Swanky sweating

Baja spa offers fitness fans a plethora of ways to push, pamper themselves

Participants hold a yoga pose during a class at Rancho La Puerta.
Participants hold a yoga pose during a class at Rancho La Puerta.

TECATE, Baja California, Mexico -- Manuel Velazquez does not coddle those who show up for his Hot Latin Cardio class. Facing a mirrored wall in a light-filled dance studio and wearing a wireless microphone, he barks instructions -- "No talking when I'm talking!" in Puerto Rican-accented English as he gradually steps up the pace of dance movements to the beat of Latin rhythms. Soon the entire group, ranging from 20-somethings to senior citizens, is panting and perspiring. And happy, because over the course of 45 minutes, they all got a heck of a cardio workout.

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Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

The grounds of Rancho La Puerta are paved with landscaped brick pathways that lead to scenic overlooks.

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Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

A day of physical activity at Rancho La Puerta often starts with an early morning hike to the top of 3,885-foot Mount Kuchumaa.

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Photo courtesy of Rancho La Puerta

Guests enjoy the rigors of a cardio drum dance class at Rancho La Puerta.

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Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Swim stroke clinics and water jogging classes are held in this heated multi-lane pool, one of four at the ranch in Tecate, Mexico.

This athletic, bossy, charismatic dance instructor and others like him are among the reasons fitness fans find favor with Rancho La Puerta in Baja, Calif. Sure, it's a luxurious spa setting for self-pamperers who enjoy the likes of hot-stone massages, facials, body wraps, loofa salt scrubs, manicures, waxing, threading or collagen treatments.

If you go

ACCOMMODATIONS: Rancho La Puerta has 86 casitas in seven sizes/rate categories, ranging from Ranchero Solo studios ($3,900-$4,250 per person for a Saturday-to-Saturday stay) to Villas Cielo, private houses with 2,200-square-foot customizable floor plans ($5,750-$6,500 per person).

All are equipped with CD players, mini-refrigerators, robes, irons, safes, umbrellas, flashlights, hair dryers, coffeemakers, reverse-osmosis-filtered drinking water and telephones with voice mail.

Wi-Fi is available in lounges and in the administration building. Internet access is available on computers in the business center.

PHONES: Use of cellphones (which are subject to roaming charges) is permitted only inside individual rooms to allow other guests to enjoy some serenity.

EATING: Breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks (included in the accommodation cost) offer lacto-ovo cuisine that’s low in fat, sodium and refined flour and sugar and high in energy, fiber and complex carbohydrates. Coffee and tea are available 24/7 in the main lounge.

LUXING: Spa services include massages, facials, wraps, manicures, pedicures and waxing. Prices for a 50-minute session start at $90. Spa treatments include acupuncture, ayurveda, biodynamic craniosacral therapy, chiropractic, reiki, Feldenkrais and more. Cost for a 50-minute session starts at $95.

GETTING AROUND: Ground transportation from and to the San Diego International Airport (about 90 minutes away) is provided on Saturdays and is included in the cost of a stay. U.S. visitors are required to have a valid passport. There’s a tourist tax of $25-$30 (U.S. dollars, depending on the fluctuating value of the Mexican peso).

VISITOR INFORMATION: Call (800) 443-7565 or visit rancholapuerta.com.

But not everybody shows up for self-indulgence. There are plenty of other reasons to visit this destination retreat located about 90 minutes south of San Diego, especially for those who want to spend precious vacation time experimenting with exercise and wellness options that can't be squeezed into a run-of-the-mill work week. And those experiments can be conducted under the watchful eyes of experienced fitness professionals who are trained (and often certified) in those options.

Although some find this hard to believe, there are people who find back-to-back fitness classes in spinning, strength training, yoga, hiking, Pilates, cardio boxing, aerobic dancing, tennis, lap swimming -- interspersed with sessions on balance and coordination and stretching, and discussions on nutrition, sports injuries, postural therapy and cooking techniques -- to be a perfect way to get away from it all.

And winter is a fine time for a visit, as the weather tends to be cool and moist, with warm days and chilly nights ("I usually come in the summer," said Shannon Rogers, a regular guest from Vancouver, British Columbia, who was bundled in a fleece outfit and gloves one evening, "when we jump in the pools as we're walking by to cool off").

