Getting fighting fit at boot camp

Getting fighting fit at boot camp

Exercise in a luxury villa and on the beautiful Javea Arenal beach

My Destination Alicante marketing and sales manager Sharron Godfrey knows first-hand what life is like within the La Vida Boot Camp in Javea. She kept a record of her week at the luxury villa so you can get a feel for what to expect during your stay.

I know what a boot camp is and liked the idea of spending time exercising, getting fit, losing weight and losing inches. They’re very popular in the UK and Ibiza and I’d thought about going to Ibiza. Luckily I found out about La Vida Boot Camp in Javea and decided to book in.

Although I knew about boot camps, I didn’t realise how hard it was going to be. But if it’s easy, there’s no point as you need to push yourself if you want to get fitter and lose weight.

La Vida Boot Camp play tug of war on Javea Arenal beach

The first evening was Saturday and we had dinner together. We were a group of women, aged between 24 and 62, who had been brought together with the same aims and ideas of what we could get out of a boot camp.

We were weighed and measured before dining on plain grilled fish and veg. There was no alcohol. We could drink water and herbal teas as well as being allowed one cup of coffee a day but without milk or sugar.

On Sunday, we had breakfast at 7.30am (as we did every day) and kicked off the day with a 4km walk and run to the beach.  We had exercises on the beach before returning to the villa for circuit training, including skipping, boxing and various other exercises.

Lunch was a mixed green salad with tuna and no dressing followed by more circuits. The food was usually chicken, fish or salads although we did enjoy a chilli with soya beef and a chicken curry made with cauliflower rice. The rice was delicious and you wouldn’t notice it wasn’t real rice!

SUP with La Vida Boot Camp in Javea

This was our regime for the next week with three healthy meals, two fruit snacks and about five hours of exercise a day. All I can say is that I slept like a log and was in bed by 10.30pm at the latest. After the first day, we were all in bed by 8.30pm! 

We had to do a variety of exercises led by our instructor Patrick, a former paratrooper, who was excellent. The sessions included weights, boxing, and various cardio vascular and toning exercises which worked all of your body.

 I lost inches from my boobs, waist, hips, gluts and thighs by the end of the week as well as 2kgs in weight. Interestingly enough the inches I lost from my boobs hips and gluts were exactly the same so my body remained in proportion so I was well pleased.

Oh and you will get plenty of encouragement from onlookers while you exercise on the beach in Javea, particularly during the tug-of-war.

La Vida Boot Camp's villa in Javea

If there were some exercises you couldn’t do because of an injury, you didn’t feel penalised or left out. Patrick would find exercises that were lower impact and more suited to your individual needs, which was great.

I had injured my knee and so couldn’t always run but Patrick found some other exercises that I could work on.

Although some people in our group were fitter or much younger than others, it was wonderful that we could all work out together without feeling under pressure – other than the pressure you put on yourself of course. There was a good group atmosphere and everyone helped each other along.

I thought the third day would be the hardest day and it was however, because we were much fitter than when we arrived we could tackle it.

I was really pleased at how much fitter I felt in such a short space of time.  At the start of the week, I was exhausted after 30 seconds of sit ups. By the end I could hang on for a whole minute.

During our stay we also had a very informative talk on nutrition and three Pilates classes which helped with stretching to prevent injuries. There’s also a lovely outdoor pool at the villa where you can enjoy a cool swim.

You can easily drop a dress size during your week at the La Vida Boot Camp and get your body ready for the beach.

I enjoyed my time at boot camp and would definitely recommend it if you want to kick-start a health or fitness regime. You will need to push yourself but you will see the results at the end of the week.  Go on, you know you’re worth it!

You can find out more about La Vida Boot Camp here