Wellness
THERAPIES
HEALING
NUTRITION
MINDFULNESS
MOVEMENT
RETREATS
EDITED BY HELLENA BARNES
Editor’s choice
Six Senses settles guests into a new standard of sleep Guest experience programme delivering a focus on sleep wellbeing is set to be rolled out globally across resorts by mid-2017 GLOBAL: It is widely acknowledged that humans should ideally spend at least one third of their life sleeping. However, according to Six Senses, even those getting an optimal amount of sleep may not be experiencing the required quality. To address this situation, the global hospitality brand has worked with international sleep expert Dr Michael J. Breus to create Sleep with Six Senses. The new programme includes use of the Aura Sleep Tracker App, data from which is reviewed by a Six Senses integrated wellness practitioner during a 30-minute guest consultation. Based on the results, a personalised regime of spa treatments and activities can be recommended to help improve sleep. “The Six Senses sleep programme is perhaps the most advanced in the hospitality industry to date,
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bringing in some of the best experts in the world,” says Anna Bjurstam, vice-president of Six Senses Spas. “It is the first wellness programme on a large scale that is not taking place within the spa and fitness areas, but in the guest rooms.” Sleep with Six Senses starts with a pre-arrival online questionnaire that enables ‘sleep ambassadors’, who have completed a training programme created under the leadership and guidance of Dr Breus, to understand the guest’s relationship with sleep in order to prepare key tools and tips for improvement. The ambassadors, available on call each day to support sleeping needs, can fine-tune guest bedrooms for optimum sleep conditions with handmade mattresses and organic bedding that features natural breathing and cooling zones.
Guests are also provided with a ‘sleep bag’, which contains a selection of specially developed and sourced sleeping aids, including bamboo-fibre pyjamas, an eye mask, ear plugs, nose strips, nasal neti pot and a jasmine sleep spritzer. Further aids to sleep include the Six Senses Little Book of Wellness and a worry journal, as well as a USB drive uploaded with Six Senses videos providing suggestions for sleep improvement. The initiative has been rolled out at seven of the group’s resorts, with the remainder to be fully implemented by mid-2017. “This is just a start to making Six Senses resorts truly rounded wellness destinations in all areas. It is a very exciting time for us,” Bjurstam added. www.sixsenses.com
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Wellness Trends & developments
Personal approach at Palace Wellness SWITZERLAND: Palace Wellness Spa at Badrutt’s Palace Hotel, in St Moritz, one of the most luxurious and natural spas in the Swiss Alps, is preparing to launch four wellness programmes directed by the hotel’s newly appointed wellness coach, Vinod Kumar. The seven-day itineraries of ten personalised sessions include: Stress Management, with therapeutic massage and Ayurvedic treatments such as Shirodhara; Balancing the Energy Flow, which focuses on achieving equilibrium in the body’s energy channels; Releasing Physical and Emotional Pain, with yoga and energising massages; and A Journey to Self Love, teaching self-guided meditation and self-massage techniques. “Our guests will learn how to meditate and use the practice of specific yoga techniques to manage their wellbeing and prevent the onset of disease,” says Martha Wiedemann, associate director of Palace Wellness. “The treatments offered within the programme are designed to support the process to give results in seven days.” www.lhw.com/hotel/Badrutts-Palace-Hotel-St-Moritz-Switzerland
Choose from rest, engagement and cultivation on St. Barts CARIBBEAN: Le Guanahani, located on the island of Saint-Barthélemy, is celebrating its 30th anniversary with the culmination of a four-year, £33 million renovation and the launch of three new wellness packages entitled Rest, Engage and Cultivate. Its Spa My Blend by Clarins has also introduced eight new Body Bliss treatments, each customised for the five-star resort by botanist Nick James in conjunction with specialists in the fields of massage, bodywork, aromatherapy, colour therapy, teaching and design. The spa, which recommends guests begin their stay with a private coaching session to establish wellness intentions, is the only property in the Caribbean to offer Spa My Blend by Clarins. www.leguanahani.com
Read it and eat
UK: A new book by Stephanie Moore, intriguingly entitled Why Eating Less & Exercising More Makes You Fat, looks beyond conventional thinking to the biological principles of healthy eating. The senior associate of the Royal Society of Medicine and head of nutrition at Grayshott Spa in Surrey shares a system of science-based interventions to trigger fat burning and regulate appetite control. The book includes advice on blood sugar management, the importance of healthy gut microbiome and why intermittent fasting is one of the quickest ways to lose weight. www.health-in-hand.co.uk
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A starter for ten
Between the covers
GERMANY: Applying Lanserhof’s nutritional expertise, based on the FX Mayr method, the German No.1 bestseller, The 50 Healthiest 10-Minute Recipes, is now available in English. “Nowadays everything has to go quickly and little attention is being paid to a healthy diet,” says Dr Christian Harisch, managing director of the Lanserhof Group. “We would like to introduce people to healthy cuisine that is very simple to integrate into everyday life. Our motto is ‘less time for preparation, more time for conscious eating.’” www.lanserhof.com
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Wellness Trends & developments
Rebalancing and rekindling
Save-cation breaks
When Valentine’s Day requires more than roses in a crowded restaurant, couples are turning to spa and wellness locations to help bring them closer together. “Those who don’t want to give up on their relationship are opting for what’s becoming known as the save-cation,” says Paul Joseph, director of Health and Fitness Travel. “Bookings for couples’ healthy holidays with personalised packages are on the increase as a new way to experience time together and rekindle relationships. These can range from renewing connections while hiking in the Himalayas to relationship counselling or learning new skills such as yoga while exploring new locations.” Amatara Connect THAILAND: ‘Escape to reconnect’ is a key message at the exotic Amatara Wellness Resort on the island of Phuket in Thailand (right), which focuses on togetherness through a series of healing arts and activities. Therapeutic Thai and Ayurvedic-influenced spa treatments complement workshops that teach couples how to massage each other and use touch to increase their bond, while shared cooking classes and fitness sessions add an element of fun.
