From MP to wellness guru: Anna Lorck on transitioning from Parliament to plunge pools

The hustle and bustle of Parliament is a world away from former MP Anna Lorck’s new vocation as a wellness guru. Lorck talked to Neil Reid about her career transition and life after politics.

As Anna Lorck watched her Parliamentary career slip away, little did she know a loving gift from her daughters later that night would lead to a drastic lifestyle and vocational change.

On election night 2023, she lost her Tukituki electorate seat to National’s Catherine Wedd by 10,118 votes; one of 31 seats Labour lost on a nightmarish evening for the party that three years earlier had become the first under MMP to secure an outright majority and not need coalition partners to form a government.

But amid the pain of the landslide loss – a feeling many of her colleagues also endured – Lorck’s daughters showed their love by gifting her a trip to Bali.

“They had already bought my ticket, had packed my bags,” Lorck told the Herald.

“I went back to Parliament, said goodbye to my caucus colleagues, and then got on the plane to Bali.”

Anna Lorck surrounded by her family - including husband Damon Harvey - in the Tukituki electorate on election night. Photo / Paul Taylor

Waiting for her was her eldest daughter, Tabitha.

Lorck and her husband Damon Harvey have a blended family of five daughters.

Tabitha was travelling through Europe but had flown to the Indonesian holiday hotspot for a month.

“She met us and said, ‘I don’t mind what you do, mum, but there’s one thing you have to do, and you are going to do hot and cold water-plunging’,” Lorck recalled.

“She said, ‘It will make you feel like a king of the castle. You’ll be amazed’.”

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The plunge pools at The Istana were one of the group’s first destinations once they had settled in; a luxury meditation retreat centre whose marketing states is “a place to truly immerse yourself in restorative practices and profound rejuvenation”.

Rejuvenation was one of the things Lorck needed after her election night defeat.

Two pools awaited Lorck; one at about 8C and another just above 40C.

“I couldn’t even get my toe in the cold water to start with,” she said.

“One of the young women who’d been going there regularly said to me, ‘You need to go hot to go cold. So, over the course of the day, I managed to go from really hot water into cold water, and by the end, I was completely submerged, and I went back every day that I could.”

Lorck and her daughters were later joined in Bali by Harvey, a Hastings District Councillor and keen surfer.

He was also introduced to the hot and cold pools - and their wellness benefits - with Lorck saying it turned into a “life-changing experience” for the pair.

The holiday paradise of Bali turned out to be a life-changer for Anna Lorck, sparking an interest and now career in health and wellness.

The clear-headed relaxation – that she described as “empowering” - was like something she had never experienced before.

“I was completely convinced after doing this that this is something I wanted to bring back home.

“So, I went on an expedition into finding as much information as I could about, about ice bathing and hot and cold-water contrast to see what was available in New Zealand. And there was very little.”

More than 14 months on, experiences on the post-election escape will see Lorck and Harvey soon open a wellness studio in Hawke’s Bay.

“I wanted to do something that kept me in the place that I love, which is Hawke’s Bay”

Post-politics, Lorck had always set her sights on doing something that matched four criteria.

The first was that it would help people.

“A big part of my whole time in politics has been being able to help people,” she said.

Secondly, whatever it was, it should have some sort of positive health aspect.

Anna Lorck said any post politics career would have to fit four criteria, including remaining in her beloved Hawke's Bay . Photo / Connull Lang

“One of the best jobs I ever had was an elected member of the District Health board, and that gave me a real insight into our hospital systems and following it through and dealing with or helping advocate for people,” Lorck added.

Building a business was something she had done with Harvey pre-politics – launching marketing and public relations company Attn!.

Location was also a priority, with Lorck saying: “I wanted to do something that kept me in the place that I love, which is Hawke’s Bay.

“So this [the wellness industry] ticked all those boxes. I came back [from Bali] on a mission to set up something.”

It was a journey that has seen Lorck link with former Māori All Blacks captain and Crusaders second-five Tim Bateman; founder of O-Studio.

Christchurch is the site of the initial O-Studio “modern wellness centre”.

Anna Lorck has united with former professional rugby player Tim Bateman to bring O-Studio to Hawke's Bay. Photo / Photosport

O-Studio describes itself as a “welcoming space to train your body and mind. Our inclusive community and leading services are a relaxing antidote to the pressures of everyday life”.

The company offers franchises, with a further two being opened in Rolleston and Takapuna, and eight more preparing to open around New Zealand.

That includes Hastings, where Lorck and Harvey are preparing to launch their own O-Studio located in the Atrium at Tribune; the funky redevelopment of the former offices and printing press of the Hawke’s Bay Herald Tribune.

Former MP Anna Lorck and her husband Damon Harvey are set to launch a state of the art wellness centre, O-Studio, in Hastings' Atrium at Tribune. Photo / Photosport

The location is a special one for Lorck and Harvey, having first met when they were junior Tribune reporters. In 1999 the paper merged with Napier’s Daily Telegraph to become Hawke’s Bay Today.

“It’s sort of full circle back to where we all started, it’s like a new beginning and another important part of my life,” an excited Lorck said.

“It’s perfect for a wellness space because when people come through, you want them to leave feeling fantastic. We hope we can guarantee you will always feel better than when you arrived. It’s a gym for the soul.”

“I wasn’t someone who looked after myself”

Lorck says her kids told her “you’re not very zen” when she began her wellness journey.

“I wasn’t someone who looked after myself,” she said.

“I lead an incredibly busy lifestyle. I’m an everyday mum of five girls who is busy.”

