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T’S EASY TO FEEL INTIMIDATED when you meet Catherine Roscoe Barr, wellness guru at Vancouver’s The Life Delicious. She has a BSc in neuroscience, is probably the only person left who refuses to own a microwave, crafts her own organic and local homemade menus, is an ambassador for SPUD.ca and commands any room with confidence. But spend three days on one of her luxury retreats and you’ll see she is anything but intimidating — the Instagram star is approachable, passionate and honest. From famed personal trainer to rock bottom at 30, Barr has built a brand off her strengths and put her weaknesses straight into the spotlight. Barr’s recent retreat in Victoria featured two nights at the Fairmont Empress, six meals, three exercise classes and six lectures with free time to meditate and explore the perfectly manicured grounds of the newly renovated hotel. Barr’s is one of a series of luxury retreats the Fairmont Empress is planning for the year. “We are passionate about fresh and local food, great sleep and the importance of finding your energy,” said Kerry Duff, director of public relations with the Fairmont Empress. “We created the Luxury Wellness Weekend with Catherine Roscoe Barr to share our love for wellness in one of the world’s most spectacular destinations.” Let’s face it, if you are going to make health and wellness a priority, it’s much easier to start when you have Victoria’s picturesque inner harbour as your backdrop. Folded into Barr’s lesson plans throughout the retreat — her 10th so far — were personal stories of “dark times,” martial lessons learned with her husband of 20 years and monologues of how she’s wrestled with self-identity and eventually found a calm within. These stories were engaging enough that on a Friday night — surrounded by hundreds of books containing pages of assorted pasts, wisdom and knowledge — she got 12 strangers to open up. Some cried, others were skeptical, but all talked about what they were here to work on, what they hold sacred and where they struggle. And that’s just what Barr capitalizes on, a brothers-inarms theme, except for this retreat, it was sisters around the table. No competition, no prejudice, just support. “The most valuable part of all this, is being with all of you,” Barr said, as she welcomed everyone. Our first day, we were met with beautifully light and delicious, handmade canapés. Barr described these as a “healthy indulgence” — something she stresses is vital to a happy soul. Her guests introduced themselves, and at first some were overwhelmed by the spotlight and attention. Sharing was encouraged but not mandatory, so some shared, others listened. But by the end of the night, everyone knew a little bit about the person sitting beside her. As we packed up and headed to our rooms, there was a quiet buzz of excitement for what was to come tomorrow. For those who thought the retreat was going to be all champagne and relaxing, it wasn’t. At 8 am Saturday morning, we gathered in the library on the main floor of the Empress for the strength-training portion of the day. I’ll admit, I was skeptical about the 30 minutes, full (ish) body work out performed on yoga mats. After seven minutes (a rotating series of seven exercises performed for one minute each), I was re-evaluating my cardiovascular abilities. Designed specifically for those who don’t have time to go to the gym, or prefer to stay at home, Barr’s exercises were approachable for
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