The metabolism slowing, stomach bloated, fat grows at the belt line and your pants are tight fitting. It is only one of many post Covid affects as life carries on after a year and a half of being caged up in a village setting.

I found myself lucky enough to get to Viva Mayr during the Covid hard times, a place we adore and consider a lifesaver thanks to our old friend living in Australia. I remember hearing his stories about salty water in the morning, I was reluctant to accept drinking it, until I joined the club. Salty water is a story you reluctantly share unless you are situated at the clinic and under the cure.

Fast forward, you go to Viva Mayr either to reboot your system under their cure, or to treat a persisting medical issues. The crowd is often divided between typical clients, those there to lose weight and tighten their belts, while others are managing or struggling with medical issues, not to mention stress. And no doubt Covid has taken many lives but affected many more emotionally leaving some with lasting trauma including certain damage to the body.

These days you’ll find many people arriving to Viva Mayr with post Covid symptoms, and at Viva Mayr you’ll access a myriad of options to help cure yourself; including medical infusions, Kneipp, osteopathy, massage, hiking, biking and regular visits to the in-house doctors, all who are supporting you during your stay.

I have Dr. Doris Schuscha, a trained general practitioner who uses orthomolecular medicine and applied Kinesiology to help her diagnostics and therapy according to FX Mayr. We know and adore her, she is positive, smiling and always ready to help. But more importantly she is honest and experienced and non-pretentious.

Doris focuses on your well-being, a balanced acid-base key to resolving issues. When we are frustrated, often irritable the consequences are feeling drained or over tired and hence sleep deprived. This affects the biochemical balance, the body’s battery is run down due to excessive stress or unfavorable lifestyle. This chain reaction and the outcome can result in too much acidity in the body. Many chronic diseases are caused by an imbalance in the body, a retention of acid is a pathway to tougher times.

Viva Mayr’s daily routine helps solve this and even if you have no serious medical conditions, almost everyone can use some kind of detox and rebooting. The detox isn’t just stopping alcohol, it is more about a consistent routine, and Viva Mayr’s kitchen under the careful watch of chef Emanuela Fischer helps smooth the way, and we all appreciate her style and cooking senseability.

Imagine a vegetarian dish looking good and tasting good, hard to imagine but Emmanuela makes the difference. The kitchen is based on her continued research in trying to maintain a simple yet easy cooking to help all guests feel well and content.

But be aware if you go to Viva Mayr, you must accept the idea of eating small meals, and dinner is the smallest meal, and if you are on a strict diet you may find yourself sipping a clear vegetable broth. In some cases you’ll be given “chew bread” to learn how to best chew, a funny way of life, yet helpful. And most importantly during the “cure” there is no raw and no onion and no garlic whatsoever.

*Quiche for those who are not on a strict diet

The word cure and detox go hand in hand and it means not only eating right foods but resting and managing your food intake. Then supplementing your regular routine with base powder, what I consider a lifesaver.

I won’t get into all the supplements used at Viva Mayr, some consider it too much while others thrive on it. But at the beginning it is a little confusing when you meet the Doctor and you have a kinesiology test, it all begins. The first day and the first visit to the dining room there is a card on the table and you find out what you can and cannot eat. This is a tough first step for most, many are stunned as to how little they will eat, and the menu is short.

“Kinesiology does not diagnose, prescribe or treat in any way, medical conditions or named diseases; nor does it attempt to keep people away from doctors, drugs, surgery, or the skills of any health professional when they need them. Kinesiologists do not treat diseases or ‘conditions’. “Kinesiology is a communication tool that enables a person to assess and upgrade their performance in all areas of their life. Kinesiology is the science of energy balancing and is grounded in the study of anatomy and physiology. Kinesiology uses muscles as monitors of stress and imbalance within the body. Kinesiology enables people to detect and correct various imbalances that may relate to stress, nutrition, learning problems, minor injuries and other issues they meet in their daily life.”

ICPKP Definition internet

So, the first day you arrive, if its a Sunday it is relatively quiet and you won’t find very much going on. The clinic encourages people to arrive the day before so you can be well programmed but it doesn’t always happen that way. Before much happens the doctor must see you and they examine the body, the abdomen and whatever else is an issue.

Kinesiology therapy begins with lying down on a medical bed to test and muscle monitor, and the doctor applies substances on your tongue while testing your muscle power. This is what we call biofeedback to access any imbalances that may be causing symptoms in the body. 

The study of movement it derives its roots from Chinese acupuncture and how “chi energy” channels, but I cannot tell it works but after 6 years of visiting Viva and the Original Viva Mayr, I can attest to the benefits. And I still question the practical side of Kinesiology but many swear by it and Kinesiology isn’t totally wishy-washy. No doubt this type of applied medicine has its merits, be it small, the overall results of a visit to Viva Mayr often prove those rewards you dream of.