Laura's Review of Wildfitness Crete

What is Wildfitness and who's it for?

I knew Wildfitness had a different approach to exercise before I arrived, but I was amazed to discover just how deeply it ran throughout the retreats’ ethos. Everything gravitates around natural movement and getting back to how things used to be for evolutionary man. Sure, the fitness schedule incorporates all the aerobic and anaerobic training of any typical regime, but without any of the gym work or repetitive, formulaic structure. This was great for me as I’m not someone who can turn up to the gym each day without eventually getting bored and throwing in the towel all together.

What is Wildfitness and who's it for?

I knew Wildfitness had a different approach to exercise before I arrived, but I was amazed to discover just how deeply it ran throughout the retreats’ ethos. Everything gravitates around natural movement and getting back to how things used to be for evolutionary man. Sure, the fitness schedule incorporates all the aerobic and anaerobic training of any typical regime, but without any of the gym work or repetitive, formulaic structure. This was great for me as I’m not someone who can turn up to the gym each day without eventually getting bored and throwing in the towel all together.

Wildfitness gets you hurling rocks, climbing trees, testing your reflexes and making fitness enjoyable; if I’m honest there were times when I was just having fun rather than focusing on getting fit. In this way, the trainers were great in tailoring the health and fitness programme to everyone’s individual needs, but I’d mostly recommend it to people with some level of existing fitness.

Getting There

It’s a beautiful and painless journey from Crete’s main airport, and within the hour I was at the retreats location deep within the countryside. As the road snakes through the hills I couldn’t help but think I was in for something adventurous; you really are in the middle of nowhere! 

Enjoy beautiful scenery in Crete 

The Hotel & Accomodation

The Wildfitness team utilize restored villas set within a dramatic landscape covered by ancient chestnut trees and frolicking goats. The villas themselves are a stunning yet rustic family property that’s built from the surrounding rocks in a traditional manner. It’s a popular spot for locals and hikers but never busy, instead, the little restaurant attached to the villas keeps people coming back to sample the mountain food and homely atmosphere. It’s also the only place you’ll find plug sockets or wi-fi; all rooms are run off solar power and provide just the basics. This was actually something I loved as it meant I could stay in contact with loved ones but wasn’t tempted to sit around all evening on my laptop, especially as everyone was pretty much in bed by 9pm.

The Fitness

Wildfitness is, of course, all about fitness - what had me enthralled though, was the wild part! The impetus of their ethos is that fitness is, in fact, very simple; we don’t need state of the art workout machines, impeccable nutrition or exclusive personal training sessions to reap the benefits of health. We just need the body we’ve already got and nature. If we interact with nature in a manner similar to how man once evolved alongside it, then we will surely lean towards the optimal state we are able to be in. This philosophy seemed to make sense to me and I was delighted to find myself scrambling across logs, climbing rocks and jogging through open countryside. Not only was I feeling the benefits, but it felt far more natural than slogging away in a brightly lit gym.

The fitness schedule was different every day, mimicking the Palaeolithic diversity of daily routine but I always found myself with a sweat on. The importance of play was also a particularly apparent feature of the day; indeed, Wildfitness is nothing like a typical bootcamp, instead you find yourself out of breath from laughter just as much as working out. Simply, fitness wasn’t meant to be something we had to strive for, it’s just something we were whilst living our daily lives. In this way, games like throwing rocks or catching sticks or climbing trees provided as many laughs as they did patches of sweat.

Laura enjoying the daily fitness activities 

Food/Restaurants

All the food is served in the restaurant and follows a ‘wild eating’ framework. There’s no dairy, artificial additives, modern grains, refined or heavily processed foods. Instead, simple fruits, vegetables, nuts, meats and fish take centre stage. I found myself delighting in every meal on the retreat, it was simple, rustic and hearty. That’s not say it wasn’t balanced either; indeed, I really felt like it helped me recover and build strength at the same time. 

If you’re willing to push yourself, one of the morning activities includes going on an 8k run before breakfast. It all ties in with the wild-living concept and puts the body into a state of being ready, rather than just getting ready. Paleo man couldn’t always decide when to go hunting and gathering - sometimes, the opportunity was there and had to be pounced on. That said, the trainers are super friendly and were actually quite impressed when I slept in one morning and praised me for being honest with my body.

Replenish your body with the healthy fresh cuisine offered

The Schedule

Each day was different, and this certainly kept me on my toes. One day you’re scrambling around the countryside, the next your boxing, it’s all so dynamic and full of new and exciting ways to be healthy. The trainers also give small workshops on nutrition and stress management, which was great if not just to learn about the wild way of life. They’re adamant not to lay down any laws of do’s and don’ts, but instead encourage you to seek out what excites you about getting healthy and follow that. For me, this was all so refreshing to hear, I didn’t like the running much, so instead opted for more boxing. Having the support of your trainer, rather than just their own ideals for you was something I really loved about my time with Wildfitness.

Laura and the guests exploring nature for themselves

A Typical Day

7am – Run & joint mobility session
9am – Breakfast
10:30am – Fitness
1pm – Lunch
2pm – Massage treatment
4:30pm – Fitness
7pm – Wild living seminar
8pm - Dinner

The Staff

For my retreat, there were three trainers – Grant, Uju and Tanya. Each were an expert in some niche area of fitness (something that was great to be in the presence of), and they all worked really well together as a group. I really got a sense of ‘tribe’ whilst being with them, an important concept to the paleo fitness outlook. I could put my trust in them, knowing they would take care of me, and knowing they would push me!

The Scenery & Surroundings

Crete isn’t too big an island, and you’re never truly in the middle of nowhere, but the location Wildfitness operates from certainly gets close to believing you’re alone in the nature! I think I saw more goats than I did people during my stay, and to be honest that was just perfect. It was a real technology detox too! The limited access to wi-fi and charge points combined with being fairly tired by the end of each day meant I could take in the serenity of the area and improve my natural sleep pattern at the same time.

As a group, we spent all day outdoors in the nature, using it as a means to keep us active and restore us to a new and healthy balance. It was so refreshing. I really got to grow my appreciation for nature and re-asses our modern, civilized lives. 

The breathtaking views from Wildfitness

Highlights

My favourite thing was how play & fun intertwined with the fitness routines. Ego was totally thrown out the window, and we were all just trying our hardest because it was enjoyable. There were times when I almost forgot I was on an active holiday. I loved the boxing and have kept it up since returning home, I’ve even found myself running around my local park climbing trees, the whole experience has been so confidence boosting.

Work up at sweat with morning boxing sessions

My Summary & Verdict

I’d recommend Wildfitness to anyone who loves being outdoors, or is seeking to connect more with nature. If you’ve already got a basic level of fitness then you’ll be able to get the most out of it, but the trainers were always quick to provide adjustments for anyone that found anything too difficult.

How to Book

To request a quote or for more information visit our Wildfitness Crete page

Talk to one of our Travel Specialists on or contact us here to discuss tailor-making your perfect wellness holiday.