The Chateau Couples Wellness Rejuvenation
Ananda Active
Marbella Club De-Stress Emotional Rebalance
MALAYSIA: Created for those seeking to boost their mind, body and soul connections, The Chateau Spa and Organic Wellness Resort offers a relationship rejuvenation programme set in the grounds of a tropical rainforest. It provides new pathways of communication during tailored relationship enhancement counselling together with new experiences such as discovering the surroundings on horseback and taking yoga classes, nature walks and personal training sessions.
INDIA: Adventure hiking in the Himalayas during three personalised guided treks is designed to forge a stronger bond between couples. Luxury wellness retreat Ananda-in-the-Himalayas, set in India’s mountain foothills, also teaches the subtle energies of yogic practice to help anger management issues, during Pranayama, alongside calming spa treatments, personal fitness in the shape of bootcamps and aqua fitness sessions to reclaim body confidence.
SPAIN: Couples can discover how to manage emotional stress and alleviate the affects it has on their relationship during time spent at the luxurious Marbella Club. Approaching each person separately, this wellness programme helps couples to rebalance their personal wellbeing to the benefit of their relationship. Located along the ‘golden mile’ of southern Spain, the itinerary also provides health consultations and emotional coaching sessions.
For more details visit www.healthandfitnesstravel.com
A wellness brainwave at Corinthia UK: Corinthia London has announced a year-long neuroscientist-in-residence programme in collaboration with leadership coach Dr Tara Swart, an award-winning author and senior lecturer at MIT. Developing concepts that encourage mindfulness, balance and positivity, Brain Power Packages will focus on neuro-nutrition, restorative sleep, hydration and exercise – further cementing ESPA Life at Corinthia as a leader in its field. “This programme will be the first of its kind and ESPA Life at Corinthia is the ideal host for such a ground-breaking offer,” explains Dr Swart. “There is a strong connection between the brain and the body, and the spa element of the programme will encourage guests to reduce their stress hormone levels. Combined with the brain foods and ‘mocktails’ I have designed, as well as quality sleep courtesy of the hotel’s in-room programme, this will help to build mental resilience and ultimately enable peak brain performance.” www.espalifeatcorinthia.com
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Wellness Trends & developments
Wellbeing Experts We ask Aromatherapy Associates’ chief executive officer Tracey Woodward how the brand’s new power panel of Wellbeing Experts aims to nurture life balance, support self-belief and encourage healthy living for its clients
Miraggio Cleanse Retreat has a personal touch GREECE: The five-star Miraggio Thermal Spa Resort in Halkidiki has partnered with nutritionist Amanda Hamilton to unveil a new 5-Day Cleanse Retreat. The bespoke journey not only offers guests dietary expertise as well as the benefits of its Myrthia Thermal Spa, which overlooks the Aegean Sea, but also provides a three-month post-retreat follow-up plan for guests once they leave. Rooted in the belief that personalisation is the key to wellness, bespoke programmes are designed
for guests following one-to-one consultations, and participants are provided with healthy menu options and activities that work to effectively eliminate toxins, rejuvenate the spirit and clear the mind. With a focus on juice cleansing, the retreat incorporates two hours of daily detox exercise along with Thalasso spa treatments, nutritional guidance and massage therapy. www.miraggio.gr
www.amandahamilton.com
Ti Sana cooks up a ‘healthatarian’ diet philosophy ITALY: Further progressing its original, science-based approach to wellness and diet, Italian detox retreat and spa Ti Sana has developed a new ‘healthatarian’ menu to enhance the effects of its renowned wellness programmes. “The most important part of designing this menu was to calculate and distribute the food in line with the physiological needs of the body throughout five meals,” says Ti Sana vice-president Mario Sela. Customised to each guest, the menu is rich in micro-nutrients and enzymes, and maintains the macro traits of Ti Sana’s ‘healthatarian’ philosophy, aiding circadian rhythms with its low-salt, hypocaloric, alkalising and organic properties. www.tisana.com
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What inspired you to create your Wellbeing Experts panel? We launched Wellbeing Experts because there was a space that needed to be filled. Everybody wants wellness and solutions to 21st-century living. As a brand, consumers turn to us in good times for the performance of our products, but also in Tracey Woodward challenging times when they are sleep deprived, lacking energy or just not motivated. Therefore, we wanted to provide a knowledge base to meet their needs. Who are your experts and how will they work? Our goal is to focus not just on how people feel, but also how they think. Using experts in change, we want to offer support to customers of the businesses we supply and also to their staff, through workshops, events and social media. Our power panel will work across five categories: De-stress – fitness, health and mindfulness coach Nicola Addison; Support – inspirational expert Janet Tarasofsky; Inner Strength – somatic coach Jonathan Ward; Revive – health nutritionist, wellbeing and lifestyle coach Yvonne Wake; and Relax – laughter yoga coach Julie Whitehead. How will this project benefit spa businesses? This is about looking after the people who look after the people. I didn’t personally feel that there was anything I could do to improve the oils that Geraldine Howard and Sue Beechey created many years ago. However, I want to underpin the value of our products by offering ways to help people live better and find balance in their busy lives through education and aromatherapy. I have a duty of care, not just to look after my people and our customers but to also continue with Geraldine’s legacy, building a brand that was founded on truth and kindness. www.aromatherapyassociates.com
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