Health Over Hangovers - What If a Festival Recharged You?
- Barry McGinley
- Jul 28
- 3 min read
Reflections on Hosting the First-Ever HealthFest in Donegal
Last weekend, we did something different. We challenged ourselves and our community to show up for their health, mindset, and long-term wellbeing.
Together with Stephen Doak, I co-hosted our first-ever HealthFest: a full-day event in Dunfanaghy built around movement, education, connection, and recovery.
In a country where many weekends (and festivals) revolve around pints, takeaways, and late nights, we wanted to flip the script.
We asked: What if we created a day that recharged people instead of running them into the ground? What if we celebrated community, without alcohol and made health feel exciting instead of overwhelming?
A New Type of Experience
Here’s what HealthFest looked like in action:
✅ A movement & mindset workshop with myself and Stephen on fat loss, resilience, and real-life habit change
✅ Functional strength & circuit training (no egos, just good vibes)
✅ A community walk + top-tier coffee courtesy of Darren from @second_edition_coffee
✅ Guided yoga with the amazing @trionakellyyoga
✅ Hot + cold recovery with the team from @cocoon_sauna_donegal (nothing like a plunge into the Atlantic to wake you up!)
✅ Honest lifestyle Q&A and take-home tools people could actually use
🎁 And goodie bags from Oisín at Boyce’s Centra Dunfanaghy packed with healthy snacks and fuel
The energy was brilliant. People came from different walks of life, but left with a shared sense of clarity, momentum and pride that they showed up.
Why We Did It
We see a worrying trend every day:
📈 Obesity and weight gain are on the rise. According to the Healthy Ireland Survey 2023, 60% of Irish adults are now classified as overweight or obese, with many struggling to maintain sustainable habits amid stressful routines and sedentary jobs.
🚭 Vaping, especially among younger people, is exploding. What started as a “healthier” alternative to smoking has become a new addiction. A 2023 HSE report showed that over 1 in 5 young adults in Ireland now vape often without understanding the long-term implications for lung health and stress regulation.
Stephen highlighted this in his resilience talk linking nicotine, poor sleep, and increased stress with the wider decline in mental and physical health we're seeing, especially post-pandemic.
We didn’t want to just talk about these problems.
We wanted to do something.
Rebuilding Health From the Ground Up
HealthFest wasn’t about pushing perfection. It was about creating a space where people could reset. Move. Breathe. Learn. And feel connected to a lifestyle that actually adds energy back into their life, instead of draining it.
For many, it was their first cold dip. For others, the first time they moved in weeks. And for all of us, it was a reminder that health doesn’t have to be extreme to be effective.
It just needs to be intentional.
What’s Next?
We’re already planning the next one with bigger capacity, deeper workshops, and more opportunities for real change.
But for now, I just want to say thank you: To everyone who came, who opened their mind, and who gave the day a chance. To Stephen for leading with purpose. To our collaborators who brought the event to life. And to the coaches, parents, professionals, and everyday people who showed up to better themselves.
If HealthFest reminded us of anything, it’s this: We don’t need to escape the weekend. We can build a weekend that recharges us for life.
Interested in attending or collaborating on the next HealthFest? Let’s chat message me directly or connect below.