No tea or coffee and no Instagram are the rules echoing in our heads. How is this going to work out? We have checked in at Atmantan, a luxury wellness retreat near Pune, looking out at the Mulshi River, surrounded by the Sahyadri mountain range, and have opted for the gut detox programme. With internet access limited to WiFi in the rooms, and no caffeine, the programme is designed keeping your health reports and ailments in mind. And it’s a toughie but a goodie, as we learn later.

But we digress. Our gut’s a mess, we tell the doctor candidly. Gas, bloating, general sensitivity to processed food, and always feeling full and uncomfortable have now become the norm. The doctor, Dr Mansha Sulthana, tells us that while no miracles can be promised, a three-day reset may just put us on the right path. We begin the first day with Laghu Shankha Prakshalana (LSP), a yogic practice that involves drinking lukewarm saline water and performing a series of yoga poses to cleanse the gastrointestinal tract. It’s tough—drinking salt water isn’t easy. The gag reflex ensures we take time to complete the process, but it does cleanse us out.