It takes so much more to keep fit in your forties and fifties, to keep your skin glowing and tight requires some muscle tone, a good diet, and lots of circulation through the old veins.

Regular walks at a good pace - especially up the fells - are a fabulous way forward to looking and of course feeling fit.

Getting out on your bike speeds up the circulation no end, rapidly releasing those happy endorphins.

But what to do - at this stage of life - when drawn in nights and wintery weather mean that you constantly come back in doors soaking wet, freezing cold and creaking from the damp in your joints.

The weather out there can change everything, robbing all but the very hardy of regular outdoor exercise.

If you are anything like me, a few days of downpour or biting winds, and I very quickly get out of the habit of going outside to keep fit all together.

Two weeks pass by, and I’m piling on the pounds, feeling low, sluggish and tired, lacking in any kind of motivation to bother starting my regime again.

Determined not to fall off the exercise ‘wagon’ this winter, I knew that all I needed was somewhere warm and inviting to get my old body ready to start getting back into shape.

Having heard of the sumptuous refurbishment of the spa at The Langdale Country Club, in Chapel Stile, Great Langdale, I decided to kill two birds with one stone, and invite a friend who’s going through a very stressful divorce right now and is very much in need of some TLC, to join me on the most wonderful kick-start to fending off those winter blues.

London-based singer Suzi Gee arrived looking, I have to say, pretty poorly, with sallow skin and dark eyes - she’d definitely been through the ‘D’ diet (D for Divorce) and lost too much weight too quickly for her age.

I was on a mission and, wasting no time, drove her straight up the glorious county roads to Great Langdale - bathed in the rich colours of autumn.

By the time we arrived she’d already lost weeks of tension and I was feeling renewed motivation to get into my fitness gear.

Helen Westmorland, the spa manager, greeted us with a big smile - adding to the wonderful warmth of the huge pool area by the reception. She talked us through our spa day over frothy cappuccinos before whisking my friend away to change for her first therapy session.

While Suzi relaxed on her soft, warm bed, midst the heady aromas of essential oils and under the magic hands of her therapist Alison Manton, I had a good look around the spa rooms. Interior design, by Chesters of Skelwith Bridge, has added a feeling of pure indulgence to the spa, this is interior design at its best - luxury with total comfort.

The use of natural materials only serves to remind you that you are in the heart of the Lake District, with cool slate and warm wood working beautifully with the carefully-chosen furniture and product displays.

An hour-and-a-half later and my friend emerged.

Now I’ve not always been a true believer in the benefits of facials, but ‘WOW’ is all I could say on seeing the results of Suzi’s treatment.

Had she had Botox? I couldn’t quite believe her skin looked so plumped up, wrinkle free and totally glowing - I swear she had a new face.

This was the Visible Brilliance Elemis Advanced Facial which promises (and seems to deliver) firming, plumping and tightening to the skin through cleansing, exfoliating, massaging, and the application of a deep moisturising face mask. Pro Collagen Marine cream is used with its rehydrating-plumping effects (Pro Collagen cream is big in the news at the moment, recommended by TV beauty gurus and used by the likes of Emma Bunton and Cheryl Cole).

Suzi was allowed to rest for a while on large cushions, feet up, with lots of cool spring water to drink.

While in this heavenly state, her feet were given a pampering pedicure - warm water, exfoliation and massage cream, all worked in by soft hands, bringing circulation back to her tired city calfs and feet. Even the French polish used to finish off her feet was developed for long-lasting, anti-chip wear and ultimate high shine.

Our spa lunch was served to us in our towelling robes, so we didn’t even have to change.