The golden shelves surround an immense library. The sun illuminates Überlingen, a spa town in southwest Germany, with its last rays. But another spectacle takes place inside the Buchinger-Wilhelmi clinic: the welcome cocktail for new arrivals. In our glasses, a third of herbal tea, a third of fruit juice, a third of water. The tone is set. A microphone is passed from hand to hand, everyone introduces themselves briefly and talks about their experience with fasting.
“The method transformed me”, “The doctors changed my life”, “I could never go back”
… The faithful seem exalted, we are perplexed. So where have we set foot? Our turn is coming.
“Marine, 28 years old, sporty with a good fork. It’s my first time and I’m a little worried.” “Welcome Marine
,” they respond in unison. Coming from New York, Mumbai, Kinshasa, Geneva or Monaco, some are there for ten days, others for a month. But few come to fast for the first time. Their motivations are as diverse as their profiles: finding inspiration, gaining energy, treating inflammation, hypertension or diabetes, escaping from an overworked daily life...
“Weight loss is never the only reason to stay with us. “Excess pounds are a symptom of something that is wrong: insomnia, stress, or a diet that is too linked to emotions
,” explains Robin Mesnage, scientific director of the clinic.
A proven method
If patients travel all over the world to stop eating, it is because the method has proven itself for a century. In 1919, Dr. Otto Buchinger, forced to leave his post in the navy after contracting a crippling rheumatic disease, undertook a drastic fast for three weeks. Faced with the convincing results of the experiment, he devoted himself to the study of self-healing mechanisms to benefit as many people as possible.
“When I spoke about fasting at medical conferences forty years ago, people said to me, 'Very good, but show me your statistics.' It took us ten years to accumulate data, make it coherent and publish the results of our research in prestigious journals. Today, we have this scientific credibility
,” says the group’s director, Françoise Wilhelmi de Toledo.
Fasting nonetheless remains strictly regulated. As we were about to get to the heart of the matter after having devoured a Kinder Bueno from the convict at Zurich airport, we learned that we will have to observe a day of digestive rest based on steamed vegetables, without salt or fat. Objective: reduce the food intake to slow down the activity of the organs without rushing the body. Time also to undergo a complete check-up to detect possible malfunctions or deficiencies and to complete an extremely precise health questionnaire.
Never exceed 250 kcal per day
The next morning, we rush to the nurse's house to begin the festivities. From now on, and for the next seven days, our body will only consume herbal teas and broths, without ever exceeding 250 kcal per day. Another obligatory passage at the start of your stay: the absorption of castor oil or Glauber's salts, sodium sulfate with a laxative effect, to purge yourself from the inside. Glamor forgotten. During the next 36 hours, the body deprived of sugar will draw on glycogen from the liver and muscles to trigger a cellular cleaning mechanism. If we escape headaches and nausea, morale is at half mast and fatigue is overwhelming despite ten hours of sleep. The medical team reacted immediately. Extra carrot juice and a cup of honey, the bottom of which we lick until the last drop.
“Every hour has its own discipline, in a Club Med version of integrative medicine”
The fourth day marks the entry into a new era. Serotonin at the peak, feeling of hunger gone, energy increased, our metabolism seems to have found its new functioning. The opportunity to explore some of the many activities offered: meditation, yoga, Pilates, creative workshops, hikes, excursions, healthy cooking classes, musical performances... Each hour has its own discipline, in a Club Med version of integrative medicine . Numerous therapeutic treatments (physiotherapy, massages, coaching, etc.) are offered in parallel, as well as access to quality facilities (swimming pool heated to 28 degrees, sauna, state-of-the-art gym, etc.) and expert conferences. to nourish the soul and the spirit. Overwork threatens us, to the point of forgetting to finish the cup of honey.
It's all about common sense at Buchinger
If we could imagine this solitary and introspective experience, it is to our greatest surprise a true collective adventure. Whether it is “meal” times, taken in a large room facing the lake, or activities, the community proves to be an unparalleled support. The evenings drag on, fennel or verbena in the glasses, we talk about enemas, bad breath and other digestive curiosities. “
The importance of the group is fundamental, from arrival to resuming eating which must be approached with the same seriousness as the descent
,” says Leonard Wilhelmi, director of the clinic.
If migratory birds did not fly together, they would get lost.
» It's all about common sense at Buchinger. Nature fasts, animals too. Our ancestors in a not so distant time. Nothing more instinctive.
The ten days have passed in the blink of an eye, it's already time to go home. The new arrivals have settled into the sofas in the library and are beginning presentations. We are handed the microphone.
“After ten days here, believe me, you will emerge transformed. "
What happened ? Have we been so bewitched? It is clear that Buchinger is a bit like the Hotel California. A place where
“you can pay your bill whenever you want, but from which you can never really leave”.
Buchinger Wilhelmi Clinic (+49 7551 8070; info@buchinger-wilhelmi.com). From €4,000 for the ten-day experience, accommodation included.