StyleNest contributor, Clarissa Lenherr, visited Hyde Park’s Mandarin Oriental Hotel to reveal to us why their signature City Luxe Boot Camp is revolutionising our perceptions of boot camps…
I have heard stories about boot camps. The kind of stories that in our late teens replaced traditional, easy-going, nice horror stories told at Halloween sleepovers. But these stories involved real horror. Fat-Camp, Army-Camp, Fitness-Camp, Brat-Camp. Even now, with all the boot camps available at our favourite studios, I still hear stories that give me goose bumps.
So, when I was asked to come and partake in the Mandarin Oriental’s City Luxe Boot Camp, I instantly conjured up images of muddy tunnels, crawling in the dirt, army clad giants shouting in my face, leaves and worms tangled in my hair, burning scarlet cheeks and pain. A lot of pain.
But I could not have been more wrong, and that is exactly what Ruben Tabares, trainer to Britain’s leading athletes and celebrities, proved to me.
The Mandarin Oriental City Luxe Boot Camp was devised by Tabares and The Organic Pharmacy to provide a one-day programme designed to kick start a new fitness, diet and detox regime that can be continued at home.
The day begins with a consultation with the man himself. Not only is Ruben a trained ballet dancer and a former European 400m Hurdle Champion, he is also a qualified nutritionist and has a strong interest and knowledge in Chinese medicine and complementary therapies. We chat away about all things diet, fitness and health related – he even asks me about my upbringing and heritage. After the talking is done, he checks my ankles and feet and immediately spots a tightness in my calf, which he tells me indicates that I have certain digestive troubles. He is of course, right.
Once he has my fitness and health profile figured out, we devise my body goal, and move over to the floor. The gym at The Mandarin Oriental puts most to shame – state of the art doesn’t even cover it: it’s slick, it’s luxe. After a three minute very intense warm up, which I am told is all we need, we start up his “adaptation plan”. Ruben formulates a six-week programme based on strengthening and conditioning muscle groups, which he explains helps the tendons grow stronger in line with the muscles, contributing towards an overall permanent body change and making sure to avoid any injury. The programme is a circuit of different weight training, repetition based exercises, all designed so they can be done in your own home – the only thing you need is a set of dumbbells. After the workout is complete, I am quite surprised. There is no screaming, no pain, hardly even any sweating. Ruben explains that this is because you can’t expect change overnight, you need to strengthen over time, from the inside out. If it works for Dynamo, one of his magical clients, it can work for me!
After the tough part, we are treated to a replenishing breakfast. Served in the fitness suite, that sits above the gorgeous and serene pool, Ruben joins me to chat over the 6-week plan, detoxing and why HIIT isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be (I will let him tell you why). A plethora of delicious, healthy food, including bee pollen covered avocado and coconut oil scrambled eggs is served, and not only is my stomach fed, but also my brain. Ruben is teaching me left, right and centre about nutrition, vitamins, healthy substitutes, detoxing and I feel like I have left with a nutrition and fitness plan. It’s inspirational.
I leave with a six-week detailed plan, a body analysis and a 10-day detox from The Organic Pharmacy, which is intended to cleanse you before you begin your new body challenge. The detox is one of the best I’ve done, and certainly most enjoyable. No fasting, no restrictions – it focuses on eating clean, drinking water, dry skin brushing and taking a number of natural supplements, twice a day, to help cleanse the body of metals and toxins. After ten days, I feel revitalised and energetic – people are even commenting on how vibrant I look. I could get used to this.
The final reward for all my “hard” work? Boot camp guests are invited to return for a 50-minute essence experience massage in the beautiful Mandarin Oriental Spa, aimed to help remove any clogged toxins in the muscles and lymphatic points. Arriving half an hour early, I relax in their crystal steam room and body temperature Jacuzzi pool before I am immersed into utter heaven, all at the hands of one of the spa’s superiorly talented masseuses.
The entire experience, from start to finish, is anything but hard, horrible or ghastly – it is a full body revolution, and writing this half way through my six-week programme, I can notice the body changes already: everything is looking “boot camped”. Ruben and his City Luxe Boot Camp have reversed any fears of boot-camping that were instilled in my brain and have managed to produce a results achieving, crème de la crème experience that offers a body transforming regime, for life not just for January.
Prices start from £550 and are available to book by calling the Mandarin Oriental’s Fitness Team on +020 7838 9888 or at [email protected]. Follow at Rubentabareswellness on Instagram for further inspiration.