Les Nouvelles Esthetiques Spa Magazine #81 2021

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Lifestyle Relaxation & Health Therapies

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A Professional take on SPA Business, Health Therapies, Products & Simple Relaxation 2021*ISSUE*81

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Les Nouvelles Esthetiques Spa Conference 2021 2 The Longest-Living People in the World 6 Good Microbes for your Skin by Esse 8 The Wellness Concept at Longevity 10 Questionaire With Beauty Guru Bobbi Brown 12 Theranaka Signature Massage 14 Treating Lip Care Like Skin Care 16 The Return To Traditional Medicine 18 Why Crystal Therapy by The Soul Khaya? 20 Being Mindful without Meditating 22 Japan’s resilience with Ancient Wellness Roots 24 Getting Grounded: How Dirt Makes You Happy 26 An Essential Guide to Tea And Health 28 The Music Industry’s Wellness Pivot 30 Medical Spa Laundry Safety by HDW 34 Alkalinity: The Concept That Defines Healthy Nutrition 36 Detoxifying Beauty Treatments 38 15 Hot Springs Around the World 40 The Cold Hard Facts About Cryotherapy 44 5 Spas That Soothe With CBD 47 New Celebrity Wellness-Centered Cruises 50 8 Ways To Boost Your Brain As You Age 52 Nine Niceties Spa Owners Should Never Neglect 54 How to Infuse Energy Work into Your Life and Career 56 Reducing Waste Increases Profit. #SpaWasteNotChallenge 58 The 7 Principles of Humanocracy 60 Three Best Practices For Running A Successful Spa 62 7 Strategies To Diversify Revenue Streams In Your Spa 64 The Benefits of Having Your Own Niche 66 Regenerative Travel: Lofty Ideal to More Action 68

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W e l c o m e

Spa therapies and wellness treatment ? These treatments are not results-driven: you won’t necessarily see the effects of your treatment as you would an anti-ageing facial or, more obviously, any kind of beauty treatment such as a manicure or tanning. A wellness treatment will treat the whole person – mental, physical, environmental, spiritual, lifestyle, culture, creativity and connectivity – rather than try to fix one specific area or part of you. Wellness is a wide-ranging umbrella term that covers anything non-medical to do with our health: nutrition, physical and mental health, connectivity, lifestyle, culture, creativity and relationships. These treatments often feature an element from healing therapies from around the world, such as Traditional Chinese or Thai Medicine. For example, your massage may include hot poultices, acupressure, vibrations from ringing gongs or bowls, Ayurvedic medicine or crystals. It may also use herbal and botanical ingredients to cleanse your skin or calm your mind, such as the minerals in mud treatments, or herbal and botanical essences in massage oils. Your therapist may introduce elements of mindfulness, breathing exercises and other therapeutic methods commonly used to activate your parasympathetic nervous system (PNS), which soothes your stress-induced state. A wellness massage, a meditation session or yoga class may make you feel physically more relaxed, more in tune and connected and clear-headed enough to make better decisions. Dates to Diarise: Les Nouvelles Esthetiques Spa Conference and Spa Awards 2021 are taking place on the 26th & 27th September 2021, at the new Houghton Hotel. An event not to be missed! Register today on www.lesnouvelleblog.co.za Enjoy the read !

Dr. Nadine de Freitas

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques International Publisher I 7, avenue Stephane Mallarme 75017 PARIS Tel: 01 43 80 06 47 Fax: 01 43 80 83 63 www.nouvelles-esthetiques.com I Fondateur : H. Pierantoni I Directeur de la Publications: Jeannine Cannac-Pierantoni I Redactrice en chef: Michéle de Lattre-Pierantoni I International Editions • Argentina • Baltic • Benelux • Brazil • Bulgaria • Canada • China • France • Greece • Hong Kong • Hungary • Israel • Italy • Japan • Mexico • Poland • Portugal • Romania • Singapore • South Africa • Spain • Taiwan • Turkey • Ukraine • USA • Yugoslavia Les Nouvelles Esthétiques South African Edition I Max Cafe P. O. Box 81204, Parkhurst Johannesburg, South Africa 2120 I Tel: +27 83 267 2773 e-mail: info@lesnouvelles.co.za www.lesnouvelles.co.za I Publisher/Creative Director : Anthony de Freitas e-mail: tony@maxcafe.co.za I Managing Editor : Dr. Nadine de Freitas e-mail: nadine@maxcafe .co.za I Editor ial Assistant: Sarene Kloren editor ial @lesnouvelles.co.za I Adver tising Enquir ies: Dr Nadine de Freitas e-mail: info@lesnouvelles.co.za I Subscription Enquiries: Tel: +27 83 267 2773 e-mail: info@lesnouvelles.co.za or visit: www.lesnouvelles.co.za

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Doc: Alice Alinari

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Innovate, Invigorate & Elevate your Spa Peruse the top 10 business skills forecasted for the future and you’ll find the common thread of Creativity.

Emotional intelligence, originality, critical thinking, innovation, and complex problem solving are essential to invigorate and elevate your Spa. Creativity is Intelligence having Fun Albert Einstein

26 & 27 September 2021

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11.30 - 12.00 Mind - Body - Skin Connections - Symphony of Graceful Ageing- Dr Denise Bjorkman (CEO at Neuro Business Institute)

Sunday, 26 September 2021

Providing a mind-body-skin connections that restores the cellular balance between the skin, nervous system and immune system. One treatment at a time, through touch you can help create a more connected and compassionate world, beyond the immediate effects of reducing individual stress.

