Bryn Tanat Wellness, Powys - travel review

Detox spa and fitness holidays are something that more and more people are embarking on – a week of meditation, healthy eating and pampering. But how many people return home, energised and glowing, only to slip back into their old habits within a few days or weeks?

I was lucky enough to experience a new wellness programme that has changed my ideas of healthy eating and given me tools to cope with the stresses and strains of every day life.

Bryn Tanat Wellness has been launched with the ethos – harmonise mind and body. It is offering both day-long masterclasses and four day programmes.

Its creator, Susan Martin, developed an interest in health and wellness when, as a teenager she was in and out of hospital with scoliosis for two years and continues to manage the debilitating condition. She discovered that a different way of eating helped her to not only cope but to live a full and healthy life.

She and her family had already turned their home on the Shropshire/Welsh border into five star short break accommodation when her passion for good health led her to six years of research to create Bryn Tanat Wellness.

Driving through the beautiful countryside at the bottom of the Tanat valley on the Shropshire/Wales border you cannot help but feel relaxed. Bryn Tanat is an historic country hall that has a friendly, home from home feeling.

My room was tastefully decorated. It had an en-suite shower and beautiful views over fields and the Welsh foothills.

Guests on the programme arrive at the same time and introductions are made over a cup of tea and a delicious cake. Yes, cake – not what I had expected. I was later to realise that the week would be full of delicious, yet good for you food all prepared by chefs at Bryn Tanat. We were soon enjoying Laughter Yoga to break the ice and learn that laughter can help our bodies as well as our minds.

Susan has brought together a team of experts to put together a range of Wellness programmes, from weight management and detoxification to stress management and dealing with auto-immune diseases.

As our programme was weight management we spent time each day with clinical nutritionist, Lynn Adams. Lynn fought her way back to good health from triple vessel coronary heart disease 18 years ago by researching lifestyle and eating habits.

Exercising four times a week and training for triathlons and in the past marathons, I ensured I had 'good carbs' in every meal, porridge, brown bread and potatoes, rice or pasta.

Imagine my horror when I was told that, apart from small new potatoes, those weren't thought healthy at all.

The aim was to get most carbs in vegetables with just one portion of other carbs a day. Meals were based on good proteins and plenty of vegetables.

The next shock was that we would have a five hour gap between breakfast and lunch and then lunch and dinner, when all we could have was water. No mid morning banana or afternoon cereal bar, just water.

But it was easier that I would have ever believed. Despite the lack of carbs, the food was so delicious, I felt full after every meal. We enjoyed pastry made with ground almonds, cauliflower mash instead of mashed potatoes and yummy, free from wheat and oats granola.

Lynn explained scientifically how the body works and why cutting out wheat and using foods such as coconut, linseed and others, can have such a positive effect on health - a real eduction. It really is true, an apple a day keeps the doctor away – and chicken consommé, which doctors gave ailing people in the past, really can sort out your digestive system.

Thanks to a pre-programme questionnaire and an optional Metabolic Analysis Profile she also gave us individually tailored help and advice. It was almost spooky how she pinpointed so accurately how I felt, physically and emotionally, and showed me how my food choices could help.

In a holistic approach the programme combines looking after body and mind.

The gentle Chi Gung instructor, James Lanyon showed us that this form of martial art is an ancient form of mindfulness – such a buzz work at the moment. We also enjoyed yogic breathing and also 'belly' breathing.

Fitness expert and a former member of the UK pentathlon Olympic development squad, Zoe Thomas, tailored her fitness classes to the individuals in our group. Circuit training meant each person could work to their own ability.

Then there is hypnotherapist, Edward Arran, something I had not expected. As a journalist I have grown to be a sceptic and cynic. So how on earth could someone gently hypnotise me so that I could not move a muscle and, so that I could talk to my own sub-conscious, described by Edward as the five-year- old in my head.

It was incredible, not an outer-body, but an inner-body experience. I don't know what he did, or how, but he did it.

It certainly wasn't all hard work at Bryn Tanat.

We all enjoyed a fabulous Aromatherapy Associates Ultimate Massage from therapist, Kirsty Martin, again tailored to our own needs. For one person it was relaxation, for me, de-stressing the mind.

Bryn Tanat has a wonderful gym where you can work out during your free time – if you want to. But if you would rather you can enjoy time in Bryn Tanat's infra-red sauna and wonderful hydrotherapy.

Then of course there are 14 acres of glorious grounds, including a riverside walk and woodland, to explore while Bryn Tanat has cosy lounges and a host of books to curl up with.

Enjoyment summed up my week. The house party style of living meant we bonded quickly with each other and having to say goodbye to new found friends on their own journey of "finding themselves" was quite emotional.

Experts and other guests agreed I was, at the beginning of the week, the most sceptical of our group.

But I left feeling completely re-energised and feeling healthier than I had in a long, long time. Snacking at work has become very occasional while my caffeine intake had been cut by about 75 per cent.

I am learning that I can run, bike and swim on fewer and healthier carbs and my mirror tells me that the new way of eating suits me. The only thing I miss is bread.

Most importantly, I feel calmer, more able to cope with life. Bryn Tanat Wellness has certainly worked for me.