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Ti Sana has the ambiance of a monastery; an ancient but very smart monastery. Set in the heart of a small Italian village, midway between Milan and Lake Como, the spa has been created from an eighteenth century noble’s house and is intimate; a cluster of buildings looking inwards on itself – all soft stone and thick rustic beams. It’s on a firm mission – to bring you to awareness about your health; to encourage you to make conscious choices about your diet, exercise and general lifestyle – and they’re taking no prisoners. The owner Erica d’Angelo and her team are young and highly committed – they walk their talk every step of the way. But there’s nothing flakey about this place – everything they do is based on the firmest science they can find.
Testing times First stop for any of their detox retreats is a series of tests at the medical spa, followed by a consultation with the spa doctor. There’s no hiding – if you fib on your questionnaire about your eating or exercise habits, you'll be found out as the tests can tell pretty much everything – for instance, not only if you’ve got too much fat, but where it is and what type it is. They can pinpoint deficiencies and highlight any inflammation or weaknesses. Despite being a vegetarian who
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For anyone in need of a full health MOT, Ti Sana sorts the wheatgrass from the chaff, says Jane Alexander doesn’t drink alcohol or coffee, and who exercises like a fiend, there was still plenty of concern in my reports. “Sometimes you have to tweak what you’re doing,” says Mario, the physical trainer who is part of the testing team. “For instance, you should eat more in the mornings and do your hard physical exercise then too, when your body is producing cortisol, rather than in the evening.” Food is medicine at Ti Sana and there are three paths to choose. You can go hardcore with a seven-day juice detox or opt for the middle path with a raw food diet. Or there’s the ‘energy lifestyle’ option which gives you a much wider diet, while still having a strong detox effect. I genuinely had more than I could eat on the latter – but a fellow guest (and novice detoxer) struggled with the juice-only option and begged for the occasional bowl of soup. The spa isn’t draconian though – if you must have salt and
pepper they’re provided. All the food is so squeaky fresh they dub it ‘live food’. The spa grows as much of its own fruit and veg as it can, at the organic garden, and does its own sprouting. Food combinations are chosen very carefully to bring out the nutrients in each meal, so they can be absorbed in the most effective fashion.
Perfect start Mornings start with a walk along the nearby River Adda, a serene space where you watch the early morning mist unfolding while the swans glide imperiously and the moorhens perform their water acrobatics. Then it’s back for juice (some delicious, some not quite so) before a relatively energetic morning fitness class (rebounding or kickboxing were on the menu when I stayed). Afternoons usually include some kind of educational talk or demonstration – how to detox,
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Ti Sana is situated between Lake Como (pictured) and Milan
Life & Style | ESCAPES
how to cook healthy food, even a trip to a local supermarket to teach you how to read labels and make wise choices for your shopping basket. But it’s not all dour and worthy – guests can also go on a boat trip on the nearby lakes or even check out designer shopping in the renowned outlets around Milan. Then you need to carve out time for the spa. Again, it’s small but rather lovely. You can take a ‘journey’ through a series of showers (mimicking different types of rain with varying scents), saunas and steams. The salt cave is a hydrotherapy pool with one of those light shows that goes through the rainbow and a series of water jets to pummel and massage you. The spa menu is broad, a little too broad to my mind – but their detox packages sensibly focus on deep
tissue massage, manual lymphatic drainage and body scrubs.
Flexible approach Ti Sana is small (there are only 22 rooms and they will only take around ten people at a time for detox) so there’s usually a high degree of flexibility around your program. They will also tailor your diet to any specific issues you need to address. If you don’t feel like showing your detox spots to the world, meals will be brought to your room. But there’s not much chance of wriggling out of colon hydrotherapy. The team is evangelical about the need for deep cleansing of the colon and everyone takes a trip to the medical spa to sit
in the ‘Angel of Water’ for a session. I’m not a fan of colonics but, to be fair, this is the least invasive I’ve had. You are in charge of the controls yourself (although a therapist is on hand and with you in seconds if you need help) and it’s all very discrete. Did I enjoy it? Not really. But it wasn’t unbearable by any means. This is the perfect place for the spa pragmatist. If you hate anything wafty or touchy feely; and want clear, straightforward and scientific, this is your spot.
More information Ti Sana, Arlate, Italy (1711.it). Trip was organised by Wellbeing Escapes (wellbeingescapes.co.uk) which offers an exclusive seven-day detox package at Ti Sana from £1,799 (all inclusive, including flights and transfers).
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