There's a new shift that suggests companies and their employees will have to start thinking in a different way when it comes to the way we work and live. This isn't only because there are fewer of us to do more work, but because the is going to be occupied by different generations. This is especially true for jobs that require creative solutions, knowledge and innovation. Employees in these fields fight to reach the ideal balance with set patterns, when in fact they would benefit significantly from breaking the pattern and instead of following a system 8.30 - 9.30 Registration based on the individual tasks and their own energy levels. To get as much as MC: Sheila Otieno-Osanya (Founder of The Spa People) possible out of our human resources, it is vital that we put the work-life balance 9.30 - 10.00 Welcome - Innovate to Elevate: How to Use Creativity in focus. to take your Business to the Next Level - Dr Nadine de Freitas (Managing 15.15 - 16.00 Being Part of the Blue Wellness Movement - Kent Editor - Les Nouvelles Esthetiques) Richards (Hong Kong) - Spa Operations Director Six Senses Hotel Resorts Peruse the top ten requisite business skills right now and forecasted for the future & Spas International (as determined by last year's World Economic Forum Future of Jobs report) and you'll find a common thread of creativity. Skills like manual dexterity and time You are familiar with the green beauty movement that was pioneered by small, management are trending downward. Emotional intelligence, originality, critical independent brands as it steadily emerged over the past three decades. Green thinking, innovation, and complex problem solving are gaining ground. Creative beauty is generally defined as beauty products that are plant-based, organicfocused, and ethically sourced. Over the past few years, green beauty has gone problem solving is a highly sought after skill. more mainstream. But have you heard of Blue Beauty? Businesses have to “go The Future of Spas - Patrick Huey (USA) - (Chairman blue,” which means that they were going to be held accountable by consumers 10.00 - 11.00 of the International Spa Association and Corporate Spa Director at to surpass being green and sustainable and forge new ways to use their businesses to make a positive impact on the environment, not just minimize their impact. Montage Hotels & Resorts) The wellness movement has grown to a multitrillion dollar industry, creating a world of opportunities, where you can strategically position your business to take advantage of “what's next.” Businesses that come up with new ideas and trial them are the ones that will evolve faster. Mobilise the magic, it's you and Registration your people and once you ignite your magic, that builds resilience in your team.” 8.30 - 9.00 Tebogo Thoka - Founder and CEO of Fabu-Health & Co 11.00 -11.30 Mid Morning Break 9.00 - 9.15 Welcome & Spa Awards 2021 - Dr Nadine de Freitas 11.30 -12.15 The 4 Curves and Flat Earth - Dr Wynand Goosen (CEO The Word “Wellness” - Andrew Jacka (Singapore) 9.15 - 9.30 and Founder of Skillzbook) (Chairman - Asia-Pacific Spa & Wellness Coalition There are plenty of echoes in our modern-day Vesuvius. For years, we have lived with - and largely ignored as “not particularly alarming” - increases in chronic The Dangers of Wellness.“It’s actually worse than when we started the spa diseases, an accelerating mental health crisis and growing income inequalities industry and 'spa’ was used to describe everything. The word 'wellness’ is now - not to mention the escalating climate change crisis. So here are four curves used to describe everything and this is dangerous. As an industry we need to define exactly what we mean by wellness. We can deliver 'light wellness’ or that we need to start flattening. 'integrative wellness’ but we need to be clear about what we do, especially in 12.15 -12.30 The Power of Connection - Dr Lientjies van Rensburg hospitality.

Monday, 27 September 2021

Is it a Bullish or Bearish Spa Market for Investment The skin is the largest organ in our body and is designed, amongst other things, 9.00 - 10.30 to experience touch. As our brains and bodies have developed extensive and Panel Discussion - Panel Discussion : Tebogo Thoka (CEO: Fabu-Health complicated responses to being touched, massage has a profound impact. & Co), Debbie Merdjan (CEO: Camelot International), Patrick Huey (Chairman: iSpa), Stav Dimitriadis (CEO: Twincare International) Spa Design: Wellness and Biophilic Architecture that 12.30 - 13.00 creates Emotional Connections - Andrew Scrivener (Managing Director The term “Bullish” is used because of the way a Bull attacks, moving his horns and head upwards and higher. So the price will rise.. A bearish market means - Distinctive Spaces) that the price is going down and falling. So is the Spa Market currently and into Biophilic and wellness design is a concept used within the design and architectural the future: Bullish or Bearish. industry to increase connectivity to the natural environment through the use of Future Proofing - Increasing Profitability and Wellness direct nature, indirect nature, and space and place conditions. 10.30 - 11.00 ROI - Marisa Dimitriadis (Founder and Managing Director - The Spa Consultants) 13.00 -14.00 Lunch 14.20 -15.00 Preparing to Dream - a New World of Well-being - It takes a lot to keep an organization running efficiently, ask any spa owner or Jean-Guy de Gabraic (Belgium) (Founder World Wellness Weekend) manager, to produce better outcomes, profit margins and have the best chance at making the most of well-suited investments. Allowing money or time to slip Wellness does not start with “me,” but with “we.” We should become the artisans through the cracks or go to waste can quickly deter progress on any initiative. of healthier and more vibrant lifestyles. Wellness does not just help us to survive, Of course, this is all easier said than done. Especially when it comes to abstract, it helps us to thrive. This is the goal of World Wellness Weekend and every highly impactful initiatives like an employee wellness program or marketing Weekend and encourages people to take the Wellness Pledge to positively programs, it can be challenging to assess its value and ensure the investment impact the lives of people near or far, through solidarity and a sense of purpose. is worth it. 11.00 - 11.30 14.30 - 15.15 How the Future of Work-Life Balance Will Look Like? - Ronald Abvajee (CEO of HLC: Winner of the 2019 Corporate Wellness Champion Award at the Future of HR Awards. Physiologist and Health and Wellness Expert, Entrepreneur and Motivational Speaker)

