About Us
Charlene Harvey
- Director
After many years in the gym and competing in national competitions I wanted something brighter to wear when I trained.
Creating my own brand and designs has been both challenging and rewarding and my top priority is happy customers.
ABOUT STURDY BY DESIGN
Having spent a lot of my life in the Gym since the age of 17 I have worn a variety of different sports brand clothing. They have been great and done what I expected them to do.
However they have not always been the brightest or very fashionable, so because I live in my Gym kit I decided to design something with a difference.
I joined the gym when I was 17, having been involved in just about every sport at school I needed something else to get involved in. I was naturally very strong and took to weight lifting immediately. After a few years of weight training and 2 children, running took over, mainly for post pregnancy weight loss to begin with but I got quite hooked on the sport. However a few marathons later I was plagued with an ongoing hamstring injury which led me to hanging up my running shoes for good. It was time to return to the gym.
My training was pretty standard. I lifted because I loved it. No other focus or goal. It wasn't until a friend suggested I tried upping my game and put my love for weight training to good use. She had competed in a Fitness/figure show and urged me to give it a go. I wasn't keen at first, unsure if I would have the confidence to step on stage in the 'tiniest' of bikinis, a pair of heels and strut my stuff in front of a panel of judges and a theatre full of spectators. In the end I agreed, signed up and took a long hard look at my training regime and diet. A massive change was needed. I had a lot of muscle but my body fat was quite high and that all needed to come off….all of it! I needed to get my body fat down from 28% to around 7-8%. A massive challenge, but I did it. 8 months later I stepped out on stage for the first time and placed in my first ever event at Pure Elite qualifier in Manchester. 2 second places and a third. I was over the moon and hooked instantly. I then went on to win 1st place in the figure and muscle categories at Miami Pro in London and came 1st in the Pure Elite World Finals in the Muscle Model category.
2015, That was my first year of competing……..
In 2016 I moved into UKBFF Women's Physique. I won my qualifier at the Midlands championships which led to an invite to the British Finals. I did not place that year but it only made me more determined to train harder, diet harder and do it all over again.
Building a business from scratch has been no mean feat and has led to me taking a bit more of a back step from competing, however I still train just as hard but now try and balance training with work/family time as much as possible.