Boot the bulge into touch

By Wendy Williams

THEY claim you can drop a dress size in under a week.

But it has more to do with changing your way of life than just losing weight.

The 1 Boot Camp, being launched on November 5, is the first weight loss scheme of its kind on the Costa del Sol.

And it is certainly not for the faint-hearted.

Being woken up at 6am for a pre-dawn run, clients are prescribed a healthy, low calorie diet and worked out until 7pm.

Designed for both men and women – in groups of up to 10 – it offers five night residential courses filled with intensive exercise, motivation and nutritional advice.

A fun new way to detox, the idea for the camp grew out of a slimming and lifestyle club that already existed.

“The club has had huge success stories with people losing a lot of weight,” explains boot camp leader Lisa Nicol, 38.

The English weight watcher, from Manchester, decided there was an opportunity to grow and jumped when the right business premises came up.

Incidentally, Nicol – who has lived in Spain for ten years – has lost almost seven stone following this plan, and has a good idea what the guests are going through.

She works closely with lifelong friend Matt Smith, a fully- qualified trainer and former soldier, to tailor the sessions to suit everyone’s requirements.

But with its military-style regime people are sure to be pushed to their limits.

“It’s not for the faint hearted,” explains Nicol.

“It is a mental and physical experience promoting a change in lifestyle so people don’t just come on the camp and then go back and do the same things again.

“It is more of a kick-start into a new way of life, although of course it depends on the individuals and how much they want to do this.”

The camp has started out well with an initial booking from a well-known bank for a team building retreat for 10 of their employees.

And for the next two months, there is a special introductory deal for expatriates of 575 euros, per person.