Mid Morning Tea Break

12.00 - 12.30 Media, Influencers and new Technologies are Driving Wellness - Unaiza Suliman - The Brow Queen but her influence extends To Business, Beauty & Aesthetics, Fashion, Parenting, Health & Fitness THE INFLUENCER WELLNESS REPORT states “2,267 social media influencers, trendsetters and early adopters reveal next years biggest trends in exercise, nutrition, food, alcohol, cannabis, supplements, e-commerce, apps, and much more…” Talent Management Strategies to help your Business 12.30 - 13.00 Stand out - Miranda Forrester (Owner of MF Spa & Beauty Placements)

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques Spa Conference 2021 Theme : Innovate, Invigorate and Elevate your Spa A must attend event for all spa managers, salon or spa owners, and wellness professionals. The Les Nouvelles Esthetiques Spa Conference focuses on building capacity, raising benchmarks and adding value to the spa industry, in addition to the infinite networking opportunity. This results in a speaker program that is focused in helping delegates to better understand their business; master industries best practices and directly apply practical lessons in their business. Peruse the top ten business skills forecasted for the future and you'll find the common thread of Creativity. Emotional intelligence, originality, critical thinking, innovation, and complex problem solving are essential to invigorate and elevate your Spa.

Creativity is Intelligence having Fun - Albert Einstein

Talent management is an ongoing process of attracting and retaining highperforming employees, providing the tools to develop their skills, and keeping them engaged and motivated. Retainment is a big part of a talent management strategy 13.00 -14.00

Lunch

14.00 -14.30 Embracing Diversity - Creating a new breed of culture driven leaders to grow the SA economy. Diversity is about what makes each of us unique and includes our backgrounds, personality, life experiences and beliefs, all of the things that make us who we are. It is a combination of our differences that shape our view of the world, our perspective and our approach Circular Economy EXPLAINED : Lucy Brialey (UK) 14.30 -15.00 (Co-Founder and Director of the Sustainable Spa Association) and Stephanie Hodgson (UK) (Campaign Partner #spawastenotchallenge) A circular economy is based on reducing consumption, waste and pollution through better design of materials, products and packaging. It also prioritises reverse logistics trends and practices to ensure the return of those goods back into the system where they can be reused, repaired or recycled. These are the five Rs of a circular economy, according to MeetthefiveRs: REDUCE - REUSE RECYCLE - REPAIR - RETURN Brand Shaper: Shape your professional brand and 15.00 -15.30 polish your personal presence - Lori Milner - Speaker | Trainer | Author What is the image that lights up in the minds of people you work with when they hear your name? In other words, what do others perceive, think, believe and remember about you? Can you control those things? And if so, what would you have them say? Whether you are conscious of it or not, everything you do or say contributes enhances or detracts from your brand. Why not consciously brand yourself before others can brand you? This program gives you the power to shape your own reputation in ways that are strategic to your career and life goals and congruent with who you are as a professional.

DELEEGA OSTS SPA CONFERENCE COSTS S PER PE DELEGATE an Sp South African Spa p Asso Association M ber bers ociation ation Memb Members 2 Day Conference eren Din nner ence & Gala ala Dinner 2 Dayy Conference Confe ence 1 Dayy Conference Confe A d G l Di err pa Aw nner Spa Awards Gala Dinner

R 2950.00 2950. R 2650.00 2650. R 1550.00 1550.0 50.0 R 500.0 500.00

Non-members Non-m mbers ner 2 Day Conference Confere ce & Gala Dinner Dinne nfere 2 Day Conference 1 Day ay Conference Confere e Spa Awa Awardss Gala Dinner a Dinne

R 3250.00 3250 50.00 R 2950.00 2 50 00 R 1850.00 850.00 0 00 18 500.00 00.00 R 5

Included conferenc conference osts: Welc Welcome tea, tea coffee cluded in the spa conferen conf ff and ence costs: W a d juice. coffee ce. Midmorning co ee and nd snack. snack Delectable Spa Cuisine Cuis morning tea, t Cu Lunch.. Notepa pen and Spa Confe Notepad, pe Con Conference Bag. ag. rence Goody G

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“How you see your Future is much more Important 15.30 -16.00 than what has Happened in the Past” - Zig Ziglar - Leona Toussaint (GIBBS Business School) 16.00 Closing & Thank you - Dr Nadine de Freitas (Managing Editor Les Nouvelles Esthetiques & Spa)

The Houghton Hotel Lloys Ellis Ave, Houghton Estate, Jhb

26 & 27 September 2021

Conference

Workshop

Product

Network

Awards

LNE Spa Conference Programme 2021

11.30 - 12.00 Mind - Body - Skin Connections - Symphony of Graceful Ageing- Dr Denise Bjorkman (CEO at Neuro Business Institute)

