Est. 1992
The team
A small team, on purpose
Fifty years of combined experience, all resident on site
Moinhos Velhos was founded in 1992 by Frank Jensen and Anne Karine Moss. Today’s facilitators worked alongside the original founders for years before taking on the retreat themselves, and between them carry more than fifty years of experience in juice fasting, yoga and holistic care. It remains a genuinely small operation — retreats are capped at seventeen guests, so every one of you gets the team’s full attention.
Richard Brook
Facilitator & Acupuncturist
At Moinhos Velhos since 2014, Richard specialises in Five Elements acupuncture and Dru yoga after more than twenty years in wellness. He founded Creative Wellness and Creative Yoga London, designing corporate wellness programmes across the city, and published his first book, Understanding Human Nature: A User's Guide to Life, in 2021. He also draws on years of 5 Rhythms dance, Tai Chi and Native American ceremony — and believes success is best measured by your own sense of it, not anyone else's.
Karen de Mey
Facilitator & Yoga Teacher
A Sivananda Hatha Yoga instructor with fifteen years at Moinhos Velhos, Karen guides guests through every stage of the fasting programme with a background in holistic foods and healing. She trained as a Chakra technician under Martin Brofman in 2007 and is a keen organic gardener. With her husband Chris, she also co-facilitates fasting programmes at Sivananda Ashrams in India. Her guiding belief: regular cleansing of the body is essential for good health — shining from the inside out.
Chris Lloyd Pack
Facilitator & Yoga Teacher
Known to many guests as Narayana, Chris has been part of Moinhos Velhos since 2005, bringing a background in organic wholefoods and juicing for patients on the Gerson diet. With his wife Karen, he co-facilitates the fasting programmes run at Sivananda Ashrams in India each year. He is also an experienced pendulum dowser of more than thirty-five years, trained under the late Jack Temple, and is always happy to offer a session on site for the curious.
Bliss Lloyd Pack
Facilitator & Yoga Teacher
Trained in Sivananda Hatha Yoga in South India, Bliss grew up as the daughter of Karen and Chris, immersed from childhood in fasting, yoga and wellness, with a Waldorf Steiner education behind her. Her classes weave together movement, breathwork, relaxation and meditation, delivered with a steady, compassionate style. Fluent in English and Portuguese, she also supports daily life behind the scenes, helping guests feel at home from the moment they arrive.
Randi
Therapist & Facilitator
Randi left Germany sixteen years ago to raise his children in the Algarve's sunshine and unspoilt nature. A massage therapist trained here and in Portugal, Germany and the UK, with over twenty-five years of Reiki practice, he also acts as a general facilitator — one of the steady presences guiding guests through the rhythm of the week.
Sandra Rodriguez
Nutritionist
A qualified nutritionist with over ten years of experience and specialist certifications including sports nutrition, Sandra takes a whole-person approach — considering lifestyle, emotional health and environment alongside food, with a long-standing interest in longevity. Her consultations and workshops help you carry what you learn here into everyday life.
Belle Amatt
Nutrition Facilitator
Belle is a Registered Nutritional Therapist with a BSc in Nutritional Medicine, specialising in longevity, stress-induced illness and gut health. She lectures on the College of Naturopathic Medicine's nutrition diploma programme and its short courses on detoxification and the gut-brain connection — and, forever keen on community spirit, hosts regular pop-up restaurants championing plant-based eating.
Ivan
Site Manager
Originally from Ukraine and in Portugal for nearly two decades, Ivan has kept Moinhos Velhos running for the past eight years — every system, repair and quiet fix that lets the rest of the team focus on guests. He lives on site and speaks Russian, Portuguese and English fluently. A keen faster himself, he joins the programme several times a year and is always glad to talk guests through what to expect.
Beyond the resident team
Visiting specialists for your therapies
Alongside our resident facilitators, a small group of specialist therapists visit Moinhos Velhos to offer massage, acupuncture, reflexology and other optional treatments during your stay — all bookable once you’re on site.
- Acupuncture, wellness coaching & Dru yoga
- Swedish, deep-tissue, lymphatic & Thai massage
- Reflexology, Bowen therapy & the Chinese Quantum Method
- Pendulum dowsing, healing & inspirational sessions
Come and meet everyone in person
Check live availability and reserve your place with a €350 deposit.