One week at B.C.’s Mountain Trek wellness retreat changed my life

There was always a reluctant “better you than me” admiration for those so devoted to wellness that they would make a holiday of it. What kind of zealot would willingly forgo a week of caloric comforts in the name of health? To my surprise, this guy!

Having recently turned 50, I was seeing and feeling the payback of a lifetime of indulgent food choices. Attempting to eat “reasonably” and doing some exercise wasn’t cutting it. A reset was overdue and, frankly, an attitude adjustment on all matters relating to health.

I was intrigued at the chance to spend a week at Mountain Trek Health Reset Retreat in Ainsworth, B.C. — an all-inclusive week-long immersive health reset program with a laser focus on overall health and wellness in a mountain setting.

From their website mountaintrek.com, Mountain Trek is “part hardcore boot camp, part holistic health retreat, and part spa oasis.”

The actual experience is less bootcamp — more retreat and inspiration. There is a staff of 48 to look after 12-16 clients per week, making the 15-hour days very doable. Everything is taken care of, right up to the twice daily laundry service. You can tell the devoted staff really enjoy what they do. I felt looked after and was ready to dive into wellness worry-free.

The food alone is reason enough to stay here. It’s local, high-end gourmet, made by passionate chefs. Yes, it is calorie restricted, but with meals spread out six times throughout the day, surprisingly I never felt hungry. The satiation comes from the quality, not the amount. This being a wellness retreat, there is no added sugar, no booze and no caffeine (what??). You can gaze at mountain peaks with a mug of the many non-caffeinated teas they offer.

The resort is perched on the Columbia Mountain Range which abuts the Rocky Mountains and looks over the 145-km long Kootenay Lake and the jagged peaks of the Purcell Mountains. It’s far away from any major city, with the closet airport in Castlegar (West Regional Airport).

All the guests begin their program at the same time, each Saturday evening with dinner. Program founder and co-owner Kirkland Shave welcomes the guests with a brief orientation. Since the detox extends to the digital, Shave explains that phones should stay in your pocket — except for taking a quick picture.

The lodge opened in 1991 for mostly outdoor recreation. The wellness program has been running since 2000 and has more than 10,000 alumni. A typical week will see mostly women (70%) with the average age being 50. While only about 20% of the guests are Canadian, the rest include Americans (70%) and a few other international guests (10%). At US$1,000 per day, the program tends to attract those with higher incomes.

Since all the details, logistics and decision making are taken care of for you, time moves differently here. It feels like a parallel universe. By the second day there is full disconnection from normal life.

To illustrate, let’s review the Tuesday schedule:

— 6:00 a.m.: A smoothie awaits you in the large communal dining room facing the mountains.

— 6:30 a.m.: One hour of yoga. The rising sun beaming in through the windows of the studio is a great way to start the day.

— 7:30 a.m.: Breakfast is served. You will want to eat sooner than later.

— 8:00 a.m.: Morning lectures covering topics such as nutrition, mindfulness, sleep health, etc. This sets the context for all the activities. The message at the retreat is one of a holistic view of wellness, not just calories in/calories out. Stress, diet, mindfulness as well as the importance of staying in shape and being active.

— 9:30 a.m.: Vans leave for hiking. By now, you would’ve had to be geared up with your backpack ready. Lunch is on the trail with a delicious soup from a thermos.

— 3:00 p.m.: Back at the lodge with time for R&R — ha ha, joking. More like, time to shower and change.  

— 4:00 p.m.: After an active day, I feel I had nothing left to give. Wrong! Now it’s time for resistance training — weights and aerobics. I was encouraged to push myself beyond what I thought I was capable of – but it never felt forced.  

This was truly a judgment-free zone. I never caught even the slightest sense of shade as I struggled to keep up. Nothing but encouragement from the supportive staff and other participants. It was a very positive group.  

 –– 5:15 p.m.: Dinner. This is the final meal of the day, and it never disappoints. Your body will have a 12-hour-plus fast before tomorrow morning’s smoothie.

Now the evening programming begins.  

— 6:00 p.m.: Movement after dinner is important. The after-dinner walk down to Kootenay Lake offers sweeping mountain views from its shore. I am counting this as my fourth workout of the day, as the 80-metre elevation gain on the way back has me in a sweat. I don’t see anyone else sweating. This is yet another wake-up call reminding me how out of shape I am.

— 7:00 p.m. and onwards: The pace slows down, and at last it’s time for some actual R&R.

The three massages included with the stay help to undo the impact from all the exertion. I should feel exhausted, instead I am invigorated.

After the massage, put on your bathrobe and head on over to the adjacent spa for some hydrotherapy. Start in the hot tub with a view. Then the steam room to sweat the toxins out of your body. After, it’s time to dunk right in the outdoor cold plunge. OK, the water was 22C — arguably not cold. Pleasant summer lake water temperature to be honest — but it sure felt cold. The other guests were amused by my vocal theatrics as I dunked up to my neck for about a minute. The session ends back in the hot tub.

— At 8:30 p.m., things slow down even more with different options depending on the day — restorative yoga, sound healing, or, in this case, music immersion with violinist Natasha Hall.

As we lay on the yoga mats with our eyes closed for the somatic music experience, it felt like I was hearing the violin for the first time as Hall played a selection of Bach. In fact, the music sounded so layered, I couldn’t believe this sound was coming from just one violin. I had to briefly open my eyes to confirm. This wasn’t an ordinary violin, it was a 1680 Francesco Ruggieri, one of only four made. It was on loan from Jumpstart Jr. Foundation. Hall explains that Mozart was said to have played one of them. Was it the one I was listening to that night? Maybe.

One caveat is that you have to be in decent shape to participate in this retreat. Despite working out regularly, on the first day I was quickly disabused of the notion of being in “moderate” shape. I was in the slowest of the four hiking groups.

There is no exaggeration when I say my week at Mountain Trek has changed my life. I am not the same person. It’s not just the 10 pounds I shed — although that was a nice bonus. The experience here has motivated me to drop many bad habits and adopt better ones.

I’ve also been inspired to view my choices through the lens of wellness. I walk more, eat and drink less, my balance has improved, and I am changing my workouts.

Could I have done this on my own? I guess, and yet I didn’t, until now.  

The dedicated staff present an idealized and intense version of wellness at a pace that is unrealistic back at home. They give you the tools to choose what works for you. Even if you make a couple of long-term changes, that just might change your life for the better.  

My goal for the week was to be inspired to embrace realistic, healthy, life-long habits. Mission accomplished. 

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