Fasting in the Mountains: Why altitude and tranquility deepen the fasting experience

The essentials at a glance

• Fasting in the mountains at the Tannerhof means: walking, observing, finding peace, giving the body time, and learning how to eat again.
• Bayrischzell is located in the Upper Bavarian Leitzach Valley, with a view of the Wendelstein and nestled between the Wendelstein and Sonnwendjoch.
• Studies on spending time in nature show that just twenty to thirty minutes outdoors can measurably lower stress hormone levels.
• Movement is part of the Buchinger fasting therapy: moderate base endurance training and moderate strength training, performed at a slower pace than usual.
• The landscape and medical supervision stand side by side as equals, each deepening the other.

My hideaway in the mountains

Those who head to the mountains to fast are rarely just looking for a method. It is about gaining distance and discovering a different perspective out the window. It is about waking up to a morning guided not by appointments, but across an alpine meadow, along a mountain stream, up to the next ridge, and back again. At the Tannerhof, this becomes My hideaway in the mountains—a retreat that gives fasting room to breathe, without rushing to fill it.

At the Naturhotel Tannerhof, Body Detox is offered as medically supervised therapeutic fasting according to the Buchinger method. The approach remains simple and clear: the conscious, temporary abstention from solid food and stimulants. In place of solid meals, herbal tea, gentle vegetable broth, freshly squeezed juices, and plenty of water sustain you throughout the day. The mountain setting does not alter this method—it makes it more tangible, more grounded, and far easier to embrace.

Bayrischzell is located in Upper Bavaria, southeast of Munich, in the upper Leitzach Valley. From the Tannerhof, the view opens up over alpine meadows and fruit trees toward the Wendelstein. The mountains stand all around, with slender hut towers on the slopes and forest and weather beyond. It is a landscape that does not seek to impress, but to support. That is exactly what is crucial when fasting.

Why the mountain rhythm deepens the fasting experience

Fasting is more than a diet. It is a therapeutic method, a cleansing on many levels, and an encounter with oneself. In this encounter, the environment plays a greater role than one might assume from the outside. When fasting, one perceives things more acutely. A herbal tea in the morning tastes different, a soup at noon becomes a significant event, and the view into the valley gains weight. The body receives little—the senses receive more.

The beneficial effects of spending time in nature are now well researched. A widely cited study by Hunter and colleagues (Frontiers in Psychology, 2019) measured cortisol levels in urban dwellers before and after spending time in green spaces. The result: nature experiences significantly lowered the stress hormone cortisol, showing the greatest impact within a 20- to 30-minute window. A review on the Japanese practice of Shinrin-yoku, or mindful forest immersion (Antonelli and colleagues, International Journal of Biometeorology, 2019), reached a similar conclusion: time spent in the forest reliably produces measurable, short-term drops in cortisol compared to urban environments.

These findings do not describe a mountain cure or a promise of high-altitude healing. They simply show what many fasting guests at the Tannerhof have long felt: that the environment contributes to the experience of stress reduction. When the body slows down during fasting, it encounters a place that does the same. Alpine meadows, mountain streams, expansive views. Nothing more is needed—and yet, it is enough.

Movement that suits fasting

In the mountains, movement is not a loud program. It arises from the landscape. You walk slowly, feel your own pulse, turn back, or keep going. The right level of intensity comes not from ambition, but from the fasting day itself.

Movement has always been a cornerstone of Buchinger fasting therapy—the clinical fasting guidelines published by the Medical Association for Therapeutic Fasting and Nutrition (ÄGHE) explicitly recommend outdoor exercise as an integral part of the process. At the Tannerhof, this translates into an unhurried rhythm: gentle endurance and moderate strength training are featured alongside yoga, Feldenkrais, Tai Chi, resistance-band workouts, and breathwork. Summit hikes and trail walks are very much encouraged, only at a gentler pace than during ordinary eating routines—the body is drawing nourishment from within. Fasting is not about setting new athletic records; physical exertion adapts to the fast, never the other way around.

For those seeking greater structure, the Hiking and Fasting programme pairs Buchinger therapeutic fasting with guided mountain hikes in the surrounding area. For everyone else, the paths right outside the door are more than enough: the Tannerhof rests on roughly 16 hectares of private grounds, complete with alpine meadows, a mountain brook, and direct access to trails around Bayrischzell. A particularly scenic route is the Seeberg circuit—highlighted in our magazine as the Favorite Hike: Seeberg Circuit, offering sweeping views of the Wendelstein and the Leitzach Valley.

What happens when you walk is easy to describe. Those who usually live mostly in their heads will find that, while fasting, walking is far from a secondary activity. It organizes your thoughts. It sets your breathing to a rhythm. And it leads you through a landscape that helps you slow down instead of working against you.

What happens in the body

To ensure this experience is more than just a feeling, it helps to look at what is happening medically. During fasting, the body works on two levels simultaneously, which are often conflated but can be clearly distinguished.

The first level is fat burning. Once easily accessible carbohydrate stores are depleted, the metabolism shifts more strongly toward fatty acids and ketone bodies – according to ÄGHE documentation, this occurs within about twenty-four to seventy-two hours after beginning a fast. The body increasingly draws energy from its own reserves.

