The morning is quiet. Very quiet. The stillness at Tannerhof has its own tempo, almost like the pulse of the mountains. You still move at your old pace until the place slowly draws you in… and suddenly you are moving to the same rhythm. That is when you have arrived.
A glance at the alpine meadow, a deep breath that briefly fogs the glass – and the day begins.
8:00 AM – The start: Tea & Orange
While other guests stroll to the breakfast buffet, the fasting day begins with one of the most important rules: Drink. Drink. Drink. It says so right on the thermos flasks. Inside: freshly prepared fasting tea, served in the fasting lounge. You can drink it wherever you like. Accompanied by an orange wedge: no chewing, no "snacking" – just bite into it and savor the freshness and the flavor.
9:00 AM – Medical consultation
Head to the bathhouse. Upstairs is the practice – and a consultation that is truly a consultation. The doctors listen. An hour, sometimes more. What is going on right now? Energy? Fatigue? Metabolism? Sleep? You talk, sigh, laugh – whatever you feel like. By the end, a plan is created: personal, realistic, tailored to your fasting week and your life afterward.
Exercise? Yes, but relaxed. Treatments? Stimulating or soothing? Mental health? Coaching, art, or silence.
Everything is optional, nothing is mandatory.
11:00 AM – Exercise
Fasting does not mean lying around. The body is a pragmatist: it breaks down what it does not need. That is why we exercise – but without setting records. It is part of the process. It feels good. And it protects the muscles.
On the weekly schedule: aqua fitness, Tai Chi, breathwork, yoga, guided hikes. Perhaps a Kneipp affusion beforehand: cold, warm, cold—your circulation will thank you.
Then head outside. Into the meadow. Up the path. To the linden tree. Or further.
12:30 PM – Broth & Soup
Buchinger fasting doesn’t mean consuming nothing. It means: liquid, purposeful, restorative.
First the broth, and you can feel the warmth follow your esophagus and spread through your stomach. Then the fasting soup: new every day, made from a variety of vegetables. Over time, a casual gradient of color emerges on the plate – the rainbow of fasting.
In the fasting lounge, you meet people. Many of them. All different. Experienced fasters who laugh about past struggles. Newcomers who are amazed at what their bodies are actually capable of.
You sit together. Spooning and spooning and spooning. Sharing thoughts. Sharing silence. And almost without exception, the conversation always circles back to food. You talk about your cravings: what you’re really looking forward to after the fast, what you miss, what you want to rediscover. From the outside, this fixation on food might seem slightly masochistic—but on the inside, it’s completely normal, even comforting at times: a little preview and anticipation of what’s to come.
You recognize yourself in the words of others. You discover something entirely new. And time and again, a closeness grows between fellow fasters, which has already led to more than one friendship.
2:00 PM – Treatments
The afternoon belongs to the hands: fasting massage, hay wraps, detox baths, moor mud, honey massage. Everything smells of herbs, wood, and alpine air.
The liver wrap—the "morphine of naturopathy"—warms you through. The massage gets the lymph moving. The bath lifts the heaviness for a moment.
When your thoughts get too loud: psychotherapeutic coaching. A quiet moment to sort things through.
3:30 PM – In-between times
Fasting brings clarity. Without any big drama. An orangery light bath. A walk. A few lines in a notebook.
External stimuli fade—inner spaces expand. Thoughts become calmer, clearer. Some things resurface. Some things fall away.
If your energy dips in between, you get a little pick-me-up: a spoonful of honey or an espresso. Both work, lifting your spirits and giving you a fresh boost.
6:00 PM – Evening: Buttermilk & Juice
For the first course, some vegetable broth again, followed by juice (different every day, fresh every day). Or buttermilk. Or both. And then you can experiment to find your ideal juice-to-buttermilk ratio. The spoon remains in use throughout. It belongs to fasting just as the mountains belong to the Tannerhof.
Then it’s off to your room to wind down the evening with a book and tea. Or in front of the fire in the lounge for conversation. Or enjoying the heat of the sauna. Or taking a quick dip in the pool. Whatever you fancy.
And slowly, a pleasantly warm tiredness sets in.
The fasting day ends
Fasting at the Tannerhof is not a program of asceticism. Not a competition. It is an invitation. To pause. To reorganize. To rediscover. To gain trust in our bodies.
And in the end? You feel yourself again. Clearer. Lighter. Perhaps a little freer.