Sunday, 26 September 2021

Monday, 27 September 2021

Mid Morning Tea Break

Creativity is Intelligence having Fun - Albert Einstein

Lunch

R 2950.00 2950. R 2650.00 2650. R 1550.00 1550.0 50.0 R 500.0 500.00

Non-members Non-m mbers ner 2 Day Conference Confere ce & Gala Dinner Dinne nfere 2 Day Conference 1 Day ay Conference Confere e Spa Awa Awardss Gala Dinner a Dinne

R 3250.00 3250 50.00 R 2950.00 2 50 00 R 1850.00 850.00 0 00 18 500.00 00.00 R 5

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The Houghton Hotel Lloys Ellis Ave, Houghton Estate, Jhb

26 & 27 September 2021

spa therapies In the US, the average life expectancy is 78 years. But there are a few places in the world—specifically Okinawa, Japan; Sardinia, Italy; Nicoya, Costa Rica; and Icaria, Greece—where living to be over 100 isn’t uncommon at all. In these regions, known as Blue Zones, the life expectancy isn’t just higher; centenarians are generally also healthy, their minds and bodies still working well. National Geographic journalist Dan Buettner spent years studying each culture, pinpointing the exact reasons why they thrived before publishing his findings in the best selling book, The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who’ve Lived the Longest. Buettner found that despite the geographical differences, people living in the Blue Zones all had nine key lifestyle habits in common, which he named the “Power 9.” Here, each pillar is explained, with input from doctors about why it’s so crucially connected to health and longevity. Keep reading for the complete intel, including how to apply the pillars to your own life.

1. Move Naturally Buettner found that in all the Blue Zones communities, movement was a regular part of daily life for the residents. The Longevity Plan author John Day, MD saw this first-hand as well when he spent a year living in remote China. Even in their advanced age, he saw centenarians working in the fields and throughout the village. Of course, here in the States, our jobs are a lot more sedentary. But Dr. Day still says we can work this pillar into everyday life. “Unfortunately, our modern lifestyles have been engineered in a way to take movement out of our lives, so it is up to us to get in as much as we can during the day,” he says. “For example, you could take a vow to never use an elevator or escalator again unless the stairs are restricted. Other options include an evening walk or doing everything possible to avoid having to use a car. Even vacations can be scheduled in a way that are physically active, like a vacation centered around skiing, hiking, or cycling.”

The Longest-Living People in the World Have These By Emily Laurence 9 Things in Common 6

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’81

Richard Honaker, MD, who works with Your Doctors Online, echoes this saying, “The more exercise you can fit into your day, the better. Even walking is good for your health.” His recommendation is to aim for a minimum of 30 minutes of exercise three times a week. “This is the bare minimum amount of exercise to do that will benefit your health,” he says.

2. Have a larger purpose Having a clear sense of why you wake up in the morning is connected to living a long, healthy life. “Purpose is related to happiness, and happiness is associated with better health than sadness or indifference,” Dr. Honaker says. Dr. Day adds that the connection between the mind, health, and a sense of purpose is powerful. “Whether your goal is to beat cardiovascular disease or cancer, or even to live a long and healthy life, study after study has found an association of purpose in

life with all kinds of better health outcomes—an effect that stands regardless of (age, sex, education or race,” he says. “You have to have a reason to get out of bed every morning. Something that pushes and motivates you. For without purpose it is next to impossible to maintain the healthy behaviors and lifestyle that is conducive to a long and healthy life.”

week, to be exact—were 20 percent less likely to die of any cause and 25 percent to 30 percent less likely to die of cardiovascular disease than those who were completely sober. The key, of course, is to be mindful.

3. Manage your Stress

A sense of family and community is important in all Blue Zones communities, which Dr. Honaker says has been directly linked to health. “Many studies have shown lower rates of hypertension, obesity, diabetes, and possibly even cancer for people with lots of friends and loving relationships in their lives,” he says.

Chronic stress is terrible for your health, which is why stress management is one of the pillars for living a long, healthy life. “We all have stress. The key is how you perceive your stress,” Dr. Day says. “If you view stress as something that is making you stronger or refining you then it can be a good thing. If you view stress as something destructive then it probably is.” During his time in China, he saw that simple lifestyle habits such as eating nourishing foods, being physically active, getting good sleep, and socializing with family and neighbors all helped negate the stress the townspeople experienced, showing that the pillars are intertwined and connected to each other.

4. Eat until you are 80 percent full In the States, generous, oversized portions of food are valued greatly. But in Blue Zones, Buettner found that people stopped eating when they were mostly full, not when they finished everything on their plate or were too stuffed to eat another bite. He also observed that the biggest meal of the day occurred in late afternoon or early evening, not right close to bedtime. Scientific research has shown that eating late at night is linked to unhealthy weight gain, which isn’t exactly great for lifespan.

5. Stick to a plant-forward diet While we’re on the subject of food, people in Blue Zones tend to eat a diet that’s primarily plant-based, consuming meat only a few times a month on special occasions. “Processed foods and added sugar have never shown to have a health benefit. Cutting them out is 90 percent of a healthy diet right there,” Dr. Day says. “[In China’s longevity village], they picked their own produce and ate it the same day. And since they were essentially cut off from the rest of the world, they didn’t have any access to sugar or processed foods.” He also adds that they ate fish about twice a week, which of course brings to mind the Mediterranean diet, a long-beloved eating plan by doctors and dietitians.