Now she’s a gym member and a proud convert to the relaxing and healing powers of the wellness revolution, including cold pools.

“I’m an energetic extrovert who is always full of life,” she said.

Anna Lorck says during her Parliamentary career, her own wellness was not one of her priorities. Photo / Neil Reid

“The cold plunging gives me a level of balance and I feel fantastic. There’s something in it that works for me.”

Lorck’s role at Hastings’ soon-to-be-opened O-Studio will be very hands-on.

That includes the former MP being a qualified level-one breathwork instructor.

Last year Lorck travelled to the Blue Mountains – a World Heritage region west of Sydney – and trained under the world-renowned Johannes Egberts.

Recognised as Australia’s leading breathwork instructor, Egberts is the author of the top-selling wellness book Cold Therapy Plan, as well as previously working with the New Zealand Warriors league club.

Anna Lorck travelled to Australia to become a qualified level one breathing instructor. Photo / Neil Reid

Lorck says the first time someone told her how to breathe properly was when she was in labour.

“Very few of us are breathing well and or properly,” she said.

“The best thing you can do is breathe in and out through your nose and get some coherent breath work into your everyday life.

“Learning to breathe well is one of the best answers to dealing with stress and anxiety. If I’d had some of these tools earlier, they would certainly have helped me through some stressful times. And we’re never too old to learn them.”

“Politics is ever-consuming”

Lorck’s approach to life is a world away from her three-year tenure during the 53rd New Zealand Parliament.

Life between 2020 and late 2023 when she was the MP for the Tukituki - an electorate she had unsuccessfully contested at the 2014 and 2017 elections - saw politics being “ever-consuming” in her life.

During that nine-year period, Lorck estimates she completed about 2000 street corner meetings around the Tukituki electorate where she would answer questions from residents.

“Politics is ever-consuming,” she said.

Anna Lorck estimates she completed about 2000 street corner meetings with residents in the Tukituki electorate from 2014-2023. Photo / NZME

“It is fair to say that you don’t look after your own wellness as fully when you’re so busy. It comes second to everything else.”

Life in Wellington during her three years as an MP saw her regularly finish work at 10pm.

Having always been a “really early riser”, the following day would begin at 4am.

“You’re trying to fit in everything,” she said,

“One of the things that I feel I probably lacked was being able to be present all the time, you know, because you’re working in the hustle and the bustle. It’s such a demanding job.”

Life for Lorck as 2025 begins is a world away.

Former Government MP Anna Lorck still talks politics, but tries to restrict it to about four hours a week. Photo / Neil Reid

“People from all walks of life, all political colours, contact me about it,” she said.

“This is a total contrast from the life that I was leading.”

She said there was surprise, and respect, from former Parliamentary colleagues about her new life.

Some had indicated they would try O-Studio’s services when the complex opens.

“I think every politician should have a go at an ice bath,” Lorck said with a smile.

“I could imagine question time being quite different if everyone came after ice bathing.”

More than a year on from her Parliamentary exit – and as she prepares to launch O-Studio in Hastings - politics remains part of Lorck’s life.

But nowhere to the extent it did in the lead-up to the 2014 and 2017 election campaigns, and then her time in Parliament between 2020-23.

The Atrium at Tribune redevelopment has seen an old newspaper offices and printing site transformed into a hub of trendy shops, cafes, bars and soon the O-Studio. Photo / Neil Reid

In a huge contrast to those years, Lorck says about four hours weekly is all she restricts herself to when it comes to political talk.

“I only have a very limited time every week that I’m allowed to talk about any type of issues.”

“It’s different to retail where you can buy something off the internet”

The wellness, health and fitness industries are forecast to enjoy significant growth over the next four years globally.

In New Zealand, that includes annual growth of 6.9% per year up to 2029, to a total value of $78m.

Over the same period, the fitness industry in New Zealand is tipped to grow to at least $285m.

Wellness tourism is also a growing trend, offering domestic and international tourists the chance to refresh and recalibrate themselves in some of the country’s most scenic locations.

The wellness industry that Anna Lorck is stepping into is growing hugely globally. Photo / Neil Reid

Given its location in the majestic Hawke’s Bay, Lorck and Harvey’s O-Studio will definitely be opening its doors to those from outside the region.

Lorck is also confident there is a ready-made market already in Hawke’s Bay.

That includes a “high target” market of professional women aged between 25-60.

It was also something that could appeal to sports people to aid with recovery.

“Some people will come in for a reason or a season, others will be lifetime members,” Lorck said.

“The wellness industry is one of the fastest-growing industries in the world. It’s a service you provide; it’s different to retail where you can buy something off the internet.”

Lorck said she had a huge passion for politics during her time both as an electorate candidate and then while she was in Parliament.

That passion and energy has now transcended into her new vocation.

When Anna Lorck landed in Bali, she had no idea a special family trip organised by her daughters would be so life-changing. Photo / Neil Reid

On election night 2023, Lorck knew it was time to do something different. But when she flew out to Bali on the surprise family holiday she never could have imagined it would be in the world of wellness.

“My decision [after the 2023 election] was ‘I need to move beyond politics now’,” she said. “And this is something that I’ve been able to embrace and believe in.

“And when you’re passionate about something, you can always make it happen; I’m quite driven in that way. It’s certainly a completely different feeling and lifestyle and that has helped me.”

Neil Reid is a Napier-based senior reporter who covers general news, features and sport. He joined the Herald in 2014 and has 33 years of newsroom experience.

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