I went to Hilton Head Health to figure out how to better curate a healthy lifestyle.
Terri Peters
I spent 4 nights at Hilton Head Health, a wellness resort that teaches guests how to live healthier.
I took fitness classes, ate healthy meals, and learned about meditation during my trip.
My experience was amazing and I brought home lots of new healthy habits.
A little over a year ago, I underwent gastric bypass surgery, and I've since lost 100 pounds.
My body has long since stabilized, and for months, my focus has been on maintaining my weight loss and getting stronger — not on continuing to drop pounds.
Still, after more than a year of focusing on the number on the scale, the idea of what the rest of my life should look like without the extra weight felt confusing and a bit overwhelming.
So, I celebrated my 100-pound weight loss by spending nearly $3,000 on a four-night stay at Hilton Head Health, a wellness and weight-loss resort in South Carolina.
Instead of the weight-loss retreat, I booked the ReNew Retreat, which has a wellness-focused itinerary that I hoped would help me learn how to live life post-bariatric surgery,
After struggling to lose weight for most of my adult life, focusing on wellness rather than weight loss was exciting.
The $680-a-night fee included a lot.
My Hilton Head Health stay came with meals.
Terri Peters
The nightly rate to stay at Hilton Head Health included everything I could've wanted to buckle down and focus on my health for a few days.
For $680 a night, I got a room at the resort's Sweetgrass Inn and breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, fitness classes, and lectures on healthy living.
This made it easy to focus on wellness, not on which fees I'd be charged for different activities or meals.
I still splurged on a few add-ons.
Pickleball was so much fun.
Terri Peters
In addition to the normal program fee, there are several ways to upgrade a stay at the resort.
I added a few things to my itinerary: a $35-a-week bike rental, a $75 group pickleball lesson, a few cooking demonstrations that ranged between $65 and $150, and a $150 massage at the on-site spa.
Although these services weren't necessary to fully immerse myself in the program, I really enjoyed them.
I came home with some great soup recipes and an interest in playing pickleball more often.
One of my biggest takeaways was that I need to focus more on nourishing my body with food.
Each dinner at Hilton Head Health was carefully created.
Terri Peters
My stay included daily seatings for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Each menu had tips and guidelines for building the healthiest plate possible, from how many calories to shoot for per meal to how many ounces are in a serving size of protein.
A snack bar was also open throughout the day and evening. At the snack bar, I focused on grabbing high-protein, high-fiber snacks like vegetables, fruit, and cottage cheese.
Having all of my meals mapped out for me made me aware that I need to focus more on eating nourishing foods that satisfy me.
It was time to stop relying on easy ways to meet my post-surgery protein goals, like protein shakes and Greek yogurt.
Trying so many different types of workouts was the confidence boost I needed.
I loved experimenting with cardio boxing and deep stretching.
Terri Peters
Before losing 100 pounds, I was in chronic pain and found most higher-impact forms of exercise to be a burden.
Going into this wellness retreat, I hesitated to take classes like cardio hula hooping or dance because I thought it would hurt my legs or that I wasn't strong enough.
I was pleasantly surprised to find that my body does many new things it couldn't when it was heavier.
I left Hilton Head Health with a new love for things like cardio boxing and deep stretching. My trip also motivated me to sign up for group fitness classes at my gym at home.
In lecture-style classes, I learned about everything from meditation to gratitude.
I learned about gratitude and goals.
Terri Peters
Although I wasn't unfamiliar with the importance of gratitude or the benefits of meditation, attending classes about these kinds of topics was a great reminder.
I spent my time at the resort learning about things like goal-setting and deep breathing and came home feeling freshly aware of how much I need to practice these things in my daily life.
What's more, I learned a few new tools, like how to do a gratitude walk and which kinds of meditation are best for feelings of anxiety.
Surprisingly, I learned a lot from other guests.
I wasn't expecting to speak to other guests on the trip but I made some great connections.
Terri Peters
An introvert to my core, I wasn't planning on interacting with other guests at the resort.
However, I quickly bonded with guests who were there for the week. The most impactful connection I formed was with a group of older-than-me women who met at Hilton Head Health several years ago and return together every year for a girls' trip.
Seeing these women play card games in the lobby at night, support one another on the pickleball court, and speak so highly of each other when I talked to them one-on-one was inspirational.
They made me realize the value of female friendships focused on health and positivity, and their enthusiasm for the resort made my visit even better.
I also basked in the beautiful silence of a few days alone.
I enjoyed the peace and quiet of the resort.
Terri Peters
I also loved the absolute silence of the Hilton Head Island resort. Everything felt like it was moving at a blissfully tranquil and slow pace.
As a mom of two teens, I rarely get a moment of complete quiet.
I enjoyed sipping coffee while reading near the water each morning and biking to the Hilton Head beach each afternoon on my own.
More than once during this trip, I took a moment to enjoy the silence all around me and feel grateful for the time to recharge.
In fact, I texted my husband, saying, "Every mom should know about this place. It's that relaxing and quiet."
I'm already saving up for my next trip to Hilton Head Health.
I'd like to return to Hilton Head Health with my husband.
Terri Peters
Based on my experience at Hilton Head Health, I'd definitely return.
Spending a few days focused only on myself and my health felt indulgent, and I learned a great deal about which elements of healthy living I need to work harder to implement in my daily life.
Although I loved going alone, watching couples spend the week together made me long to take my husband back with me.
My best friend, who also heard me talk about how relaxed I was during my trip, immediately asked me when I'd return to go with her.
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