Meet Our Wellness Experts

Yoga and Pilates tend to get grouped together - and rightly so given they are so complimentary to one another. However, the two disciplines offer fairly different experiences from one another, so if you’re wondering ‘yoga vs pilates - which one is right for me?’ keep reading to discover the key differences and benefits!

Lucia van der Drift is a mindfulness and meditation teacher, working both with groups and one-to-one to support people developing their mindfulness practice and creating more clarity, resilience and focus in their lives.

Dr Oscar Mayorga

Dr. Mayorga is a surgeon, specialized in anti-aging medicine with a degree in Immunology & Microbiology and a specialization in Natural & Biologic Medicine. Moreover, Mayorga has experience in cellular activation, stem cells treatment and growth factors. He is currently the in-house medical consultant at SHA Wellness Clinic in Spain. 

SHA Wellness Clinic is a pioneering well-being clinic, focused on improving and notably lengthening people's health and well-being through the fusion of the best therapies. When its doors opened to guests in November 2008, the hotel and clinic started a revolution in wellness - the world's first macrobiotic wellness resort. SHA's objective is for its guests to leave after a pleasant stay, feeling renewed inside and out, more alive and energetic with a much healthier appearance.

Elli Soumaki

Elli has over twenty-five years of experience in the field of spa, fitness and wellness. She is Spa Director at the Six Senses Spa, at Porto Elounda Golf & Spa Resort. An integral role as the wellness facilities are a central part of this retreat’s ethos and allure. Holding this position since 2004, Elli also currently works as the getaway’s Area Director since 2011. She graduated from the University of Physical Education and Science in Athens and achieved a Masters in Sports Management from the University of Louisville, Kentucky. Elli has been a member of the Greek national swimming team and always actively promoted the goodwill and spirit of the Olympic games. A true believer that our health and the overall state of wellbeing can be enhanced via exercise, movement, nutrition, and holistic treatments, to fulfil your mind, body, and spirit.

Inspired by her Indian roots, British-born Practitioner Geeta Vara brings the timeless wisdom of Ayurveda to her clinic, workshops, wellness retreats and now in her debut book Ayurveda, Ancient Wisdom for Modern Wellbeing.

Stephanie Rault

Wellness Consultant at Absolute Sanctuary, Stephanie originally became a therapist to fulfill a passion in empowering others to improve their health and happiness  and inspire them to lead healthy lifestyles. With over 10 years of experience, she is able to work with her clients in a flexible, fun and caring way, creating a safe and supportive environment while exploring what really works for them. Stephanie not only conducts wellness consultations but also private sessions in clinical hypnotherapy, intuitive life coaching and smoking cessation programmes. 

We all want to be great; to stand out within our company, to be the best partner, friend and loved one. The question is how do we have all of this and look after our own health, mind and being?

Dana Brown has 15 years of caregiving experience, and after seeing some patterns of poor health she became determined to help inform people about healthy living She created HealthConditions.info, to provide Internet users with helpful content and resources that will lead them to making healthier decisions.

Ramon Campuzano Rojas

Ramon is director of Puente Romano Tennis & Fitness Club in Marbella. He heads the Bjorn Borg Tennis School, is a Technical Consultant for both the Norwegian and Estonian Tennis Federations, and has trained many professional athletes in the ATP and WTA. He completes the roster as a Consultant and Director of the Andalusian Wheelchair Tennis Team.

Besides professional athletes, there are none as fit as the men and women of our military. Their discipline and commitment to fitness is an inspiration to all. It makes sense then, if you are looking to get in shape, to consult the veterans of some of the most demanding physical endurance tests known to man. Sadly, not all of us are well-acquainted with the professionals, so at Health and Fitness Travel, we decided to get in contact with a member of our armed forces to understand better the benefits of a military style bootcamp holiday.  

Euphoria Retreat, that opened in July 2018 in Greece, is the vision of founder Marina Efraimoglou, who after following a personal path of inner development, sought to create a special healing retreat. 

Marina had a successful career in the financial sector, founding her business Telesis in 1993, but after a pivotal personal experience, she shifted her attention from the financial world into the worlds of holistic medicine and self-actualisation. Committed to leading a more spiritual life, she studied in-depth with very well-known pioneers in the field and travelled the world sourcing knowledge and experience. Completing her studies in Chinese Medicine, Marina has worked in transformational healing for over a decade.
Based on her varied experience, Marina successfully created her own series of workshops and retreats, recently bringing them into the corporate world, with the aim of encouraging the emergence of a new type of leadership and cooperation.

Suzie Walker

Suzie is a nutritionist and founder of The Primal Pantry. She transitioned to a paleo lifestyle 6 years ago, and decided to set up The Primal Pantry in 2014 after struggling to find healthy, on-the-go snacks that support a paleo diet. Suzie is on a mission to challenge the packaged food industry by forging a real food revolution.

I have been a trainer for over 20 years now. Have always loved helping people improve their wellness, so studied to be a trainer when I was pregnant with my second child. I just kept on wanting to help more people, started working/managing in Health Retreats working on all areas of people’s health.

Daniel DeMoss is a trainer based in Denver (Matrix Gym) and a true fitness expert. He has a master's degree in physical therapy from NYU Steinhardt.

Keri-Anne Payne

Keri-anne Payne is a British swimmer, specialising in marathon open water swimming, and long-distance freestyle swimming in the pool. She is a two-time World 10 km Open Water champion, an Olympic Silver medalist and the founder of Triscape.

"Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease." The World Health Organisation

With our fast paced, digitally-induced lives leaving us little time to breathe, let alone think straight, it’s little wonder that stress is are becoming a modern day pandemic.

When we experience stress or anxiety, our sympathetic nervous systems are automatically triggered; our heart beats harder, our brow and palms perspire and adrenaline pumps around our bodies as we enter fight or flight mode – an innate, primal response to aid our survival.

Sam Turnbull is the creator of the popular recipe blog It Doesn’t Taste Like Chicken which receives over 1 million pageviews monthly. She is the author of the cookbook Fuss-Free Vegan published by Appetite by Random House which has over 250, 5-star reviews on amazon.com. Additionally, she hosts a YouTube show also called It Doesn’t Taste Like Chicken. Sam and her recipes have been featured across TV, radio, magazines, newspapers, podcasts, public speaking events, prominent websites sites, and in notable cookbooks.

James Golden 

James Golden is the founder and Managing Director of Target Fitness Retreats. He has over 15 years of experience in the fitness industry, since graduating with a Sports and Exercise Science degree in 2001. James has worked as a lifestyle and fitness consultant for the government, presented different forms of group fitness across the UK and spent time in fitness management, before setting up a personal training boutique club in Amersham, Bucks called the Target Training Club in 2010. The Target Training Club is the sister company of Target Fitness Retreats and under the vision of James, the companies are continuously evolving and achieving credibility for their quality and service. James has recently been featured in Men’s Health, Your Fitness and Brides Magazine.

Angie Newson has been in the health and fitness industry for over 25 years - teaching all aspects of fitness, from aquatics to yoga and Pilates retreats. Author of Get Fit for Free and The Detox Factor, she has also many years’ experience of health club management running studios and formerly as a General Manager of a private top London health spa.

I love to travel and explore new places. It’s a rewarding experience and an opportunity to generate new memories with friends and family. However, the excitement of travel is often accompanied by a level of uncertainty when our daily routine is inevitably interrupted.