I’m swinging gently in a blue cloth hammock, tired muscles snugly supported, heart rate slowing and breathing calming down. I’m at the end of the first day of a mountain fitness retreat in the Swiss ski resort of Verbier, which has me powder skiing, ski-touring, high-intensity interval training at altitude, then a strength-and-recovery session in the gym followed by a final hour of aerial yoga. And it’s only day one.
I’m doing a two-day fitness boost with Mountain Beach Fitness Retreats, and luckily, day two isn’t quite so intense. Mountain Beach was set up three years ago by personal trainer Emma Bodkin and ski instructor Lottie Pridham, initially to offer summer retreats in Verbier — before expanding into winter retreats. The weekends are allocated throughout the season for skiers keen on boosting their fitness, dipping their toes into ski-touring (skiing without using ski lifts) or just having some fun in the mountains.
