In bed by 10pm without supper? Trish Lesslie finds its not so hard to digest at The Golfhotel Health Spa in Austria.
3 May 2006
I’ve just returned from a two-week stay at The Golfhotel health spa in Austria – 5lbs lighter than on arrival and minus the spectacularly bloated belly and persistent under-eye circles I’d been sporting for months prior to my visit.
Perched on the banks of Lake Worth in the tiny village of Dellach, the Golfhotel may not be the most indulgent of resorts – it’s more clinical than the fluffy-bath-robe and-slippers vibe of most spas - but it does give you the chance to achieve great results on the health and beauty front. After a two-week stay (you can go for a little as four days, but the effects won’t be anywhere near as dramatic), you can expect to come home relaxed, lighter and probably looking the best you’ve looked in years – I certainly did.
It’s all down to the philosophy of Dr F X Mayr, an Austrian medic who forged his ground-breaking ideas during the first half of the 20th century. He believed that many health problems have their roots in the digestive system. Give this vital tract a bit of a break through fasting or eating only the simplest of foods and it will heal itself, allowing the rest of the body to put right a whole host of problems from bloating and bad posture to tiredness and saggy skin, or so the theory goes
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But while a stay at the Mayr involves regular appointments with fully trained doctors, early morning exercise sessions and very little food, there are some fabulously pampering beauty treatments on offer that allow you to fine-tune your exterior while your insides ‘regenerate’ themselves.
I had a 90-minute facial that left my skin with a positively child-like radiance thanks to the generous use of products from London’s Organic Pharmacy, which are free from artificial preservatives, colours and fragrances. The heavenly salt scrub treatment left the skin all over my body as soft as a baby’s, while my feet were still looking fantastic a week after the incredibly thorough pedicure carried out by Martina, one of the sweetest and most thorough therapists you could hope for.
OK, so eating stale spelt bread and sheep’s yoghurt for breakfast and lunch – and chewing each bite 50 times – isn’t everyone’s idea of fun, and going without dinner every evening can be pretty tough. But for me the almost daily massages included in the package, divine beauty treatments on offer and scenic woodland walks on the doorstep more than compensated for the lack of food.
As for the early nights (it’s general lights-out by 10pm at the Golfhotel), to me just the chance to catch up on some sleep made the trip worthwhile. Getting at least eight hours shut-eye a night is a beauty treatment that really is hard to beat, and that’s just what I got for a whole two weeks. Sheer bliss…
All in all, if you want to come back from your break looking years younger without resorting to surgery or Botox, you could do a lot worse than a stay here. Just don’t expect to be bowled over by the food – you’re more likely to keel over from the lack of it!