6. Moderate alcohol Consumption Across Blue Zones, Buettner observed that alcohol was consumed, but moderately, at one to two glasses a day, with friends or food. This makes sense, as light to moderate drinking (particularly of wine) has been associated with a longer lifespan. According to a 333,000-person, eight-year analysis, those who enjoyed an occasional drink—seven or less per

7. Find your Community

Dr. Day observed first-hand how belonging affected the health of the people in China’s longevity village. “Our research showed that as long as people stayed in the village and adopted the village lifestyle, they were healthy and aging was slowed,” he says. “However, if they left for employment in one of the big cities in China then their health suffered.”

8. Stay close with Family Similarly, in Blue Zones, families tend to be close, both geographically and emotionally. Younger generations value and help care for older ones. Dr. Day says that healthy aging requires a close network of friends and faamily who share their health goals and values, not something people can do on their own. This may too be related to a sense of belonging. “This may be in part to the healthy lifestyles happy people adopt along with other factors we cannot measure,” Dr. Honaker says.

9. Maintain a fulfilling Social Life People in Blue Zones areas not only have supportive families and communities, they actively participate in them. For some, faith may be the cornerstone of their social life, which Dr. Honaker says can provide both comfort and camaraderie through a shared beliefs system. “As with purpose, study after study suggests that having a faith may increase longevity,” Dr. Days says of this connection, adding that faith often involves frequent social gatherings. Another studies published emphasizes the importance of even casual social relationships when it comes to longevity.

The Longest-Living People in the World Have These By Emily Laurence 9 Things in Common 6

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’81

3. Manage your Stress

7. Find your Community

SPA

Sponsored Advertorial Good Microbes for Your Skin There are trillions of bacteria from hundreds of species living on and in your skin. Your skincare goals should always include their well-being, as they are what ultimately determine skin health and graceful ageing. As a rule, body site is the most important factor in determining which bacteria are dominant and desirable on skin. Here is a cursory look at the three (four if we include lactobacillus) most abundant genera in the skin microbiome: Corynebacteria are rod-shaped bacteria. The species that grow on skin cannot produce their own lipids (fats) and are dependent on lipids from sebum. They are salt-tolerant and can easily live in high-sweat regions of the skin. Some are even reliant on vitamins from sweat to survive. Propionibacteria, now referred to as Cutibacteria, are known for their ability to make propionic acid (a short chain fatty acid). They 're mostly found in hair follicles but can also be found on the skin surface. They are specialised at acquiring nutrients from sebum and make many different enzymes that break down oil. Staphylococci are highly adaptable and are found in both moist and dry areas of skin. Some species can survive in low oxygen habitats such as hair follicles. They are salt-tolerant and may even use the urea in sweat as an energy source. The most common skin commensal is Staphylococcus epidermidis. It can inhibit biofilm formation and destroy existing biofilms of Staphylococcus aureus, which is a close relative, but is considered a pathogen. Lactobacilli produce lactic acid, which is important to keep skin at a low pH. They are found nearly everywhere in nature, and are one of the first bacterial groups to seed our skin as we pass through the birth canal and into the world. Many of the live species and lysates used in Esse are from the lactobacillus family. They are keystone species in skin – they aren’t present in great numbers, but they create an ideal environment to allow for the colonisation of other beneficial microbes. Bacteria make up the majority of the microbial biomass on skin but there are a few other microbes that have a large impact on skin health. •Your skin contains an enormous number of viruses – about 10 for each bacterium… and that’s a good thing. The overwhelming majority of these

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’81

are phages that keep bacterial popul'tions in check. Viruses are at least 10 times smaller than bacteria. • About 4,5% of your skin microbiome is made up by archaea. These are similar to bacteria in size but very little is known about their function in the skin microbiome. There are no known incidents of archaea becoming pathogenic in humans. • Yeasts are another group of microbes present on skin. There are at least 14 species of the genus Malassezia. These single-celled fungi favour highoil sites. They normally occur as individual spherical cells, but start to form chains if they become These fungi help protect from other microbes, regulate the immune response and digest fatty acids from sebum. Some species have been linked to dandruff, seborrheic dermatitis and hypo/hyperpigmentation. Malassezia is the dominant fungal genus over the whole body, except the feet. When we consider the number of microbes and their interactions with and each other, it’s easy to see how complex these relationships can be. It can be difficult to classify species as “good” or “bad” – sometimes, good can become bad when they occur in areas they should not. What’s important to remember is that these ecologies are able to balance themselves, often with very little help and only a few educated actions. •Remember pH is key. Beneficial microbes prefer a specific pH, so don’t disrupt this with harsh cleansers and products that aren’t pH balanced ataround 5. •Avoid stripping the skin of oils – a good many microbial partners make good use of your skin’s sebum. Stripping it robs them of food and puts pressure on your skin to make more (consistently stripping skin of oil results in poor quality sebum, which attracts a whole different set of microbes). •Don’t be tempted to sanitise unnecessarily – anti-bacterials kill all microbes and leave your skin as a blank slate, making it easier for opportunistic microbes to take the place of beneficial ones. On the whole, if you intervene as little as possible, your skin will have time to find balance. When you do want to give your skin a little extra care, go with skincare that prioritizes the microbiome over the usual promises of anti-ageing magic. For more info: visit www.esseskincare.com Tel: +27 (0)33 212 3506 email: info@esseskincare.com

spa therapies

The Wellness Concept at Longevity

Complex chronic diseases such as diabetes, cardiac disease, cancer, mental illness, and autoimmune disorders are on the rise in our population, and meeting these problems requires; new approach to medicine. Longevity is about being proactive and making the best decisions now about your overall health and happiness tomorrow. At Longevity, they focus on 5 key pillars of medicine - Preventive, Personalised, Holistic, Integrative & Regenerative.

