Princess Kate shows she's making her own royal rules according to body language expert

"Her latest appearance clearly demonstrates her willingness and confidence."

Britain's Catherine, Princess of Wales attempts to pull tyres behind her during a visit to Landau Forte College in Derby, central England on February 8, 2023, to celebrate Captain Preet Chandi's return from her solo expedition across Antarctica. - Captain Chandi surpassed the previous world record of 907 miles set by fellow soldier Henry Worsley, in 2015.
(Image credit: Photo by Arthur Edwards / Getty)

On Wednesday, Princess Kate went where no royal had been before (at least as far as we're aware): she pulled tyres attached to her waist.

If you're confused as to why one would do this, it's actually one of the ways Army Captain Preet Chandi trained for her recent solo expedition across Antarctica, during which she had to lug around heavy equipment, per The Sun.

Kate was at Landau Forte College in Derby to celebrate Captain Preet's return, and decided to try her hand at the unusual activity. This decision, says body language expert Darren Stanton, exemplifies Kate's desire to embody a new kind of royal.

"Footage of Kate pulling the tyres along during her latest appearance clearly demonstrates her willingness and confidence, as well as her ability to blend in with those around her," Darren tells Marie Claire on behalf of Betfair Casino.

"It’s difficult to imagine any member of the Royal Family allowing themselves to be filmed and photographed in those surroundings and just goes to show how Kate is keen to look past protocols and rewrite the rulebook when it comes to how she and William portray themselves to the public."

Darren continues: "Kate looks genuinely happy to be taking part, you can see the determination in her face to impress and she looks back towards her audience reassuringly for their encouragement. Keen to get stuck in, we see Kate in the footage taking instructions from others quite willingly."

Britain's Catherine, Princess of Wales (C) greets Captain Preet Chandi during a visit to Landau Forte College in Derby, central England on February 8, 2023, to celebrate Chandi's return from her solo expedition across Antarctica. - Captain Chandi surpassed the previous world record of 907 miles set by fellow soldier Henry Worsley, in 2015

(Image credit: Photo by Arthur Edwards / Getty)

Sharing photos of the day's engagement on Instagram, including a beautiful one of Kate and Preet embracing, the Prince and Princess of Wales wrote: "Record breaker. History maker. @polarpreet is a shining example of fortitude.

"Today it’s been fantastic to hear all about her polar expedition and see how she is inspiring the next generation of young girls to believe they can achieve anything they put their mind to!"

That's a message we can get behind.

Iris Goldsztajn
Iris Goldsztajn is a celebrity and royal news writer for Marie Claire. As a London-based freelance journalist, she writes about wellness, relationships, pop culture, beauty and more for the likes of InStyle, Women's Health, Bustle, Stylist and Red. Aside from her quasi-personal investment in celebs' comings and goings, Iris is especially interested in debunking diet culture and destigmatising mental health struggles. Previously, she was the associate editor for Her Campus, where she oversaw the style and beauty news sections, as well as producing gift guides, personal essays and celebrity interviews. There, she worked remotely from Los Angeles, after returning from a three-month stint as an editorial intern for Cosmopolitan.com in New York. As an undergraduate at the University of California, Los Angeles, she interned at goop and C California Style and served as Her Campus' national style and LGBTQ+ editor. Iris was born and raised in France by a French father and an English mother. Her Spotify Wrapped is riddled with country music and One Direction, and she can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.