One of the best things about traveling is discovering local hidden gems. What do the locals do? Where do they go? Give me something outside the normal tourist experience, please.

May I introduce you to La Huerta Sport Club.

I have a friend who lives in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico. I came down for a long overdue visit and to scope the area out as I’m considering a career/life change. My friend has been living here for about a year and a half now and has often spoken about the gym he works out at and the personal trainer he’s working with. Mostly he just likes sending me photos of their outdoor pool when Vancouver’s outdoor pools are closed.

Now that I am here, I wanted to see it all for myself. I love this place. It’s a gym in the middle of farmland and is surrounded by corn fields, mango fields, and every now and again some cows. Another bonus is that it’s about a 4-minute walk from my friend’s place. The club includes a full gym, another workout room used for classes, 4 tennis courts, a soccer field and the previously mentioned pool.

The road to La Huerta is just off one of the main roads. It’s looking a little worse for wear as this was taken 2 days after a tropical storm hit, but it’s always a dirt road.

Take the 2nd dirt road to your right off the main dirt road….

 

Being a local gym, it’s also nicely affordable. As is Jorge, the personal trainer.  So I signed on pretty quickly upon arriving. I work out in the morning and go back for a swim in the afternoon when I’m not beaching it. Jorge is fantastic. After assessing my fitness level and asking me what my goal is (one must have a goal so he can help you achieve it) my workouts alternate between 20-minute circuit/cardio training one day and strictly cardio the next day. Trust me, that 20-minute circuit is tough. Jorge is very attentive, making sure my form/posture is correct, frequently shouting “you can do it Lise” in my ear and even telling me he can see all the crap in my body leaving. Oh yes, he says that. He also says we need to get all the grease out of my body. I’m assuming by ‘grease’ he means ‘fat’, and I have to admit I prefer ‘grease’. It’s easier to visualize and my immediate reaction is ‘gross, get that crap out of me!’.

Looking back at the gym from the pool.

View from the elliptical machine – makes working out on it much more enjoyable.

Today I told Jorge I have to leave tomorrow because I got the call and need to get back to work. He was genuinely disappointed and said he is going to miss seeing all my faces (I have  tendency to give him a funny/I’m going to die look when he asks me how I’m doing). He also told me that I need to keep doing this and to not ‘cheat myself’. Awesome.

I said goodbye to Jorge today as he leaves tomorrow for Mexico City. You see, Jorge is competing in the Mexican Jiu-Jitsu national championships this weekend. Go get’em!

Tomorrow I will say goodbye to La Huerta after a cardio workout and a last swim in the pool. Muchas gracias Jorge and La Huerta. Until we meet again.

Aaaahhh, the pool.