Queen’s great-nephew reveals grueling training and 'mental benefits' of latest epic challenge

The Queen’s great-nephew, Arthur Chatto, on charity rowing expedition that saw him travel 2,000 miles at sea

Queen's great-nephew Arthur Chatto
(Image credit: Pool/Max Mumby / Contributor/ Getty Images)

Princess Margaret’s grandson Arthur Chatto took on an enormous rowing challenge that saw the 22-year-old row across the Irish and North Sea in 2020, now he has opened up about the grueling preparation and difficulties he faced during this challenge.


The Queen’s grand-nephew Arthur has recently opened up about the grueling rowing challenge that saw him travel 2,000 miles in the name of charity.

Arthur was joined by his team 'Exe Enduraow,' which included teammates, Charles Bromhead, Harry Lidgley, and Oliver Dawe-Lane. The four men were also his housemates at the time as In order to complete the GB row challenge during the height of the pandemic they had to isolate together.

The four rowers were at sea for 42 days and raised over £21,500 for the British Red Cross and environmental charity, Just One Ocean. 

Although this epic feat took place in 2020, Arthur has only just taken to social media to talk about the difficult training that he endured in order to prepare for the race. 

Arthur is a member of an Edinburgh-based gym, Bound Fitness, that promotes the mental health benefits associated with exercise, and the brand's slogan is, 'sweating towards a stronger mentality.' On the Instagram page for this gym, Arthur spoke about his difficult training process. 

"It was pretty mental," Arthur said. "It was about an hour and a half rowing a day with a strength session, so an hour of squats or some back, and then we'd also throw in a two-hour session twice a week, as well as different cross-fit style metabolic circuits. We'd call them endurance circuits and they'd be about two hours long, so it was just nice and varied."

Arthur also explained aside from strenuous training, the biggest challenge he faces was navigating the wild seas.

"The biggest challenge was the complexity of the route," he said. "You’ve got the Irish sea, you’ve got Scotland, you’ve got the North sea, and so you can never settle into a rhythm because everywhere you go it’s changing and it’s different."

Arthur Chatto

Autumn Phillips, Peter Phillips, Arthur Chatto, Lady Sarah Chatto and Daniel Chatto attend the wedding of Prince Harry to Ms Meghan Markle

(Image credit: Pool/Max Mumby / Contributor/ Getty)

When Arthur attended Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding in 2018, the royal caused quite a stir as royal fans labelled the Queen's great-grandnephew the hunk of the royal family.

As a personal trainer and athlete, the royal is incredibly buff and has even recently announced that he would be using his athletic training to pursue a career path in the marines.

Reportedly the Queen was ‘pleased and proud’ that the young royal would be following a military career path like many other members of the royal family.

Laura Harman

Laura is the Entertainment Editor for woman&home who primarily covers television, film, and celebrity news. Laura loves drinking and eating and can often be found trying to get reservations at London's trendiest restaurants. When she's not wining and dining, Laura can also be found travelling, baking, and hiking with her dog.