The second level is autophagy, the actual goal of fasting. This does not refer to fat burning, but to the body's own recycling and cleansing processes at the cellular level: cellular components are broken down, utilized, and reorganized. A general cleanup takes place – in the cells, connective tissue, intestines, liver, and kidneys. Both processes run concurrently during fasting, but they describe different mechanisms.

The guidelines for fasting therapy and studies on the subject are available through the ÄGHE. They classify fasting as a medically supportable method for conditions including rheumatic diseases, allergies, autoimmune disorders, asthma, migraines, type II diabetes mellitus, high blood pressure, and depression. Whether therapeutic fasting is appropriate in an individual case is always a matter for medical assessment at Tannerhof – never a blanket promise. Weight loss can be a side effect, but it is not the core objective.

Landscape and medical supervision – on equal footing

At the Tannerhof, three things belong together: the method, the medical support, and the landscape. The method provides structure, the medical team provides safety and individual direction, and the mountains provide perspective. None is more important than the other. Fasting in a moving landscape is significantly more intense – and a moving landscape only unfolds its full depth with expert guidance.

Medical supervision is not strictly mandatory for fasting, but it is sensible. At Tannerhof, therapeutic fasting is always medically supervised because we have been home to three generations of fasting expertise. Our doctors are experts in the field. Medical appointments create a calm framework: the initial consultation takes place on the first day of fasting after arrival, followed by a follow-up consultation if needed, and a final review at the end.

The initial consultation is holistic. It includes a medical history, a physical examination including bioimpedance analysis, and a medication review – as well as questions about why you are fasting, what goals you have at Tannerhof beyond fasting, what is currently happening in your life, and what previous fasting experience you have. The conversation comes first, then, if appropriate, the start of the fast, often with Glauber's salt—the classic optional tool for beginning a fast—or another method discussed individually. Every person is different; the individual is at the center.

The accompanying treatments are also tailored to fasting, and the spectrum is intentionally broad. This includes medical history and examination, follow-up consultations and final review, bioimpedance analysis, IHHT altitude training (depending on the program), Kneipp contrast showers, hay flower wraps, aroma wraps, moor and warm packs, magnesium-rich detox baths, fasting massage, detox massage with royal oil or acidosis massage, lymphatic drainage, foot reflexology, and respiratory therapy. In addition, there are sauna sessions as well as mental support such as psychotherapeutic coaching, nature coaching, or art therapy. The booking and stay logic remains simple: the duration of the stay is booked before arrival, and from the initial consultation onwards, the duration and schedule can be adjusted together with the attending physicians, for example by extending your stay.

Water, warmth, and mountain views

Movement at the Tannerhof also embraces the element of water. Built in 2025, the BadeHarpfe unites a Finnish sauna, a panoramic relaxation lounge, a cardio and strength fitness area, and an outdoor natural pool. Measuring 25 by 5 metres, this chemical-free stainless steel pool is naturally filtered and heated from April through October; in winter, it welcomes cold-water dippers. Framing vistas between the Wendelstein and Sonnwendjoch, it offers a swim with an alpine panorama—a quiet highlight of any fasting day. Sweat, laugh, plunge.

The BadeHarpfe adopts an archaic timber construction principle from the Alpine region and translates it into modern alpine architecture: lots of wood, lots of light, and the view always directed outward. This, too, is part of fasting in the mountains. When the environment doesn't demand too much, slowing down becomes easier. The 1905 air huts stand small and close to nature, the hut towers slender on the slope. It is organic simplicity, not a slick effect – and that is precisely why it provides a good framework for a method that has sustained this house for generations.

The transition back

A fasting week does not end on the last day of the fast. Breaking the fast, which is still considered part of the fasting period, begins at Tannerhof at lunchtime with a small fasting soup and then an apple, raw or stewed, eaten with very conscious chewing. This is followed by a rebuilding phase lasting about one-third of the fasting period, with easily digestible vegetables, fermented foods, and fiber. Those who jump straight back into their old daily routine deprive the body of part of the transition. That is why the rebuilding phase is part of the fasting process itself.

During the closing consultation, you will discuss how to structure your diet going forward, complete with an evaluation of your progress and practical guidance for everyday life. If you are looking for long-term dietary changes, you can transition smoothly into "Schlanke Tanne" Low Carb, our hotel’s tailored low-carbohydrate nutrition concept. It carries the fasting experience into your daily routine through high-quality protein, abundant vegetables, and intentional breaks, such as intermittent fasting—our recommended way to sustain the benefits of prolonged fasting in daily life. Find out more on our page Therapeutic Fasting and Schlanke Tanne.

Fasting in the mountains leaves you with far more than the memory of a lovely week. It instils a visceral sense of knowing: how little we sometimes truly need, how vivid a simple broth can taste, and how different a path feels when it isn’t just about rushing from point A to point B. Perhaps that is the enduring Tannerhof philosophy in its purest modern form: Return to what truly matters.

Fasting in Bayrischzell

If you are looking to fast in the mountains, Naturhotel Tannerhof provides a setting where nature and medical expertise work in perfect harmony: Buchinger therapeutic fasting, a dedicated medical team, a welcoming fasting parlour, extensive therapies, balanced movement, our iconic "Lufthütten" and tower cottages, and the BadeHarpfe with panoramic views framed between the Wendelstein and Sonnwendjoch. Explore package details and online booking under Body Detox, or discover our combined walking and fasting retreat under Hiking and Fasting.