Pleasures of the fresh
A three-day detox in Phuket proves just the tonic for jaded desk jockey Tim Pratt
in your mouth for 20 minutes, scraping the body from head to toe with a dry brush, and urinating on a stick: not your usual five-star morning rituals. But Amanpuri in Phuket is doing things differently this summer with its new Wellness Retreat.
You will have ample time to bask on the beach and bathe in the balmy waters of the Andaman Sea, but the sybaritic splendour will be punctuated by moments of sweat, mild pain and a measure of deprivation.
The resort's spa team designs an integrated movement and nutrition programme tailored to each guest, which includes a series of Pilates and yoga sessions along with spa treatments that aim to boost circulation, remove toxins and imbue a general sense of well-being.
This jaded desk jockey was overdue a detoxification, but I had just three days to sample everything the five-day retreat had to throw at me. Could tangible results be achieved in such a brief stay? Resident naturopath Janelle Castle assured me they could.
First order of business is an hour-long evaluation with Castle, which covers everything from diet and medical history to sleeping patterns and exercise regime. She also asks after my mental and emotional health - didn't see that coming - and I open up after she explains the reason for exploring such personal territory. Castle is an exponent of polarity therapy, a discipline that blends mostly Ayurvedic principles with Western counselling techniques and traditional Chinese methods. It aims to "balance" the body's flow of "energy" through exercise, diet and what is referred to as "body work".
I'm told these hands-on sessions can lead to intense emotional releases such as crying or uncontrollable laughter, but for most clients they are just relaxing. My session goes off without any tears and only a little laughter. It involves little more than the laying on of hands and a gentle rocking of the head, hips and feet. Castle says my liver was giving off a lot of heat (cue the laughter) and the pool of sweat on the table is proof a lot of energy has been expended.