Wellness retreats are skyrocketing in popularity with promises of zen, fitness boosts, and more. Do those wellness vacations really deliver on those promises? To many, the thought of taking some time out to travel and zone in on your wellness sounds enticing. However, ASICS surveyed 11,000 people across 16 countries to find out how people really feel about these wellness retreats, with surprising results.
The ASICS survey
In the ACISCS survey, 11,000 people were surveyed across 16 countries, including:
- The UK
- US
- Australia
- South Africa
- Singapore
- France
- Germany
- Italy
- The Netherlands
- China
- Indonesia
- Sweden
The survey results
Here are the survey results:
- 67% said their retreat failed to meet all of their expectations.
- Two-thirds took two days or longer to experience a noticeable mental uplift from their retreat. 40% needed three or more days to see benefits.
- 67% also said that whatever calm they found during the retreat began to fade as soon as they returned home.
- For almost a third of those surveyed, the long travel and the cost associated with the travel and retreat added more stress.
- 24% reported no long-term improvement in stress levels.
- On average, people paid $1,303.92 and traveled 1,920 km to access their retreats.
- Of those who reported they wouldn’t attend another retreat, over half said it wasn’t worth the expense, and one-third noted there weren’t long-lasting benefits.
- 48% reported that regular movement had the most significant long-term impact on their mental health.
- 27% said they could achieve the same or better results from exercise.
The power of simple, brief daily movement breaks
Here are additional findings from the ASICS Everyday Escape Trial involving 17 people from the US, UK, and Australia (all participants had taken a wellness vacation within the last year):
- Those who took a simple 15-minute movement break every day for one week felt a 21% larger boost in their mood compared to how they felt after a wellness vacation.
- 71% reported that the quick daily movement break lowered their stress more effectively than retreats.
- 65% reported that the daily movement breaks were more uplifting than the retreats, and 73% said the benefits lasted longer.
- 94% said movement breaks positively impacted their wellbeing, and 88% reported it helped them clear their head. 82% reported that daily movement breaks helped them escape from their day.
- 71% felt daily exercise was more effective in reducing stress than their wellness retreat.
- 100% rated the movement as more accessible and more affordable compared to their retreats.
The takeaway
Of course, wellness and fitness retreats have their place, and this is just two surveys, but it certainly makes you stop and think for a second. The power of exercise for mental health has long been studied, and it’s something simple and low-cost or even free that you can do in the great outdoors, in your home, or in your neighborhood. Maybe instead of that fancy wellness retreat this year, you just need to try to fit in simple, daily 15-minute movement breaks. Your mental health will thank you.
