Alpine Detox

Gut Feeling: This Alpine Detox Resort is the Reset Your Belly Needs

Written by Jane Wilson
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It was a busy detox week and an active one too at Park Igls Medical Spa Resort near Innsbruck, Austria.

First, I shouted, stomped wildly and mirrored ferocious stares while imagining I was practicing for the rugby all-blacks pre-game ceremony. Then it was fitness boxing to strengthen my punches and left hook. And finally, I  trampolined while staying focused on the snow-capped mountains to encourage balance. And this was just one part of the varied programme prepared for me in this serene alpine setting.

The more serious, holistic and scientific part lay in the principles behind the reasons for my visit.

 

Gut Feelings: Modern Mayr Medicine

Modern Mayr Medicine adheres to the philosophy that a poorly functioning gut is a contributing factor to an array of physical and emotional ailments brought on by todays’ societal demands such as stress, work and diet, and the principle behind a stay at Park Igls is to restore balance to our lives by resetting our digestive systems.

The Modern Mayr concept began as the FX Mayr cure a hundred years ago. Dr FX Mayr was a pioneer of natural and preventive medicine and introduced dietetics and therapeutic fasting to Western medicine. The philosophy remains true today and has been renewed at Park Igls to incorporate conventional with complementary medicine with a dose of psychology.

The belief is that health, beauty and vitality are dependent on the digestive system and a poorly functioning one impairs every aspect of our health. A holistic approach to fixing this underpins each programme at Park Igls.

 

Alpine Detox

Enjoy the swimming pool, sauna and gym at Park Igls

Park Igls

Park Igls was an officially designated health resort during Emperor Franz Joseph’s reign. Today, it’s a contemporary health retreat perched on a sunny plateau, framed in a postcard like setting in the Austrian alps.

Managed by a professional and friendly team overflowing in warm hospitality, Park Igls feels more homely than “hotely”, comforting rather than clinical. Between treatments and activities, guests can relax in a restful library with a selection of English books and exchange therapy experiences with other guests over herbal tea.

There is also a stunning spa with multiple saunas and loungers look out to the surrounding garden.

Meanwhile, 51 single and double rooms and suites are fresh and spacious, decked with parquet flooring, oak furniture, and a few with their own infrared sauna.

Programmes

Park Igls offers made-to-measure programmes to suit individual needs.

The Detox Classic includes detoxing therapies and relaxing full-body massages making it an ideal introductory programme to Modern Mayr Medicine.The Immune Booster is designed to strengthen the system to makes us more resilient to illnesses, especially as two thirds of our immune system’s defence cells are located in the intestines.

Others programmes include Neuro-Fit, De-Stress and Menopause Fit.

Read the full descriptions here

 

Alpine Detox

Food is nutritious, delicious, organic and prepared with your wellness programme in mind

Cuisine

Chew Chew Chew—20 to 30 times with each bite to activate the saliva. It is one of the key principles of the Mayr Cure and you’ll hear this a lot.

We are all guilty of eating too quickly, too much, too often. We are tempted by the convenience of a quick bite or food-on-the-go eating styles, unaware of the toll such habits have on our digestive system.

The Mayr diet believes in regulating the acid/alkaline balance in the body through nutrition and thus meals at Park Igls are organic, light, diet-appropriate, and attentive to this composition. Herbs and spices replace salt while gentle cooking methods ensure the retention of vital nutrients.

To support the internal cleansing process, there is an abundance of fresh spring water, herbal teas, vegetable broths and mineral water available to guests. It’s the daily early morning glass of bitterwater that has the most profound effect.

An eight-stage nutrition programme for healthy fasting is explained and each guest is advised to follow one in accordance with their needs. Each stage focuses on a limited number of carefully selected products which are combined with various protein supplements, juices, teas and broths.

I followed the stage four food combining menu, and meals were colourful and presented as art on a plate. I especially enjoyed the mille-feuille created with sweet potato, pistachios, green vegetables gino and shiso cress, which I savoured over a 30 minute period.

A weekly cookery class (for an additional fee) by head chef Markus Sorg chef demonstrates how to concoct nutritious dishes to cheat the eye, benefit the gut, and delight the tastebuds.

 

Alpine Detox

Unwind, read, chat with fellow detoxers  indoors or out

Treatments

With an extensive list of therapies, treatments and diagnostic tests, choosing before arrival can be stressful but the initial consultation with a doctor (there are seven) devises the most suitable programme which is the monitored throughout your stay.

IV drip therapy

Guests following the Immune Booster package benefit from intravenous drip therapy. This helps the body’s ability to self-heal with nutrients that it might be lacking such as vitamin C, zinc, alkaline or a combined “pick-me-up”.

