Elisabeth Muhr is always in action.
The Austrian-born athlete has dedicated her life to physical activity, whether trekking mountains and farm roads, skiing or, of course, playing golf. Starting at age 16, she became a competitive golfer and has since been honored as everything from Austrian Junior Champion to Senior Champion.
Most recently, she and her family launched Hallstein Artesian Water—a naturally high alkaline, low sodium, truly pure water, which she believes helped her heal from a serious sports injury.
Here, she describes taking care of her body and mind along the journey:
Live The Process: Was wellness a principle of your environment growing up or did you come to that later?
Elizabeth Muhr: I grew up outside of Innsbruck in a small village of 630 inhabitants. My grandparents had a summer home there and my parents decided to remodel and make a permanent home out of the old house. We were the only family of non-farmers with college degrees, so everyone would come to my father for help and advice.
Each morning, I walked to public transportation, rain or shine, leaving the house at 6:45am. In the winter, I would take a sled because snow was plentiful. Sounds quite romantic, but it wasn’t so, walking all by yourself in the dark! I would walk until I arrived at my best friend’s farmhouse for a hearty breakfast made of farm-produced ingredients. The fresh bread was especially delicious! Then, we would walk for another 30 minutes to take the small local train to Innsbruck for middle and high school.
Farmers did not talk about exercise or wellness; they didn’t have to—they worked on their farms. But, as a family, we would go mountain climbing almost every weekend in summer and in the winter, we went skiing a lot. I personally skied almost every day after school because it was my dream to become a ski racer. Unfortunately, I grew tall very quickly, got injured and had to quit. Lifts were not everywhere, so people would hike up the slopes several times, carrying skis. If we wanted to visit a friend, we would bike. And, later on, when I wanted to play golf, I biked for four miles to the golf course.
LTP: How did golf blossom into a passion? What did it teach you about the challenges of taking care of the body?
EM: I guess I was quite competitive. I wanted to become a ski racer and was devastated when my father told me (after my injuries at the age of 13) that my body was not suited to be one. My mother suggested I pick up golf and booked three lessons. It was like a fish taking to water: I can still vividly remember when I hit my first golf ball and how fascinated I was when it got airborne. There was also a whole group of teenagers, mainly boys, who told me that if I got better, I could join their rounds. So, I started practicing each day and got better fast. At the age of 16, I won my first Austrian Junior Championship.
Only once I started playing golf competitively did I learn that, if I did certain exercises or ate certain foods, my game would get better. Even the timing of eating and drinking would impact my performance: how often, which food groups at which times etc.
With all the hiking, biking and skiing, I was always very fit. But teenage years can be tricky and one does not always understand what’s good for the body. One thing though, which really sticks in my mind, is that I always stayed away from drugs. I just knew instinctively what damage they would do to my life if I started. And I was also afraid of my parents if they’d ever found out!
Fast-forward to today: Getting older certainly has its own challenges. I’d be lying if I said I haven’t toyed with the idea of getting a little cosmetic “refresh.” But, to be honest, I am actually very afraid of how any procedure might turn out, so I haven’t done anything other than try to eat well, exercise regularly and drink lots of water. Being on planes can be really bad for your skin and, therefore, I try to practice a good regimen daily. Sweating is also important to me: I love my Peloton Bike and, in the winter, you can find me almost daily on some cross-country tracks. I find I’m not as jet-lagged when I’m feeling fit.
LTP: What is Hallstein Artesian Water? How did you discover it and what makes it different/beneficial?
EM: Hallstein is truly like a precious, rare jewel that bubbles from an aquifer tucked deep in the Austrian Alps. After many years of literally searching the globe, we found this untapped source and are now very humbled to be the stewards of this natural elixir.
At the beginning of our journey, almost 20 years ago, we were looking for the “truth,” meaning what qualities should drinking water have to make it the best. So, we could then compare the waters on the market and find the best suited for us. What we discovered was that the “perfect” water didn’t exist commercially—neither engineered nor naturally sourced. So, we set out to find it. Working with leading experts, doctors and nutritionists, we developed our octagon (the eight factors that would make the perfect drinking water ), and we found it in this pristine and sustainable source. We do not pump the water. We only harvest what it naturally produces and are deeply respectful of the land and environment around it. It is truly unfiltered, untreated and un-compromised.
What makes it beneficial and different? In short, its natural balance of high alkalinity and almost zero sodium. But maybe this personal story better illustrates my point:
Four years ago, I had a terrible skiing accident and had to lie in a hospital bed for five-and-a-half weeks, then spend a month in a wheelchair. After the six-hour surgery, my husband brought a 5-gallon bottle of Hallstein to my room and told the nurses that I was to drink this water exclusively. What the doctors expected to be a slow six-month recovery time with significant additional rehabilitation actually turned into only four months; and I was up walking with just a cane. The medical staff was amazed. And, while I can not give full credit to Hallstein Water, I am confident that its high content of dissolved oxygen was the most important factor.
LTP: Do you have any rituals or products (aside from your own) that keep you feeling balanced and healthy?
EM: Since my accident, I have become a detox believer. I watch my diet anyway and do not drink alcohol during lent, which is around 45 days before Easter. But I discovered a medical detox clinic not far from where our water is from, and I like to go there at least once a year to detox my body and my mind, focusing on nothing else but myself.
During the rest of the year, my biggest pleasure is waking up early on a sunny day, making myself a cup of coffee and, with that in hand, watering my perennial and herb garden still in my pajamas.
LTP: What does happiness look like to you?
EM: Just realizing how lucky my life is makes me happy! Happiness comes to me in so many forms: hugging my children, sharing quiet hours with my husband, playing a round of golf in the late afternoon, standing on top of a Tyrolian mountain in the snow, swimming in turquoise water in the Bahamas, exchanging experiences with my friends. I treasure all these moments, a mosaic of sheer bliss.
LTP: What does it mean to you to “Live The Process” and how can we all do that more each day?
EM: I think that it is so important in life to stop, take a moment and briefly reflect: I catch myself realizing how many awesome things I am allowed to experience each day. I guess if I concentrate on the many positives, the negatives are much easier to overcome.
Life is a process to aim to get better at living. As my husband always says, the only thing you can control is yourself—meaning your actions and, most importantly, your reactions. In that department, I am a lifelong learner. I am definitely trying.