Cardio Plein Air is a breath of fresh exercise

Whether you’re taking a summer stroll or snow-shoeing through Bois de Liesse Regional Park, you’re bound to bump into Cardio Plein Air’s franchised West Island fitness instructor Daynah Savage. At first, she may appear to be just another nature enthusiast inhaling the fresh air and spectacular views. Yet, the glowing group of students of all ages forming a single file behind her are bound to give away her true identity as a workout- trailblazer, who knows her way around the organic gym circuit.

Every day of the week except for Sunday, Savage and her team of certified instructors lead classes of 10 to 15 participants through unmodified forest trails, or else train together in the clearings of this nature park in eastern Pierrefonds. “You get to know your clients very well with time. They get the benefits of a private class, and the motivation of being in a group,” Savage said.

Cardio Plein Air, an innovative business founded in 2000 by fitness trainer and author Danielle Danault, has proven so appealing that, her open-air fitness regimes are now offered in 50 Quebec parks, with over 4,000 participants to date. Treadmills are replaced with naturally inclining terrains, push-up benches are substituted with picnic tables, and the smell of sweaty locker rooms traded in for a whiff of aromatic fresh growth.

For Cardio Plein Air’s summer participants who take issue with having to brave harsher elements come wintertime, Savage reassures them that health benefits abound as long as participants dress for the occasion. “There is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing,” Savage joked.

Yet, the physical and mental improvements she sees in her clients during these typically lethargic, bluesy months, is quite serious, “It gives people the occasion to get out in the winter, when the light is beautiful,” she said. “You also get better results in the winter because the ground is not level, working your abdominals, stabilizers and posture,” Savage added.

Registered clients have the option of joining in on a dynamic range of classes, either twice or three times a week, depending on their membership. Savage’s Cardio Muscle Toning class features cardiovascular workout intervals as well as tai chi relaxation techniques. The Outdoor Zen class focuses on strength and circuit training. The Cardio Stroller-Sled class is a great way for parents and young children to stay in shape together. The Cardio Vitalité class offers the benefits of muscle toning at a more relaxed pace, for seniors or those who have taken a long hiatus from staying in shape. “We let people work at their own rhythm,” Savage said.

On trail, she encourages and corrects her students’ efforts, as well as switches up the order of the pack so that competition is never an issue.

Louise Desrosiers, 63, has been participating in Cardio Plein Air for a couple of years, is proud of herself for sticking with this unique program year round, “I continued, and gradually built up my resistance,” she said.

Desrosiers claims that she is not the only individual, who has noticed her vast health improvements, “My doctor at my last check-up noticed that my heart rate was better and that I recuperated bone density without medication,” she said.

For more information, list of parks and fall schedule, visit www.cardiopleinair.ca.