Teen Weight Loss & Healthy Lifestyle Camp in Latvia

The camp is called TeenShapers and it's a weight correction programme rather than a holiday with activities bolted on. Six days, 5–16 years old, based in Latvia, with all specialists speaking Russian, Latvian and English. The core idea is that teenagers don't fail at weight loss because they're lazy — they fail because nobody showed them what a normal portion looks like or how to keep going once the camp ends. So the programme is split between practical stuff (cooking, portioning, exercise, sports) and the psychological side (a psychologist runs individual and group sessions).

A typical day starts early if you want it to: yoga at 08:00 is optional, then wake-up at 09:00, a walk in the forest at 09:15, breakfast at 10:00. Mornings are for training or a masterclass, then swimming at 12:15. Lunch at 14:00, phones out at 14:30, phones back at 16:00 — that's the only screen window of the day. The afternoon has an afternoon snack at 16:20 where they go back over what was taught in the morning session, another forest walk at 17:20, then sports games at 18:00 (banner, football, volleyball, basketball, relay races). Dinner 19:00, intellectual games or a film 19:30–21:00, then a fire and evening tea at 21:10 where the group talks about the day. Lights out at 23:00.

Food is four times a day — breakfast, lunch, dinner and a snack — totalling 2000–2400 kcal. It's balanced rather than restrictive, and it's designed to show teenagers that eating properly doesn't mean going hungry. The camp is explicit that this is about preventing the mistakes kids make when they try to lose weight on their own: skipping meals, cutting out entire food groups, then giving up.

What sets this apart from a standard summer camp is the three-month distance programme that follows. Each participant leaves with individual nutrition and activity tasks, and over the next three months they send photos of meals, exercise, step counts and distances to a specialist who reviews them and replies. Family members are included in that follow-up, which matters — if the household eating habits don't change, nothing the teenager learned in six days will stick.

Accommodation, all meals, and the work of the whole specialist team during the camp are included in the price. Arrival isn't organised, though you can ask the organiser to meet you at set points. A medical certificate confirming the child is cleared for physical activity is required before they can take part.

What's included

- 6 days of supervised accommodation on site - 4 meals per day (breakfast, lunch, dinner, afternoon snack) providing 2000–2400 kcal - Daily training sessions and masterclasses - Dietitian consultations and nutrition education - Psychologist individual and group sessions - Motivational training - Physical education specialist sessions - Yoga (optional morning session) - Swimming sessions - Sports games (football, volleyball, basketball, relay races) - Forest walks twice daily - Intellectual games and film shows - Evening tea around the fire - Individual nutrition and activity plans to take home

What's not included

- Travel to and from the camp - Medical certificate (must be obtained before arrival) - Three-month distance follow-up programme (additional fee) - Personal expenses - Travel insurance