Everybody loves to travel and eat, well not everyone but just about everyone. Tis’ the season and even if this year’s travel looks like a local affair, we’ve got some great tips on how to eat everyday like you’re being feed by a world famous chef, working at a five star finess resort. 

Photo © Anouk van de Wal

So let’s escape with Anja Schellekens and Erica Gragg, they open the door on tips to eating right, as if you were a quest at a five star fitness resort, in “Healthy Recipes From A Fitness Retreat” Food and Wine Magazine written by By Jen Murphy.

For travelers passionate about both food and fitness, there’s a new way to explore the world: Escape to Shape’s retreats, complete with classes on yoga, Pilates and cooking.

We’re like a 21st-century band of gypsies,” says Erica Gragg—gypsies who love to work out and eat well all around the world. Escape to Shape, a traveling spa that Gragg runs with three partners, arranges weeklong fitness retreats in places like Mexico, Uruguay, Italy, Morocco and Colombia. Participants (no more than 17 at a time) stay in a luxe villa or boutique hotel, take yoga and Pilates classes and learn how to prepare healthy local dishes.

In Cartagena, for instance, chef Doris Esther Ayola Orozco gives hands-on lessons in Colombian cooking. As the recipes here reveal, her food is simple and terrific. Her version of ajiaco, the traditional Colombian soup, is loaded with shredded chicken, avocado, corn on the cob and potatoes; she also makes a crunchy, tangy salad with spinach and papaya.

This year, Escape to Shape added a give-back element to some of its itineraries by partnering with local charities: In Cartagena, guests can paint houses and schools in nearby shantytowns.

“Our trips are the opposite of a boot camp or a detox spa,” says Gragg. “They’re about multifaceted self-improvement.” $3,000 all-inclusive, without airfare; escapetoshape.com.

Now you’ve got a possible travel destination and some cooking ideas for the stay-cation. Enjoy the spring and get out and explore while getting that daily walking. Take a few friends and make it a get-away. 

MikeZ_walking to the edges of the world for you.

Please consult your physician before starting any exercise or weight loss program.
Your physician is your very best resource.