Inaugural Tipperary Elevate Fitfest on health and wellbeing leaves no stone unturned

Munster’s first health and wellness festival took place last weekend at Shanbally House outside.

This event aimed to promote a 360 approach to health and wellness and was organised by Toomevara local Kate Duggan.

A wide range of events and activities took place throughout the festival.

The Holistic Hub ran workshops on topics such as ceremonial cacao, manifestation, crystals, and the connection between sleep and nutrition.

Talks on topics such as Breathwork, Mental resilience, Fertility and Hormones, Career wellbeing and Nutrition were also present at the event. 

Borrisoleigh native Clóda Scanlon gave a talk alongside Limerick’s Michelle McNulty on building mental resilience.

“I really enjoyed the festival. It was such a great day.

“For a first time festival, they really left no stone unturned. They had thought of everything and had got some fantastic names that are known both nationally and locally.

“It felt really really great to be a part of something that not only meant so much to people but that had also come to Tipperary and Munster. We really need more events like this in our back garden,” said Clóda.

Activities such as yoga, pilates and mindfulness were run in the events Zen Zone.

People were also able to complete guided workouts through events that were scheduled on the main stage and by participating in the Learn to Lift classes that were provided by The Workshop Gym from Newport. 

Nenagh’s Megan O’Mara, owner of Train Nenagh, also ran Sweat Sesh classes during the event.

“For us it was very important to support Elevate in their first year. To host something like this on our doorstep isn’t just great for those already into their health and fitness but also for those that want to get started. We had a fantastic time at Elevate last weekend.

“Our coaching team and many of our members attended the fitness festival on both the Saturday and Sunday and had a fantastic time.

“It was great to get to meet so many new faces and to have people join us in the classes we ran over the weekend,” said Megan.

Various vendors also set up shop in the estate’s vendor village. This gave people the opportunity to buy products to do with health and wellness.

Other businesses also had their stalls in the Courtyard exhibitor section. This section gave smaller businesses a chance to market their product and raise awareness of their brand.

“Whether you were into fitness; whether you were intimidated or just didn’t know where to start on your journey; whether you were an avid gym goer or whether you have never set foot in a gym, We had something for everybody at Elevate Fit Fest,” said Kate Duggan, the main organiser of the event.

Elevate “started as a small event for maybe 200 people and then the more we got chatting about it and the more people we talked to, the more everyone was like, this is a really great idea. Munster is crying out for something like this. Everyone is sick of traveling to Dublin; all the big events seem to happen in Dublin. It was great to have something in Munster,” noted Kate

“I think there was such a gap in the market for something like this, something that celebrates your health, celebrates wellness and the overall intention of just investing in you.

“I hope everyone took one thing away with them from the event. Whether that was a tip on how to optimise your health from a panel discussion, whether it was tips on how to balance that work life balance or whether it was that someone tried something like pilates for the first time.

“We wanted to create a community-like event that was very inclusive and I believe we achieved that this weekend. I think it was a great success,” declared Kate.