“The nutrition of the blacksmith will kill the tailor.” Dr. F. X. Mayr
Day two at the Mayr Clinic Altaussee was a revelation. The newly-installed routine (the general pattern at the Mayr: up at 6am, laxative-induced loo sessions, oil pulling, breakfast, treatments, drinking of base salts, a doctor appointment, lunch, free time, even more base salts, dinner, liver compress, bed at 9:30pm) was leaving me a little hungry but, crucially, I had none of the heartburn or fizzy stomach pains that usually would accompany a reduction in food intake.
If anything, I’d say the food thing wasn’t anywhere near as big a deal by day two as I’d thought it would be. Between adhering to the above and braving a liver compress, a colonic, an abdominal massage, attending a lecture on the importance of eating properly, and taking a delightful walk around the lake, hunger didn’t seem a major factor – nor did I dwell on my (lack of) food intake too much.
In retrospect, I think the second point is a key facet to the success of the Mayr – yes, they reduce your portions and cut out sugar and what not, but what they give you is so yummy and the day so well thought out, that dumplings and strudel were the last thing on my mind. That is, it they were last thing on my mind until my silly sister suggested poking our noses into the nearby hotel that was serving up the traditional Austrian fodder that so reminds us of childhood. We managed to tear ourselves out before temptation got the better of us, but it did throw the weird correlation between what’s on offer and what you crave into relief; once out of the hotel and back in the land of broth and herbal tea, suddenly sugary foods didn’t seem awfully appealing at all.
The final insight I gained that day was into the purpose behind the small portions. In short, the idea is that a little hunger is good – it means that the body isn’t expending extra energy on digesting huge amounts of food. During the week, this energy is redirected towards healing ailments and restoring balance. My doctor also reminded me that giving the intestine a rest or ‘detox’ week is no good without simplifying everything else and that the spiritual and psychological components are equally as important to successfully resetting the body and must be tended to. My doctor suggested a walk around the lake if I felt up to it – though she may have been a little rankled to see where our noses took us…
Click here to see Day One’s Vlog
Click here to read about the Mayr Clinic Altaussee
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