Here's a typical fitness-focused day at the Ranch (there are about five options every hour):

6:15 a.m. -- An eye-opening 3.5 mile hike up 3,885-foot Mount Kuchumaa, adjacent to the spa's 3,000 acres

8 a.m. -- Breakfast (fresh fruit, eggs, salsas, oatmeal, hot granola, scones, juices and gluten-free choices, all lacto-ovo-vegetarian; most ingredients come from Tres Estrellas, an onsite organic farm)

9 a.m. -- Pilates mat fundamentals with Cathy Murakami, a nationally recognized Pilates and Gyrokinesis specialist who helped create the Ranch's original Pilates program and did a guest stint at a Pilates workshop at Little Rock's Barefoot Studio in the 1990s

10 a.m. -- NIA (nonimpact aerobic dance) combining 52 simple dance and martial-arts moves

11 a.m. -- Gyrokinesis (a flowing movement method that increases strength and range of motion)

Noon -- Lunch (soups, salads, sauteed and steamed vegetables and a daily entree; Mexican pizza and fish tacos are very popular)

1 p.m. -- Demonstration of Feldenkrais (another movement method that claims to improve connections between the brain and body)

2 p.m. -- Cardio drum dance (a hilarious, high-speed 45-minute workout involving pounding on plastic trash cans while shuffling around them; "Don't run into each other," strength and dance instructor Mike Bee dryly advised, with good reason)

3 p.m. -- Tai chi (a series of slow, controlled movements designed to improve physical and mental well-being)

4 p.m. -- Stretch

5:30-7:30 p.m. -- Dinner (four courses that change daily: soup, salad, a choice between two entrees such as roasted salmon or chile rellenos with ancho chile salsa, and small, sumptuous desserts such as tres leches cake, quinoa walnut brownies, and butternut squash flan)

7:30-9 p.m. -- Design your own beaded jewelry with guidance from staff artist Jennifer Brandt

With such an abundance of active offerings, it's easy to over-cardio. During a recent Zumba dance class, instructor Alejandro Valencia noticed a participant in the back row who seemed to be having trouble with the none-too-difficult steps he'd taught. He quietly stepped over to the wayward guest and asked, "Are you OK?" She regrouped, finished the class, drank a lot of water (it's filtered), and thanked him afterward for looking out for her. "It happens all the time," he said. "There are so many choices, and first-time guests tend to take on too much."

That's what happened with this particular guest. She started the day with a five-mile trail run through the chaparral, had a go at pickleball (a racquet sport that combines elements of badminton, tennis, and table tennis), moved on to a fast-paced hip-hop aerobic dance class, then participated in a shallow water workout -- all before lunch. Maybe one less strenuous workout per day might be a good idea.

It's not all physical. Mixed in with the get-up-and-go classes are new (for some) experiences in meditation, postural therapy, sound healing, chanting, restorative yoga and much more. Not your cup of tea? Try some of them anyway. Most of each week's 60-plus classes are included in the cost of a seven-day stay. And you might find something you like that adds to your repertoire of physical and mental improvement.

Guests can also see if clay sculpture suits them in a class with artist Jose Ignacio Castenada (better known as Nacho), sit down for lectures by qualified presenters on topics such as craniosacral therapy and sex for grown-ups, attend hourlong musical performances like ''Three Miniatures for Clarinet and Piano'' by Julian Milkis (Benny Goodman's only student) and Ukranian musician Era Lifschitz, or just say what the heck and spend some time at Bazar Del Sol recovering from whatever level of physical exhaustion has been achieved while nursing a glass of malbec or Tempranillo from the nearby Guadalupe Valley and watching the sun go down.

Most of these fitness/wellness activities are included in the cost of a stay at the Ranch. Spa indulgences, along with classes at La Cocina Que Canta Cooking School at Tres Estrellas, cost extra. So does the wine.

In between there's a well-stocked library, a charming gift shop, movies at night (a recent week's offerings included The Martian, The Age of Adaline and Carol), and the company of like-minded people from all over the United States (mostly from the East Coast and California) and beyond.

Imagine: No grocery shopping. No chauffeuring of kids. No tending of pets. No yard maintenance. No laundry. Just good, clean physical exhaustion, accompanied by terrific food, a conscientious staff (the word "no" is seldom heard by guests, like on a recent rainy morning when the staff cheerfully opened the Azteca weight-training gym early for those who didn't care to get drenched on a morning hike) and -- when the schedule winds to a halt (around 9 p.m.) -- a really, ­really good night's sleep.

Travel on 01/22/2017

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