With the greatest of ease

ANYONE who has witnessed a performance of Cirque du Soleil has the visceral reaction of wanting to chuck it all and run away with the circus.

Problem is, less than one one-hundredth of the population is fit enough to do those death-defying aerial acts, precision acrobatics or contortionist moves that make up Cirque’s fabulous repertoire. You could run away, but you’d be selling drinks at the concession stand.

These people are world-class performers who have a billion times more flexibility, strength and grace than the rest of us mortals, and are capable of elegantly swinging from a trapeze, as in the show “Saltimbanco” or diving 60 feet above the ground into a little pool as they do in “O.”

So I was envisioning a nonstop buzz of performers hoisting weights, honing their splits and cardio-ing it up like nobody’s business as I headed for a meeting with some of the cast of the Cirque show “Quidam.” (The show, which was just wrapping up at the Del Mar Fairgrounds, is now heading for Long Beach.)

It would take nothing less, I assumed, to maintain such phenomenal physiques and unique skills to nail those nightly gigs.

And then I met Jerome Le Baut.

The French former gymnast and acrobatic expert is one-half of the duo that performs Vis Versa, an astounding slo-mo piece in which one is often balancing the other in seemingly precarious positions -- for example, he’s standing, she’s completely upside down, her shoulders resting on his.

I asked the dark-haired Le Baut, who’s 36 and extraordinarily lean, to tell me a little about his workout regime. He shrugged, admitted to some biking and also chasing his two young kids around, plus stretching and a little warm-up before performing.

No marathon Pilates sessions, no amazing feats of strength?

Nope. That and the show, he said, “are enough to keep me in shape.”

No one, in fact, is training for hours on end -- not the guy who spins and twirls and does somersaults on the gigantic German wheel, not the woman who balances on her hands and twists her body into positions that would make you believe she doesn’t have a spine.

Hanging out here, it quickly became apparent that part of the performers’ challenge is saving enough energy for the show, which requires an enormous amount of physical activity and concentration.

Entering the backstage tent, one of the first things I’d spotted was three people napping on shabby olive sofas. On closer inspection I also saw two stationary bikes, an elliptical trainer, parallel bars, stability balls, a Bosu ball (the popular dome-shaped balance trainer), and a rig for practicing acrobatics -- but several hours before show time, no one was on them.

The space was devoid of barking coaches and regiments of trapeze artists lining up to do bench presses. Later, the room would be fairly busy with scheduled rehearsals and such, but preparation also entails relaxing with a nice game of chess or backgammon, or having a massage.

Cirque’s performers come from a variety of backgrounds, including gymnastics (some are Olympians), acrobatics, dance and diving, and represent a range of body types, from the teensiest acrobats who soar through the air to beefy guys who balance three people on their shoulders.

By the time they reach this big top the vast majority are considered seasoned professionals (many are in their 30s) who are responsible for maintaining their own fitness and weight. Most are left to their own devices.

Some acrobatic acts work with coaches to hone their precision skills, however, and upon joining Cirque certain performers are sent to Montreal for specific training to learn skills such as aerial work.

Le Baut’s partner, 21-year-old Asa Kubiak has boot-camped it in Montreal, spending three months training for the Vis Versa number, increasing her upper body strength and honing her balance, agility and flexibility.

“Sometimes I felt like I was Rocky or something preparing for a competition,” she says, laughing. “I’d have a towel wrapped around my head to train my neck, and the coach would pull really hard.”

The result was “a total body makeover” that produced a more muscular physique. “I had no muscle mass before,” she said. (She is tall but thin, not what you’d expect someone to look like who’s able to support the weight of a grown man.) Now that her body’s in shape her workouts are not nearly as intense. Like others in the cast, the time she spends exercising ranges from zero to an hour or more, depending on what her body needs on a particular day.

Kubiak’s regimen consists of an assortment of disciplines. She picks and chooses from Pilates, stretching, ab work, yoga and cardio, which she’ll do on a stationary bike, treadmill or elliptical trainer. Strength training is done mostly with resistance and her own body weight.

“Every day I play on the Bosu ball,” she adds. “I’ll do handstands on it before the act. It’s a nice way to feel alignment.”

Despite the go-it-alone approach to fitness, workout options for cast members abound in the rehearsal area, which is a perfect specimen of what you’d think a traveling circus tent might look like. Off to the side, there’s a light-rimmed dressing table crowned with wigs sitting on foam head mannequins.

A tiny Asian woman darts out from the dressing area to lacquer her hair with hairspray. A television plays last night’s show -- each performance is taped -- and, behind another curtain, physical therapists consult with the artists.

Occasionally, outside instructors are brought in to teach classes such as ballet and martial arts to provide variety and keep performers motivated. Some acts that rely on acrobatics and precision have five-day-a-week scheduled practices to polish their talents -- such as the performers in Banquine, an acrobatic act, who as I watched were flipping a petite girl over until she successfully landed on the shoulders of a three-man totem pole.

Some in-house exercise classes are taught by 33-year-old Philippa Hayball, who portrays a character and performs in a number called Aerial Hoops, twirling above the stage.

Hayball’s classical ballet background in her native Australia gave her a lithe figure but not much upper body strength; now, because of the hoops, she boasts sinewy muscles in her arms.

On the day I visited she was leading a group of performers who are in the acrobatic act Spanish Webs. Because they hang from and do maneuvers on ropes, she was concentrating on core strength and balance, having them assume a side plank position on stability balls while slowly moving their top leg back and forth. Degree of difficulty: 10.

The impossibly thin Hayball’s own workout regimen incorporates Pilates, stretching, strength and balance, and core training, but little cardio: “During the show I run and run and run,” she says. “Especially if we do a 10-show week, that’s enough running for me.”

Pilates gives her the long, lean muscles she likes and allows her to concentrate on specific body parts. “I’m always working the inside of my thighs so it takes some of the heat off my quads,” she explained. Even working with resistance to engage her muscles, she never ups the force: “I could push it,” she said, “but it’s not really good for me.”

The other important element in all this is rest. “I’m learning more about rest, actually,” Hayball said. “If you take a day off training and rejuvenate you come back stronger the next day.”

A day off, however, doesn’t mean relaxing in the Barcalounger with the remote and a beer. “I’ll do a little stretching and some abs,” she says.

Another interesting revelation about Cirque performers is their diet, which does not consist of carrot sticks and low-fat yogurt.

In fact, don’t even mention the words “low fat” to Le Baut. He’s French, remember.

“Here we go,” he says. “Here we go. I hate that! Everything is low fat. I am trying to find yogurt -- plain yogurt. And I can’t find it!”

OK, so no low fat. After all, they are doing the equivalent of an intense workout every night, and need fuel. But surely lifting their own body weight, or someone else’s body weight, would cause them to vigilantly count calories so they don’t pack on pounds that they or someone else has to lift?

“I don’t like to weigh myself,” says Kubiak, adding that she lets the fit of her costume be her guide. “If I cross the line I know it’s time to do something about it. I’m sure I fluctuate a few kilos.”

She eats balanced meals that include organic fruits and vegetables and whole grain breads.

Five chefs attend to the nutritional needs of Cirque’s cast and crew, who hail from 16 countries. To give some a taste of home, chefs will often prepare favorite ethnic foods, but even in preparation the emphasis isn’t on cutting the fat.

Cirque spokeswoman Merri Hagan says the food is “geared toward high quality and high nutrient content,” and does include a variety of proteins, carbs, fruits, vegetables and, yes, desserts.

And maybe, if Le Baut is lucky, some regular, fat-laden yogurt.

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Cirque du Soleil travels to Long Beach beginning March 9.