Kneipp®rituals

Kneipp hydrotherapy sessions are encouraged once a day and are believed to be one of the oldest forms of treatment, traced back to ancient Rome and established by Sebastian Kneipp. This therapeutic technique involves submerging part of the body in hot water followed by a shorter time in cold water. Modern Mayr Medicine prescribes arm, foot and seated contrast baths to ease headaches, stimulate circulation, and detoxification and even prevent cold feet. Kneipp therapy is available to all guests.

IHHT

Without climbing a mountain, IHHT, (otherwise labelled as cell training) offers the benefit of altitude training while wearing a breathing mask to take in a prescribed oxygen mixture. This involves oxygen-poor air alternating with oxygen rich air. Regular cell training activates and regenerates the mitochondria (the “power plants” of our cells) and promotes healthy cell metabolism – a good formula for anti-ageing.

Edmund Jacobson Progressive Muscle Relaxation Technique

Breathe in, breathe out. Based on the principle of tension and relaxation, this method focuses on the muscles. Whenever we experience stress or anxiety, we tense our muscles. In turn, relaxing the muscles creates a feeling of calm. Progressive Muscle Relaxation uses deep muscular relaxation to counteract stress reactions.

Moist heat packs

Swiss pine or hay flowers, a beeswax compress, or a curd cheese wrap placed on the liver area help accelerate the detoxification process. Natural beeswax is rich in myricin and cerotic acid and, applied in a hot compress or a classic medical wrap, stimulates long-term blood flow to the liver. Curd cheese wraps have been part of the home remedy repertoire for centuries –the lactic acid bacteria opens the pores to allow the heat of inflammation to be absorbed by the curd cheese.

Medical Massage 

Medical massages are the order of the day at Park Igls, and some are combined with other therapies, such as reflexology, as prescribed by intuitive therapists.

Ranging from Penzel acupressure, lymphatic drainage to Shiatsu, a holistic massage releases energetic blockages by applying pressure to the meridians, joints, muscles and tendons.

I found craniosacral massage to be the most effective. The rhythmic pulsation of the cerebrospinal fluid activates self-healing and resolves functional impairments and psychological trauma. I felt calmer, clearer and more balanced.

 

Alpine detox

Staying active and finding time to relax are part of each day at Park Igls

Keep Active

Individual and group classes together with a state-of-the-art fitness area provided the incentive to keep active. You could choose from kybun® classes testing balance on wobbly kyBounder mats, or sign up for foot exercises, therapeutic climbing, sling training or even golf swing instruction. Step outside for nordic walks along neighbouring trails through fields of fresh alpine air.

It was the Aroha® and Kaha classes that grabbed my enthusiasm with aggressive poses that seemed the most powerful to unearth deep seated anger. Aroha combines the expressive movements of the war dance (Haka) of the Maori from New Zealand – the Haka expresses the strength within while Kung Fu gives the programme its body control with components of Kung Fu and Tai Chi.

Combined, they train mind, body and soul to attain a feeling of well-being and inner peace.

My Take-Away

They say beauty comes from within and by adopting the key principles of Modern Mayr medicine at Park Igls Medical Spa Resort, I believe this to be true.

I have kicked and stomped my way to a fitter level, while personalised medical massages have rebalanced and reunited my body with my mind. My immunity has been topped up with those supplementary vitamins it yearned but it was my digestive system that benefited the most.

This was a conscious approach to self-healing, an investment in sustainable wellness, and a memorable experience to take home, equipped with tools to integrate into my daily life.

 

Book Your Stay at Park Igls Medical Spa Resort (www.park-igls.at / +43 512 377305).

Accommodation prices include breakfast, parking, and transfers to/from Innsbruck Airport or Station (20 minutes away).

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Alpine Detox

Enjoy an alpine detox in a sunny south Tyrol setting just 15 minutes from Innsbruck, Austria

 

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BeSeeingYou In: Park Igls Medical Spa Resort

Good To Know: To feel the full effect of Modern Mayr Medicine, a minimum stay of 14-21 nights is recommended but a 7-night stay will be beneficial.

WOW Factor: Take time to use the spa and experience Aufguss, the choreographed towel dance in a sauna by the ritual’s artisan. Based on an ancient practice, this ritual heightens the health benefits of traditional vaporization techniques with the effects of medicinal herbs. Be warned – no clothes allowed and its hot.

Tip: The Park Igls will arrange theatre and concert outings in Innsbruck.

 

Author Bio: Jane Wilson, The Wellness Traveller

Find more travel inspiration at BeSeeingYou

 

Jane Wilson

Jane is a travel journalist who specialises in wellness travel, an area which has moved beyond the spa and yoga mat and is firmly on-trend. Think slow travel, rituals, retreats, indigenous therapies and destination medi-spas for the ultimate make-over for mind, body & soul. Whatever the reason, Jane considers travel as an investment in health and wellbeing.

As a regular contributor to BeSeeingYou, you will always discover that healthy twist laced into her articles. Jane writes for a range of UK magazines as well her own online media The Wellness Traveller.co.uk

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