Laszlo Badet

This summer, we gathered at Sant Roch in Paris for a morning dedicated to slowing down and reconnecting with the body. Laszlo Badet, a Paris-based cook and founder of Cantine Laszlo, joined us for the experience and shares what stayed with her; from the intensity of the cold plunge to the unexpected sense of release and connection it brought.

Sant Roch is such a beautiful space. Did the setting itself help shape the experience?

Completely. I need to feel comfortable and safe in a place in order to relax, take everything in and participate in the experience with complete freedom. From the entrance to the changing rooms, and then the baths and sauna, I felt extremely at ease.

I am not particularly modest. Through my work as a model, I am used to being naked quite often, and to feeling confident with my body depending on the circumstances. However, opening my heart and mind, closing my eyes and following someone's voice with complete trust is something I am less accustomed to.

I loved the aesthetic of the space, the dim light and soft colours, and the materials, from wood and aluminium to black tiles.

The sauna-to-cold-plunge contrast is intense. What did that shift feel like in your body, and did it stir anything unexpected?

It wasn't my first time. Swimming in cold water is one of my favourite things on earth, although I have a preference, whenever possible, for a lake or the sea.

That day was my first time coming to this place for this experience. I was really looking forward to it because we had just been through several weeks of extreme heat in Paris and I hadn't had the opportunity to swim for a while, but also because it was the day before a major operation I was going to have. I felt very vulnerable, weak and strong at the same time. I wanted to shock my body, almost to reset it, while also doing it good through this contrast of heat and cold that I love so much.

In the sauna, I loved the essential oils being diffused. I use essential oils a lot in my everyday life, applying them to my body to reassure myself, relax and cocoon myself. I was completely relaxed, my body felt elastic and my mind was buzzing.

It was when I plunged into the cold bath that I realised, through my body's reaction and how much it struggled with the cold this time, just how much I needed it, and that my body was suffering more generally than I had imagined or allowed myself to show.

I hold a lot in on a daily basis in order to maintain a rather fast, active and intense lifestyle. When I immersed myself in the bath, I had to push myself through this ritual that usually feels so simple to me, and finally something deeply released. I breathed heavily and came out of it quite shaken.

It felt even better than I had imagined, and it was exactly what I needed at that moment.

During the guided session with Clotilde, what resonated most with you?

The essential oils, definitely. Her tone as well. The session was quite physical and I loved that energy. It was exactly the balance I needed.

I would love to do all kinds of sessions with her again, whether physical or otherwise.

We're all so used to moving quickly through our day and week. What did it feel like when the morning asked you to do the opposite? Do you have any rituals of your own for creating that kind of pause?

I have very few moments in my daily life that allow me to truly pause. I rarely let myself completely switch off, even in my private life. Sometimes I have to wait for a gesture, an activity or something else to catch me, and then suddenly I disconnect from everything.

I have a large terrace where I love to lose myself for entire days gardening, putting my hands in the soil, watering, cutting and cleaning. Usually I am not equipped or prepared at all because this disconnection takes me by surprise. I welcome it because it does me so much good, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Nature is my first escape. In Switzerland, where I come from, by the lake, by the sea, walking through the streets… I am not particularly drawn to treatment salons, I prefer to take these rituals with me into nature.

ACTIVIST products resonate perfectly with this idea and this conviction. When I use them, I deeply know that they are going to do me good.

There's something different about connecting with strangers through shared silence or shared discomfort, like the cold plunge, rather than small talk. What was that like for you? Do you think there's something about doing wellness in community, rather than alone, that we're missing in general?

I do my work as a cook because I love to welcome, receive and give. To take care of one another. It is my natural language for showing attention and making moments of sharing feel special.

With everything else, I am a little less instinctive, even though I love sharing these moments. I didn't grow up spending much time in communal spaces where people were undressed or taking part in treatments together. Most of the time, my family and I were alone in nature, so finding myself surrounded by women for this kind of session is doubly intriguing for me.

I am slowly becoming more accustomed to it and I really love these moments. Growing up, I think I missed having more of this kind of intimacy around the body with other women. Being able today to share a session, treatments, and simply be surrounded by one another feels wonderful.

It made me want to learn how to do some of these things myself, and perhaps, when I am with friends, to offer them this kind of care. Recently, I have been practising Pilates and yoga so that I can lead little morning sessions for my friends when we are on holiday together.

It is truly special when you receive something and can share it with others. It brings our energies together and allows us afterwards to welcome so many things collectively.