Gordon Brown is easing the pressures of his premiership by doing twice-daily sessions of Pilates during his summer break in Suffolk.
Downing Street confirmed today that the prime minister is getting into shape with the help of personal fitness instructor Millie Dobie, a 42-year-old former actress.
"Yes, it's true. The prime minister looks after his health like millions of other people across Britain," said a No 10 spokesman. The spokesman declined to say whether Brown had any specific weight-loss goals.
A keen rugby player at school, the 57-year-old has turned to the gentle exercise regime Pilates to improve his fitness while he relaxes at his rented holiday home, Shadingfield Hall, near Southwold. It marks a change of pace for Brown, who is a known as a workaholic who finds it hard to wind down.
Dobie, who charges locals £40 a hour, takes Brown through relaxing sessions before breakfast followed by a second 30-minute workout in the afternoon.
"We don't dive through hoops, we don't leap over trees; he has a very safe and effective programme, something suitable for his age and fitness.
"He is doing very well, I'm very pleased with him. It's a combination of fitness and Pilates," Dobie told the Daily Telegraph.
Pilates was developed by German gymnast Joseph Pilates during the first world war to help injured British soldiers back to health. It uses exercises to strengthen the abdomen, back and buttocks and aims to improve posture and circulation as well as relieving stress.
"Pilates develops the body uniformly, corrects wrong postures, restores physical vitality, invigorates the mind and elevates the spirit," the Pilates Foundation website quotes Joseph Pilates as saying - just the kind of workout a prime minister in the middle of economic and political crises might need.
Dobie is said to have been recommended to Brown by the film director Richard Curtis and his wife Emma Freud, who have even joined his fitness sessions.
She is the daughter of Shakespearean actor Alan Dobie and spent five years as an actor in programmes such as ITV's The Bill. She moved to Suffolk 11 years ago and runs Pilates classes from her studio in Halesworth.
The sessions will continue until the end of the week.