Preventive Longevity was created to address a fundamental flaw in modern medical thinking: the failure to prevent future health problems. Although nearly any complex, chronic illness has long-term warning signs, traditional medicine focuses solely on acute treatment, diagnosing short-term symptoms or traumas, and treating the immediate problem with specific, prescribed medications or surgeries. Longevity's approach on the other hand is to prevent the onset of complex, chronic diseases. This entails taking into consideration an individual's particular genetic makeup as well as the impact of their current lifestyle on them, examining the underlying causes of disease, and prescribing nutrition, diet, detox, and exercise techniques, as well as regenerative therapies, to not only cure but to prevent disease.

Personalised Their personalised and integrative approach allows them to gain a better underst;nding of how genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors can affect the guests' long-term he;alth. Their approach is based on science, but it focuses on treating the individual rather than the disease. They concentrate on the

biochemically unique aspects of each individually when developing a health and wellness plan customised to their needs, designing bespoke treatments that help restore their physiological, psychological, and structural equilibrium.

Holistic Shifting the attention from the illness to the individual, however, means that every aspect of the guest's health has to be focused on, instead of an isolated set of symptoms. While looking at how the complex web of interactions between their history, physiology and lifestyle may be causing illness, the focus also has to be on wider causes and influences, deeply examining internal (mind, body, and spirit) and external (physical and social environment) factors that could be damaging their long-term health and wellbeing.

Integrative A broader understanding is one thing, but there is still the need to have the right tools in place to deal with what we have learnt. By integrating traditional Western medical methods with complementary medicine therapies, wellness practices and eastern ancient wisdom, the experts at Longevity are able to act decisively and effectively on any early warning signs that are detected. Using the latest laboratory and diagnostic techniques, they tailor the best mix of pharmaceuticals, natural remedies, physical activity, supplements, therapeutic diets, detoxification programmes, regenerative therapies, stress management and energy rebalancing techniques from an incredibly diverse world of healing solutions.

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Regenerative One thing to remember is that the human body has an immense capacity to self-heal its own imbalances, and we should strive to maximise our ability to do so as soon as possible. Apart from treating and preventing diseases, Longevity is also concerned with ensuring that the guests unleash the formidable capacities of their body and mind by encouraging the detoxification and regeneration of their tissues, organs, and cells, as well as rebalancing their energy fields. It is known that deficiencies and toxins build up over time before resulting in irreversible cellular inflammation. This gives you the time to help identify these issues early on, through routine assessments and monitoring, to delay, or even avoid, the resulting disease. Specific medical, genetic and hormonal tests, as well as differentiated premium biochemical assessments and the conventional clinical exams & imaging of their partner HPA, allow them to check for signs of pre-disease or any predisposition to neurodegenerative diseases, premature ageing, obesity, cancer and diabetes. From this, they will determine which health and wellness treatments are best for the guest's individual needs. The five pillars of wellness at Longevity are all about the detection, prevention and treatment of diseaserelated to cellular ageing. Article supplied by Longevity Wellness

spa therapies Bobbi Brown is a legend in the world of beauty, making a name for herself as a celebrity makeup artist and founding Bobbi Brown Cosmetics to wide acclaim and success in the 1990s. Brown left her billion-dollar namesake brand four-and-a-half years ago (Bobbi Brown Cosmetics is now fully owned and operated by Estee Lauder), but that hasn’t stopped her from launching new projects. She is a best-selling author, most recently releasing Beauty from the Inside Out, a lifestyle guide featuring her secrets for radiant beauty. Her entrepreneurial journey has continued as the founder and CCO of Jones Road Beauty, a clean, simple, high-grade beauty line, and Evolution 18, a collection of highly effective, clean, simple wellness products and ingestible formulas that are designed to target a wide range of beauty concerns. She is also the founder of www.justbobbi.com, a lifestyle platform for wellness, beauty, and travel, and co-owner with her husband of The George, a boutique hotel in Montclair, NJ. Here, she shares her wellness secrets, tips, and tricks.

What does wellness mean to you? During my freelance makeup career, I worked with every supermodel and every actress. I would try to understand why they look so good. Yes, it was makeup, but I also realized that it was the people who took care of themselves who looked really good. It took me some time to realize that, but now I know that wellness for me means understanding what works best for my body and feeling good in my own skin. When I eat intuitively with a focus on clean foods, stay hydrated, and prioritize exercise, I feel my best.

The Wellness Questionn.ire With Beauty Guru, Bobbi Brown By Julie Keller Callaghan - Well Defined

What are your favorite things to do to maintain your personal wellbeing? My main priority every day is to drink lots of water— hydration is key. In the morning, I use a Nespresso machine and fill a mini mason jar with two shots of the Ristretto black capsule espresso. For breakfast, I prefer Fage yogurt and a high-fiber cereal. For lunch, I love having a grass-fed, buffalo hamburger wrapped in lettuce with a pickle, onion, sprouts, spinach, tomatoes, Maille mustard, and a kale salad—followed by more water. After that, I’ll have two squares of dark chocolate to end the meal. I always have to have something sweet. Dinner is usually vegetable-centric with a clean protein. Dessert for me is one of Evolution 18’s new collagen powders with almond or coconut milk. We just launched three new flavors in nostalgic flavors: orange creamsicle, chocolate mint (like a peppermint patty), and classic chocolate, that are awesome alternatives to traditional desserts.

