Just got back a couple of days ago from my annual girl bonding trip to Canyon Ranch in Tucson, Arizona. Been going for the past three years courtesy of my dear friend, Jennifer Grizzle, who is altogether sassy, smart and incredibly likable, despite her enviably low body fat ratio. This year fifteen “ranchettes,” as Jenn calls us, participated in the experience. Being my third outing, I didn’t have the dewy glow of a newbie visiting the mothership of fancy spas for the first time, or last year’s sense of being a pilgrim returning to Mecca. I just knew that it was important for me to be there.
There are many things that I adore about Canyon Ranch. For starters, my naturally curly/frizzy hair looks amazing in the absence of humidity. The athletic facilities and workout classes rock. I love their desserts, especially the peanut butter mousse and to-die-for chocolate ice cream topping that is paradise in a little 90 calorie serving. Their spa treatments are sublime, which isn’t that surprising since a few even sound like desserts themselves…just ask my friends who tried the warm vanilla float. But the thing that I really dig is the enlightenment.
You see, right now I’m figuring out how to infuse my passion for health and wellness into my career. My PR firm already handles food and consumer clients, so it makes sense to add more in those areas and others related to healthy living. As some of you already know, I completed a book proposal last month on how to maintain weight loss for good once the diet is over. Been interviewing women who lost at least 50 pounds or more and kept it off for over five years, the point at which your chance of regaining the pounds really diminishes. The insight I gained from my soul sisters in lifetime weight loss has been amazing…we’ve got some great, empowering information to share with the world. All factors considered, I felt that Canyon Ranch would help me develop even greater clarity about the future.
So I booked time with a counselor in their healthy living practice. Had a reading with Catherine, the astrologer, who is so good that she converted me from a non-believer into a third-time repeat client. Even had a reading with their psychic, Pat, who was spot-on. Took spiritual walks and soaked up the ambiance. Wrote in my journal like crazy and spent hours in self-reflection. And you know what? It turns out that like Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, I had the answers within myself the whole time.
My experience proved that sometimes you’ve just got to get completely out of your everyday life to see what lies ahead. Glad I heeded the siren call of the desert. Might not have had any celebrity sightings this year, like sitting next to Diana Ross in 2007 or spotting anchorman Ted Koppel with his wife in 2008. But I’m starting to build the bridge to my future, and that is incredibly exciting!
There are many things that I adore about Canyon Ranch. For starters, my naturally curly/frizzy hair looks amazing in the absence of humidity. The athletic facilities and workout classes rock. I love their desserts, especially the peanut butter mousse and to-die-for chocolate ice cream topping that is paradise in a little 90 calorie serving. Their spa treatments are sublime, which isn’t that surprising since a few even sound like desserts themselves…just ask my friends who tried the warm vanilla float. But the thing that I really dig is the enlightenment.
You see, right now I’m figuring out how to infuse my passion for health and wellness into my career. My PR firm already handles food and consumer clients, so it makes sense to add more in those areas and others related to healthy living. As some of you already know, I completed a book proposal last month on how to maintain weight loss for good once the diet is over. Been interviewing women who lost at least 50 pounds or more and kept it off for over five years, the point at which your chance of regaining the pounds really diminishes. The insight I gained from my soul sisters in lifetime weight loss has been amazing…we’ve got some great, empowering information to share with the world. All factors considered, I felt that Canyon Ranch would help me develop even greater clarity about the future.
So I booked time with a counselor in their healthy living practice. Had a reading with Catherine, the astrologer, who is so good that she converted me from a non-believer into a third-time repeat client. Even had a reading with their psychic, Pat, who was spot-on. Took spiritual walks and soaked up the ambiance. Wrote in my journal like crazy and spent hours in self-reflection. And you know what? It turns out that like Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, I had the answers within myself the whole time.
My experience proved that sometimes you’ve just got to get completely out of your everyday life to see what lies ahead. Glad I heeded the siren call of the desert. Might not have had any celebrity sightings this year, like sitting next to Diana Ross in 2007 or spotting anchorman Ted Koppel with his wife in 2008. But I’m starting to build the bridge to my future, and that is incredibly exciting!
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Shira,
ReplyDeleteSounds like you would love a spiritual retreat! The Jesuit Retreat Center at Ignatius House in Atlanta offers weekend silent retreats open for people of all faiths to just unplug, slow down and take stock of your life. Your hair will still be frizzy, but it's beautiful on 20+ acres on the Chattahooche River and much closer than AZ!
Check out www.ignatiushouse.org