paradise is healthy
Detox. The concept brought to my mind images of Draconian fasts, mud churning, and internal organ cleansing practices That made me cringe just thinking about it. The person who had done it warned me: "it's hard but the results are worth it". Enough to pique my curiosity.
Newcomer to the luxurious kamalaya hotel , erected in a piece of tropical jungle facing the sea of the Gulf of Thailand , I think that in such an environment it can't be that bad. The people I meet when I arrive seem to be self-absorbed in his white cotton pajamas , and they usually offer me a beatific smile that I don't know whether to attribute to the well-being achieved or to a kind of condescending warning for what awaits me.
The first surprise awaits me in the restaurant. The extensive detox menu includes various dishes for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I will not starve , and the director of public relations, Sophie Barret, clarifies it for me in our first meeting: "We believe in a detox that nourishes the body, that helps the digestive system to eliminate toxins, but without extreme aggression". That is, contrary to other systems, the Kamalaya practices the elimination of toxins through nutrition, and not fasting. The method designed exclusively by one half of the founding couple, Karina Stewart, also promotes improving sleep and eliminating stress.
A detox salad
My first meal consists of a vegetable curry, a cream of carrots and a strawberry sorbet . In addition, I can choose from the wide menu of juices with different properties, and I prefer a fresh coconut. I don't exactly get up from the table stuffed, but I'm not hungry either. The ingredients are fresh, the flavors are intense, and the breeze and views of the sea do the rest. “So anyone becomes a vegetarian”, I think. The menu has options for companions, or for those who want to skip the process at one point.
Every stay in the Kamlaya begins with a consultation with the naturopath in which the objectives and the plan to follow are established. We start with a Bioimpedance Body Test that measures my hydration levels, fat to muscle ratio, and cellular vitality. Based on the results, my program is established. For the next five days, eliminate dairy, meat, fish, eggs, soy, wheat, corn, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, potatoes, peanuts, and sugar from my diet . “There shouldn't be much more”, I think, but the daily menu will convince me otherwise. This crash diet is combined with daily treatments that favor detox, such as abdominal massage, infrared sauna or lymphatic drainage.
The kamalaya hotel milkshakes
If I still have time and energy, I can choose between the free activities of yoga, Pilates and meditation, among others. And when I need to get away from it all, my luxurious room without internet or television but with incredible views of the sea, will help me regain strength or rest from the hustle and bustle. Wait a minute, no internet? Really? That could be almost harder than giving up coffee for five days. But Sophie makes it clear to me, the idea is to disconnect from the outside to reconnect with oneself, and Internet addiction can be as toxic as caffeine or tobacco.
The first day passes without incident, I begin to relax in this atmosphere of peace and tranquility. Time passes going back and forth from my room to the Wellness Center, where the different treatments take place. But throughout the second day, it begins to make its appearance a headache resulting from caffeine withdrawal, which although tolerable, does not leave me . The feeling of nausea and tiredness that goes along with the headache tells me that my body has more toxins than I thought. It is the unwritten principle of detox: the worse you feel, the more toxins your body is eliminating.
Fortunately, my busy schedule of treatments does not leave me much time to complain and due to the absence of coffee and the peace of the place I fall in a soporific state during most treatments . The hardest moment is breakfast, that first contact with the world that has always been so difficult for me to change. For many years I have told myself that I was nothing without that first coffee of the day, which would later become 3 or 4, but I resign myself to choosing between herbal infusions. Together with them, I will make an effort to drink the two shots in the morning: one of wheat grass that has the same nutritional properties as a kilo of vegetables , and another that contains anti-inflammatory properties and promises to improve memory and intelligence. With such attributes, I can't ignore them, even though it takes effort to swallow them.
the yoga pavilion
I go to the restaurant accompanied by my book and I realize with pleasure that there are many people who eat and dine alone, in the most natural way , which makes this often awkward situation very easy to deal with. There's also a communal table that sits at couples who want to strike up conversations with other guests, but my general malaise leaves me in no mood for conversations with strangers. Most of the guests are in their thirties and over, Europeans and Australians, of whom, I am told, 30 percent repeat each year.
It will not be until the fourth day that I wake up with the surprise that my old friend the headache has left me. Instead of waking up like a junkie looking for my fix, he bounded out of bed with a clear head. Throughout the day I check that my levels of energy, concentration and well-being are well above the usual . I feel lighter, and not just on the outside. My skin appreciates the restful nights of sleep, yoga and infrared saunas. And the hours of leisure without internet or television have also borne fruit: I have finished reading the appropriate Hunger Games, which I brought without starting in my suitcase.
But what now? Back in my usual environment, will I be able to retain any of the lessons learned in the midst of the daily chaos? I say goodbye to the Kamalaya with a recipe book under my arm and many purposes. Five days after returning, I try being more mindful of what I eat and drink, and my coffee intake has been reduced to one cup a day . Temptations assail me at every Starbucks I pass by, and I'm not about to give up my little food vices, but I'm determined to continue exploring this newfound world of wellness through smart nutrition. And if I could, I would be part of that 30 percent that makes this experience in the Kamalaya an annual appointment to reconnect with oneself.
The treatment room