Is there a specific fitness activity that you love and why? I’ve always said I don’t look good until I exercise. I wrote about my routine on justBobbi.com, and broke down my favorite workouts, which I rotate often: walking (I usually get about 10,000 steps walking around the neighborhood), free weights,

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running, HIIT training, Pilates, barre, and cycling.

good fats into your diet throughout the day makes a huge difference in the health of your skin.

What is your favorite healthy beverage (alcoholic or non-alcoholic), and do you have any insider tips What aspect of your wellbeing do you struggle with the most or would most like to improve? for preparing it? During the day, I love to sip my Beauty Debloat Tea from my water bottle. First, it’s delicious and second, it’s both hydrating and detoxifying. At night, I do a tequila or a Tito’s on the rocks with cucumber, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, mint, and a bit of grated ginger on top.

What is your greatest wellness achievement? In 2017, I wrote my ninth book, Beauty From the Inside Out, which was really more about nutrition and wellness than it was about beauty. Promoting that book is really what put me on my new entrepreneurial path, and wellness was a big part of that. First, I went back to school to become a certified health coach. Then, I launched Evolution 18, a line of wellness and ingestible products. This was all a natural extension of my lifestyle, and sharing it with the world makes me proud.

What is your idea of balanced healthy happiness? Moderation is key. We all overdo it sometimes, but I try to eat a lot of vegetables and lean proteins. I drink water like it’s my job. It’s so important for your body and for your skin. I often turn to my Energizing Chocolate protein powderfor a mid-afternoon pick me-up. It nourishes my body and brain and leaves me feeling energized and satisfied. It’s all about the right balance of fat, protein, and fiber to keep your brain sharp.

Do you have a secret health or wellness tip you would like to share? Working from home and living through this pandemic has taught us all how to live with less and to accept things as they are, including the way we look. If you’re eating well and taking care of yourself, you don’t need a lot of makeup to look and feel good. That’s always been my philosophy, but it’s a tip that feels especially appropriate right now.

What is your favorite place for a healthy vacation or escape? I feel the best when I’m spending time with my husband and kids in the Bahamas. It’s my happy place, and I immediately feel calm when I get there.

What is your favorite self-care routine? I’m 64-years-old and have perfected my self-care routine by keeping beauty and wellness very simple. First, I’m not wearing a lot of makeup these days, so that really helps. At night, I wash my face with either coconut oil or a natural cleanser that I’m working on right now for Jones Road. For me, following a regular wellness routine of drinking lots of water, eating well, and incorporating

I often have to remind myself to do things that would help take life down a notch. For example, I wish I had practiced yoga and meditation at an earlier age, so I didn’t get so caught up in the craziness of my mind, which is what I’m working on now. I know how to build and grow a brand, but I am learning to manage my own busy mind. I think it’s something most people struggle with.

What brings you joy? Seeing my three sons happy brings me so much joy. One of my sons recently got married and I’ve never felt happier. It was four days of celebrations that were filled with love, traditions, and the welcoming of a beautiful and very loving family into ours. We danced, laughed, and celebrated, honoring two cultures (Hindu wedding ceremony and signing a (Jewish) Ketubah) and just indulged in every minute. It also inspired me to create a @jonesroadbeauty wedding kit, too, and a @evolution_18 recovery kit because that’s definitely what I needed in the days that followed. Stay tuned!! Well Defined: Adopt healthier habits for a life of wellbeing! Sign Up For the Newsletter, visit the website or social media platforms. https://welldefined.com/

The Wellness Questionn.ire With Beauty Guru, Bobbi Brown By Julie Keller Callaghan - Well Defined

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running, HIIT training, Pilates, barre, and cycling.

good fats into your diet throughout the day makes a huge difference in the health of your skin.

spa therapies

TheraNaka Signature Massage Tri-scented Shea Butter Nugget Massage

An innovative and unique body therapy spa range containing an abundance of exotic aromatic scents and natural herbal infusions with reputed healing properties - Africa provides the ultimate sensory experience for natural therapy as well as complete relaxation & rejuvenation. From heavenly aromas to herbal purity, TheraNaka™ is a mesmerising and innovative body & sensesoothing safari, replicating the earthy scents and awe-inspiring wonders of this most profound continent. TheraNaka™ means “Beauty of Africa”. Since the earliest time, Africa's original inhabitants lived in harmony with nature. Our unique treatments and rituals were inspired by, designed and based on Africa's rich heritage and created to celebrate mother earth and her connection with life. Understanding our mutual interdependence with earth, TheraNaka™ has been developed using only the finest natural ingredients available from nature while honouring the eco-system. May this journey into African open your eyes to preserve our beautiful continent. TheraNaka Signature Massage Tri-scented Shea Butter Nugget Massage TheraNaka™ is a unique South African product, rich in natural healing and soothing properties, presenting the ultimate in relaxation and rejuvenation. The finest African plant extracts and traditional rituals unlock the beauty of Africa - balancing and weaving

