My routine included swimming in the pretty indoor pool (CLARE HOCTER)
I handed myself above to Anja Krebs, the Tannenhof’s chief therapist and counsellor. We worked by way of my listing ailments. She advised me that some many years ago she had felt the need to rebalance her own existence, and that a detox technique was key. I advised her she was a superb advert for it, with glowing skin and clear eyes, a trim figure and an aura of vitality. I desired some of that.
Her dietary advice centred on moving the physique from an acid-based diet regime to alkaline, the former becoming connected with signs and symptoms such as constipation, bloating, muscle and joint discomfort, and regular colds. I would be consuming dishes developed from green veggies, seeds and nuts (and their oils), wholegrain food items, gluten-cost-free buckwheat, almond milk and aromatic herbs I would be drinking herbal teas. Meat, poultry, processed meals, matured cheese and refined oils and fats, canned foods, sugar, tea and coffee would not function.
Nourishing soups and scrumptious smoothies – my favourite was liquidised rocket, walnuts, white grapes and pear juice – have been obtainable if I felt peckish, whilst major meals comprised little, exquisitely presented portions of natural regional create.
The therapy regime was drawn up from a wide selection of spa programmes on provide employing products from the organic Anika selection. Anya advised that I begin with a detoxifying Algae Physique Wrap to stimulate the lymphatic program and restore lustre to my dry skin, followed by the Tannenhof’s signature treatment, a silver quartz hot stone massage.
The stones, of differing shapes and sizes, are sourced from the mines in the South Tyrolean valley of Pfitschtal. They are rich in silicon dioxide, crucial minerals and uncommon gemstone crystals such as tourmaline and zircon. It is claimed that the stones “tone the connective tissues and de-acidify the body’’, although the professional massage is stated to stimulate the metabolic process and digestive program. The 80-minute treatment method – in a area infused with “the perfume of larch and the tree of incense”, to the primal sound of drums and monochord – was an experience to savour. I gave myself in excess of to the warmth of the oils and the rhythmic flow of the stones on my entire body, floating into oblivion.
Tannenhof’s signature therapy, a silver quartz scorching stone massage (CLARE HOCTER)
Every single day started with a green smoothie delivered to my area a exact thirty minutes prior to breakfast – the optimum time, apparently, to prime the digestive system. Following a specially concocted alkaline breakfast cereal, my routine – if you can call it that, when the emphasis was strictly on relaxation – comprised spa therapies, personalized yoga sessions, swimming in the indoor pool, enjoying the hammam or a bracing dash outside to the sauna.
In in between, I chilled out in my cosy suite with its wood-burning fire and panoramic views. Each and every evening I immersed myself in a deep rose-petal bath with muscle-easing salts additional. I didn’t view Tv, check my phone, pay attention to music or even choose up a guide. For the 1st time in months, my thoughts was free to roam.
By the finish of my remain, I felt immeasurably far better. But the notion of detox is, understandably, treated with scepticism by physicians, and nutritionists are sniffy about acid/alkaline diets, saying the body maintains its pH stability regardless.
Be that as it could. I think that my brief time at the Tannenhof gave me a likelihood to reconnect mind and physique and sometimes that is all that is required. I’ve had just one particular assault of ache in my encounter and jaw since I returned. It might be coincidental, but in my book anything at all that leaves you re-energised and optimistic can only be great.
A five-night detox at Hotel Tannenhof (St. Anton am Arlberg, Austria 0043 5446 30311, hoteltannenhof.net), in a suite, fees from £3,080 per couple. Package deal contains two detox experience remedies, two detox body wrap treatment options, a reflexology massage, two yoga sessions, and two guided hikes (plus ski passes in winter season). EasyJet (easyjet.com) flies from London Gatwick to Innsbruck, a 60-minute drive from the resort. For more info about the Austrian Tirol, go to visittirol.co.uk
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Hotel Tannenhof green smoothies recipes
150g spinach
100g rocket
50g cress
1 banana
Half a lemon with peel
Water
Blend all components in a food processor
Or:
150g green cabbage
100g parsley
Half a mango
six dried dates
Water
Mix all ingredients in a food processor
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Each day started with a green smoothie thirty minutes just before breakfast (CLARE HOCTER)
Mealtimes at Hotel Tannenhof
Breakfast
Alkaline breakfast cereal
300ml almond milk
4tbsp spoons chia seed
1tbsp coconut flakes
2tbsp spoons coconut chips
Fruit of your option (eg, banana, raspberry, mango)
Lunch
Zucchini carpaccio with mango, followed by prawn and tomato tagliolini with rucola, and a buckwheat and strawberry dessert.
Dinner
Tomato carpaccio with roasted tofu and pine nuts, followed by king oyster mushrooms with avocado and langostino, turbot, artichoke and black truffle, with a dessert of rhubarb, yoghurt and oats.
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20 alkaline superfoods to improve your wellbeing
Avocado (nutritional vitamins E and B, potassium)
Pumpkin (omega 3 and 6 fats, vitamins A, B and C)
Potato (vitamin C, iron, magnesium and potassium)
Amaranth seeds (higher ranges of the amino acid lysine)
Celery (calcium, vitamin B, aids digestion)
Celeriac vitamins B, C, K, iron, calcium and antioxidants)
Kale (1 of the most nutritious of all foods)
Almonds (large in protein, zinc, vitamin E)
Carrot (calcium, magnesium, vitamin A)
Quinoa (calcium, rich in protein)
Beetroot (nutrient rich, lowers blood pressure)
Oils (olive, hemp, pumpkin and other nuts and seeds)
Broccoli (vitamin C, calcium, dietary fibre)
Ginger (potassium, magnesium, calcium and phosphorous)
Watermelon, mango and papaya (vitamin C)
Fennel (vitamin C, potassium, manganese and fibre)
Figs (vitamin B and K, iron, potassium and magnesium)
Coconut water (antioxidant)
* Taken from The Alkaline Remedy: Shed Bodyweight, Achieve Power and Really feel Young by Dr Stephen Domenig (£14.99, Present day Books)
Location DETOX: 7 SHINING SPAS
Lefay Resort Italy
Set in woodland overlooking Lake Garda, this innovative spa resort provides brief-break detoxes involving algae wraps, saltwater treatments and mud massages.
www.lefayresorts.com
La Clairière France
A holistic “bio-spa” resort in Alsace supplying invigorating skin scrubs, massages, day-to-day group pursuits and fitness lessons.
la-clairiere.com
BodyHoliday St Lucia
Sweat away toxins in the resort’s treehouse spinning studio, although paddle boarding, Hobie Cat-sailing – or, much less strenuously, in the Caribbean’s greatest spa, exactly where treatment options contain physique wraps, deep tissue massages and hydrotherapies.
www.thebodyholiday.com
SHA Wellness Spain
Presently undergoing a large expansion to double its dimension, this hillside clinic outdoors Alicante is the excellent area to tackle well being troubles or get rid of fat the seven-night detox program requires yoga, tai chi, a healthier cookery program and luxury spa therapies galore.
shawellnessclinic.com
Viva Mayr Clinic Austria
For a complete gut cleanse, hit the daddy of medi-spas. Michael Gove spent a week right here and lost two stone.
viva-mayr.com
Amansala Chica Mexico
Perched on the Mayan riviera, this ‘bikini bootcamp’ – which has hosted Charlize Theron and Jade Jagger – runs Location Detox, a 5-day raw-foods programme developed to cleanse, nourish and consider off weight.
www.amansala.com/chica.php
Austrian mountain retreat restored me to peak efficiency
