Reconnect with Nature at Red Mountain Resort in Utah

Red Mountain Resort

Red Mountain Resort, nestled in southwestern Utah’s red-rock bluffs, has a breathtaking natural setting as its backdrop and offers a comprehensive selection of fitness classes, hiking and other outdoor adventures, along with nutritious cuisine (with calorie counts for each dish) and personal discovery seminars.

In 2013, the resort made a contractual agreement with the nearby Intermountain LiVe Well Center in St. George to offer a special 31/2-hour health assessment to their guests. Participants fill out a health questionnaire and track their food and beverage intake for three days prior to their appointment and a baseline profile is created.

During the assessment, they meet with a doctor, a dietitian, an exercise physiologist and a health coach who analyze their blood, measure their body composition in the Bod Pod (an $85,000 machine that gives fat and muscle percentages), assess their fitness levels, test their metabolic rate and examine their diet. At the end, a game plan is drawn up for each individual that outlines specific steps to improve their health and well-being.

I spent a few days at Red Mountain Resort to get a better handle on this new wellness trend. While there, I signed up for the metabolic rate test and the cardiovascular metabolic assessment. I was surprised to learn that I needed 1,420 calories a day just to maintain vital functions (this is normal, but, like many, I thought 1,200 was the average). To lose weight, I was advised to avoid going below this and to increase my exercise levels.

This was reinforced by my cardio fitness, which turned out to be poor. Several years ago, it was measured as excellent, but after a sporting accident in which I broke my wrist, I traded impact sports for Pilates and weights. Clearly, I need to do more exercise, and I was given a 12-week cardio program to get me back on track.

The resort has a large exercise room, so I started right away on my program. For the rest of the time, I kept busy with fitness classes like Pilates, stretching and full-body MELT (great for range of motion and pain relief), as well as spiritual and meditation seminars and spa treatments. The activity schedule started every day with a guided hike at 7:20 a.m. and continued all day long with a variety of activities (often several to choose from on any given hour) until 8:45 p.m.

At the resort’s Sagestone Spa & Salon, I booked the Rejuvenating Detoxification Package, which consists of two dry-brush treatments, followed by a warm seaweed and clay wrap (washed off in a Vichy shower), two massages and a facial spaced out over the course of my stay.

For my spiritual health, I went to Barbara Harrison for a numerology, tea leaf reading and rune casting session. While I can’t say she read my future, there was a lot of good energy in the room and a few specific acronyms (JLR?) that will likely have meaning for me this year.

Visiting Red Mountain Resort

The simplest way to get to Red Mountain Resort is to fly to Las Vegas McCarran International Airport and enjoy a scenic two-hour drive. Air Canada offers regular non-stop flights to Las Vegas from Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and Montreal. WestJet offers non-stop flights from Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton and other cities, depending on the day and time of year.

Shuttle-van service to and from the Las Vegas airport to the resort is available through Aztec Shuttle at 435-656-9040.

A five-day, four-night Rejuvenate & LiVe Well package starts at $1,725 US. The four-day, three-night Weekend Warrior Retreat package starts at $885 US.