'It wasn't like that for us. I've got qualifications in about 10 different styles of yoga - post-natal, pregnancy, traditional... I didn't just think, "Oh I'm going to do yoga now"'.
Ben and Kristina's relationship was the product of the BBC show's infamous curse when he left his then-wife Abby in 2013, before going onto date Kristina, before money troubles reportedly tore them apart.
The former couple were left with crippling debts after they ploughed every penny they had into a yoga studio which plunged into crisis during the Covid pandemic.
According to The Sun, the couple are now left with a crippling £1million debt.
In a tortuously frank admission Cohen told the court: 'I get up every day and I fight not to lose everything - to lose my cars and my house and my relationship. I'm so overdrawn.'
When questioned about the strains on his and Rihanoff's relationship, he said: 'We're still living together. We're in it financially.
'We're in business together so the problem is that we opened the business before Covid and we got the worst severities of it and in all honestly this is just another problem for me to deal with.
'I've got credit cards that are overdrawn. I'm overdrawn in both accounts. We have got a business debt because of Covid. It's just another problem.'
MailOnline was given an insight into the struggles during an interview with the couple in May 2021.
Companies House records showed that the Soo Yoga Group Ltd was £488,470 in the red in its last submitted set of accounts for the year ending on July 31, 2022.
The company was facing being struck off and Cohen has since resigned as a director leaving Rihanoff as its sole director - while other companies linked to the couple were also in difficulties.