IT’S AN ISAAC BOOTS WORLD

Isaac, you made a splash during the pandemic with your Instagram Live workouts. How did you manage to build such an incredible community during that time?

I think it was showing up. It started as a one-off livestream because I was at home and I needed an outlet for my energy. After that first time, I saw more and more people tuning in every day, which inspired me to keep showing up. After about a week, we started raising money for No Kid Hungry, and I saw how incredible this community was. They got us to more than $1.5 million!

It truly made working out so accessible at a time we all needed it. Your celebrity clientele ranges far and wide. Who were your initial clients?

Brooke Shields asked me to WHAT STARTED AS AN INSTAGRAM LIVE VIRAL SENSATION HAS NOW BECOME AN IRL (IN REAL LIFE) MEGA HIT, TOO. TORCH’D, THAT IS, THE FLOOR WORKOUT DEVELOPED BY FITNESS STAR ISAAC BOOTS. WHETHER HE’S CHEERING ON HIS CELEB CLIENTELE OR WOMEN AND MEN TUNING IN TO HIS LIVE STREAMS AT HOME, BOOTS HAS A WAY OF TOUCHING SIMPLY EVERYONE. SEE FOR YOURSELF!

BY SYDNEY SADICK

PHOTOGRAPHY BY HANNAH TURNER-HARTS

choreograph her one-woman show at The Box and Feinstein’s, which got a rave in The New York Times. This led to me choreographing and training Ariana Grande. I would start rehearsal with Torch’d, and she saw a transformation in her body during the rehearsal process. From there, it was word of mouth; I started working with Kelly Ripa, Faye Dunaway, Gwyneth Paltrow, Lucy Liu, Jessica Chastain, Naomi Watts, Lisa Rinna, Vanessa Hudgens, and Priyanka Chopra.

What a list! You’ve made people feel so much more confident about themselves, even before their fitness goals might come to life. What do you attribute to this?

I like results, so there’s nothing better than seeing results in any part of life. I think once you start to see shifts from hard work, that’s what gives you confidence. I’m also vocal about being a Scorpio, so I only give compliments if I mean it, and the people I work with feel that. I hope it inspires them to keep pushing for their goals.

Growing up in Hawaii as Isaac Calpito, did you always know you wanted to build a fitness empire?

I’ve always said my first dance teacher was Madonna. I would watch her videos and concerts and I would learn every move, and that was the start of my dance career. I was determined to get to New York and dance on Broadway because to me it represented the pinnacle, the biggest stage in the world. I never expected to be where I am today, but I got here by taking risks and saying yes to things that scared me. I feel blessed to be able to say to my younger self that I did what we dreamed of.

Your schedule is wild these days. How are you managing?

My day starts with my husband, Jeffrey, bringing me my vitamins and coffee while our dog, Davis, jumps on me to wake up. Then I have two or three virtual private sessions with some of my clients. After that I get a

WE’RE JUST WORKING OUT IN IT

Photography Assistant: Mark Grochowski

Isaac’s Fashion: Loewe shirt

half-hour break to prepare for my livestream, which I do as often as I can at 11 a.m. EST for my Instagram subscribers, and about once a week I do it for all my followers. In the afternoons I’m training more clients and doing content for social and for some of my partners. I usually try to squeeze in a power nap in the late afternoon, so I’m ready for whatever event or dinner I may have. If I have a free night I will invite my group of Squirrel friends over for some laughs and maybe an old 1930s blackand-white movie or classic horror movie viewing. I end the day with my husband reading to me while I cuddle Davis.

What does your personal workout routine consist of?

I like to do some light cardio in the morning to get my steps in and definitely my Torch’d livestream every day. I even join in with some of my private clients, so I’m always moving throughout the day.

Tell us about how you activated in the Hamptons this year!

This summer I wanted to be mobile around the Hamptons. Many people who haven’t spent time here don’t realize it’s so big and there are so many different areas. I thought it would be exciting to change it up and make each class feel unique. So I did Southampton, East Hampton, Water Mill, Montauk, and so on. I always like it to be a fun experience and having brands I love and partner with activate to give away product, or samples, or even just a post-Torch’d refreshment is a thank you for the support I have received from the incredible Boots Babies community.

What were you doing in Paris with Torch’d?

I got invited to do a special private Torch’d event for a good friend of mine, and it was so fun and chic. We customized the Torch’d mats with the Eiffel Tower, and we did it at Le Bristol in Paris, which is one of my favorite hotels. I have more coming in Paris later on, too!

Très chic! We have to talk about your adorable dogs who appeared for our shoot.

Well, Davis is my son, and he is the center of everything my husband and I do. He goes everywhere with us, and he loves to be featured on my Torch’d livestream. We even got to have his image on my collaboration with Terez last summer, so he’s building his own brand. His younger brother, Fred, is actually my good friend Annelise’s dog. She loved Davis so much that she went to the same breeder and got his brother, who is a year younger than Davis. We actually co-parent him because he and Davis get along so well, and I love seeing them together because they each have their own personalities. Davis is so regal and a little prince, and Fred is a little clown.

What are your passions outside of work?

I’m a voracious reader. I try to read as much as I can every day, and when a book is good I cannot put it down. I’m currently discovering Gore Vidal’s catalog. Because we travel so much I also like to make sure I get into as many museums and sights as possible. My husband and I were on our honeymoon and we tried to do something new every day.

Go-to workout outfit?

It changes from time to time, but right now I’m obsessed with the Torch’d x Terez Zodiac TLC booty short with a Terez black Burnout Star tank and my Prada boots.

When was the first moment you really felt like you were in the SPOTLIGHT?

It’s surreal to say but during the pandemic, watching this global community grow all while working out and raising money for kids. I felt like I was in the spotlight but also putting the spotlight on a major issue, child food insecurity. The best spotlight you can have is one you share with something that is bigger than yourself.

Highlights of this summer?

I got to host my first retreat at the most incredible property in Tuscany. I had 20 people fly

from all over the world to come get Torch’d twice a day, eat some of the most incredible Italian food, and make memories together we will all never forget.

Any plans for this fall?

I’m doing a fundraiser for Ian’s Friends Foundation in Atlanta that will raise money to help research pediatric brain tumors. Then September 24, I set sail with goop and Celebrity Cruises for the goop at Sea retreat from Barcelona to Rome. I have some exciting events to be announced in Paris, so stay tuned to my Instagram, and then doing a residency at The Maybourne Beverly Hills in November.

I feel like there’s going to be a movie made about you one day. Who would you want to play you?

Nicole Kidman. Kidding! [Laughs] I would say Oscar Isaac or Rami Malek. I think they’re insanely good. T

Isaac’s Fashion: Burberry sweater