Get Fit Trips Skip the Bottomless Daiquiris

NOTEBOOK TRAVEL & ADVENTURE Get Fit Trips Skip the bottomless daiquiris. Here are the best retreats to help you relax, recharge, and get ripped. by JAYME MOYE Rappelling of the top of St. Lucia’s Pigeon Island The Siam’s infinity pool LUXE KICKBOXING IN SOUTHEAST ASIA The Siam, Thailand Kettlebells are just The Siam resort, located in the heart of one of Rancho la Puerta’s more than Bangkok, is a mash-up of cushy meditation CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: COURTESY OF RANCHO LA PUERTA; COURTESY OF THE BODY HOLIDAY; COURTESY OF THE SIAM HOTEL 40 fitness classes. retreat, high-end tattoo studio, and Manhat- tan kickboxing gym. And because it’s owned by Thailand’s Sukosol family, the country’s CARIBBEAN FITNESS AND NUTRITION REBOOT TOTAL-BODY TRANSFORMATION IN THE DESERT premier hoteliers, it has spared no expense The Body Holiday, St. Lucia Rancho la Puerta, Mexico in hiring the world’s foremost experts to In a private cove on the northwest shore of This 3,000-acre resort, set in the cactus- walk you through your days. Each starts St. Lucia, the Body Holiday is a beach resort studded desert an hour south of San Diego, with 6:00 AM yoga, followed by two to three with state-of-the-art wellness programs: is a fitness paradise, with 40 miles of trails hours of training at the resort’s kickbox- more than 30 daily fitness and yoga classes crossing from vineyards into high-desert wil- ing ring. “Muay Thai is not only a full-body and a complimentary 30-minute personal derness. You have to commit to a weeklong workout, but also a full-mind workout,” says training session. A team of sports physiolo- stay and a pescatarian diet, but what you do Kru Yim, coach for the Thai Olympic team gists and a nutritionist are on hand if you beyond that is up to you: everything from car- and the resort’s resident instructor. After- want guidance in anything from a detox dio boxing and tai chi to yoga and TRX — all ward you can hit the spa for a 60-minute diet to a total nutrition and fitness overhaul, taught by certified instructors. “First-time massage or head into town to watch a fight including VO2 max and metabolic testing. guests tend to start off with too much,” says at Rajadamnern Stadium. Not into combat At the end of the week, you can sign up for a Barry Shingle, the resort’s director of guest sports? Skip it for laps in the infinity pool quadrathlon challenge: an eight-mile moun- relations. “They hit the wall by day three and or take a Thai cooking class while sampling tain-bike ride followed by a 2.5-mile run up realize they need to work in some spa treat- whiskeys. The resort even has its own tat- to the top of Pigeon Island, a rappel down a ments and hammock time.” Every night there too artist, Arjan Boo. His intricate designs 100-foot cliff, and then a 1.5-mile kayak pad- are wellness presentations, or you can just are believed to be magical, bestowing mys- dle back to the starting point. It’s as challeng- relax in your private bungalow. “Between the tical powers on the bearer — and after com- ing as any Tough Mudder, but the reward is walking, the classes, and the healthy diet, I’ve ing home from a week of fighting, and with far more lasting than an orange headband. had guys lose 10 to 12 pounds,” says Shingle. some new ink, you’ll feel like a new person. From $2,500 per week; thebodyholiday.com From $3,250 per week; rancholapuerta.com From $500 per night; thesiamhotel.com SKILLS The Cycling House, Arizona Active at Altitude, Colorado Swim Vacation, Hawaii CAMPS FOR Six-day training camps for bikers This trail-running clinic in Estes Master open-water swimming on and triathletes in the Sonoran Park will help transform your gait the Big Island with this weeklong GROWN-UPS Desert. Expect to pedal 45 to 80 under the tutelage of top experts. adventure, which includes two Sport-specific retreats fully supported miles per day, with Workshops are followed by runs on guided swim sessions per day and to take your game pro tips and chef-prepared meals. the area’s 355 miles of singletrack. video analysis of your stroke. to the next level. From $1,895; thecyclinghouse.com From $550; activeataltitude.com From $6,495; swimvacation.com MEN’S JOURNAL DECEMBER 2015.

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