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Oprah Winfrey Details the Best Wellness Retreat of Her Life
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After undergoing double knee surgery two years ago, Oprah Winfrey vowed to herself that she would do incredible things with her new knees. After walking turned into hiking, Winfrey decided to concentrate further on her health by visiting a wellness retreat.
Via her OprahDaily.com website, Winfrey told fans she turned to the internet and googled “world’s best spas.”
The result led her to Palazzo Fiuggi in Central Italy, a resort known for the healing waters that flow from its natural springs. Accompanied by some friends, including her best friend Gayle King, Winfrey traveled to Palazzo Fiuggi.
“Palazzo Fiuggi is a medicinal spa, and the biggest dose of anything you’ll get there is attention and care,” Winfrey reveals. “First I met with an endocrinologist, who took the full measure of the physical me: blood pressure and bloodwork, a body scan to measure my vitals, an ultrasound to see how my organs were doing. Then a personal trainer customized a workout for my specific needs.”
After decompressing thanks to massages, mud baths, a mineral-enriched salt pool, and a salt scrub atop a warmed marble table, Winfrey and her friends also dined on delicious and healthy meals created by three-star Michelin chef Heinz Beck.
“I took incredible memories with me from Palazzo Fiuggi but also some important lessons, including: Even with all the water I drink, it’s still not enough. And that my lower body is strong from all the hiking, but my upper body? Not so much. That’s something I need to focus on, along with increasing my flexibility, since I plan on walking my dogs, lifting friends’ babies, and harvesting vegetables from my garden for years to come,” Winfrey reveals. “I also have to stay on top of my numbers—for cholesterol, glucose, thyroid panel, muscle mass, and, yes, blood pressure. It will make all the difference in managing my health as I age.”
“The biggest lesson?” she continues. “This body, mind, and soul we’ve each been gifted with deserve our loving care. Whether at a far-flung spa or right here at home, we need to find the time and space it takes to rebuild, recharge, and renew. From wellness to wholeness—that’s the journey I wish for you.”