the scents and herbs of Africa with the adapted traditional rituals of its ancient inhabitants. Since the earliest time, Africa's original inhabitants lived in harmony with nature. From heavenly aromas to herbal purity, this unique body range is a mesmerising and innovative body and sense-soothing safari, replicating the earthy scents and the awe-inspiring wonder of this most profound continent. With an abundance of exotic scents and herbs which have well-reputed healing properties, Africa provides the ultimate sensory load for natural beauty as well as complete relaxation and rejuvenation. It is from these African gems that TheraNaka™ draws its raw materials to create a range exploding with earthy richness and new life. TheraNaka™'s unique body treatments and rituals were inspired by, designed and based on Africa's rich heritage, cultural traditions, rituals and beliefs and have been created to celebrate mother earth and her connection with life. Throughout this soulful journey, you will come across a variety of African rituals and symbols. These traditions have been handed down from one generation to another. The aim of our signature TheraNaka™ African TriScented Massage is to transport each individual to the plains of Africa, where the sounds and smells of nature will enliven your senses and envelope you in a feeling of utter tranquility, leaving you feeling revitalised and energized. Inspired by the people of Africa's use of the circular form, this unique ritual was created to encompass our connection with nature and celebrating the circle of life.

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Your African Tri-Scented Massage journey begins with a warm foot soak in a blend of Tangerine and Cedarwood infused water to release tension and to warm up the feet. Small blocks of Lemongrass infused Shea Butter are placed on different areas of your body which will aid circulation, relax and clear areas of congestion. The Avocado butter and Baobab oil in these massage blocks are rich in antioxidants and will help heal and protect the skin. Experience the soothing warmth as the butter melts under your therapist's hands leaving you utterly relaxed and your skin nourished and hydrated. We end off your journey with the sound of gentle rain through the use of our signature rain stick while the aroma of Lime and Sweet Orange room spray in the air will leave you feeling refreshed and invigorated. The inspirational massage movements that make this an exceptional invigorating African experience are designed to mimic the belief in the circle of life and the decorative body or ear jewelry found in circular or spiral shapes. Certain movements further replicate the unique skill of kneading and softening the Shea Butter paste. Lisa Smit, developer and founder of TheraNaka™ wanted “to capture the essence of Africa by combining exclusive blends of plant energies with traditional African rituals to give clients a truly unique and healing experience, achieving the ultimate balance of mind, body and soul.” This invigorating signature treatment is the epitome of that vision. For more information contact us: Tel: 021-886.6623, Email: info@theranaka.co.za www.theranaka.co.za

spa therapies

Treating Lip Care Like Skin Care

Let’s face it – Everyone loves having soft, plump lips. Yet, many people neglect the importance of lip care. When, in fact, lips are the most delicate and thinnest skin we have. Our lips don’t produce any sebum like the rest of our faces to help keep them nourished. They also don’t have melanin to protect themselves against the sun’s harsh ultraviolet rays. They are on their own, which is why they need a little extra TLC! As estys, it’s our job to make sure our clients are educated about their skin. Stressing the importance of lip love in our client’s skincaare routine is essential in making sure their lips are hydrated and healthy.

Educating Your Clients About Their Lip Care Lips are an underserved area of the face because many clients are unaware of how vulnerable they are. They can easily get cracked or flaky due to a lack of care. Not to mention, they age faster and lose their shape due to the loss of collagen and hyaluronic acid which keeps them looking youthful, moist and plump! Women’s lips stop growing at the age of 14. Once they reach their maximum thickness, they begin the thinning process. To prevent lips from aging sooner, it’s important that clients go beyond cleansing and moisturizing their lips in their everyday skincare routine. Making sure their lips are properly hydrated prevents irritation and infections, especially for those who are prone to cold sores. Another huge selling point

–flawless lipstick application! Who can argue with that!? Try recommending extra lip products and treatments to your clients to help them maintain a more youthful appearance.

ingredients like almond base oils and jojoba oils. This will relieve any itching or burning caused by dry lips, and leave their lips smoother than before. Lip masks like Henne Organic which contain nourishing oils like avocado and rosehip are also great for soothing lips.

Pampering Your Client’s Lips With These Key Ingredients Lip Tips and Tricks to Share With Your Clients Contrary to popular belief, most chapsticks and lip balms don’t nourish the lips at all. Instead, they provide a coating to help seal in moisture. Products that contain humectant ingredients like hyaluronic acid and glycerin extract moisture from the skin, making chapped lips much worse. This is because the moisture evaporates as it reaches the outer layer of the skin. This doesn’t mean we should stop using chapsticks that contain humectant ingredients altogether. Instead, we need to use occlusive ingredients like beeswax, shea butter and hemp seed oil to prevent the moisture from escaping the skin. You should also recommend that your clients buy lip balms with SPF 30 or higher and ingredients like zinc oxide and titanium oxide to protect their delicate lips from the sun’s rays. When your client’s come in for a good facial, make sure to exfoliate their lips with a gentle lip scrub that buffs away dead skin cells and deeply hydrates. You can add taste to the mix by using a scrub with edible ingredients like brown sugar or honey. Then, apply a moisturizing lip balm with beneficial

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When your clients come to you about dry, chapped lips, send them away with these tips. • Hydrate, hydrate, and hydrate! Dehydration is the main culprit to dry lips. • Use a humidifier, especially in those cold winter months. • Exfoliate regularly! • Use lip balms and scrubs with the right ingredients. • Avoid licking your lips as saliva breaks down the skin. • Include healthy fats in your diet, like avocado, coconut oil, and walnuts. • Consider taking a multivitamin! You may be deficient in iron or zinc if your lips are dry. • For some extra lip love, book an appointment with your aesthetician! Whether it be finding solutions for aging lips or dry, cracked lips, it’s time we start treating lip care like skincare. After all, our lips are essential to eat, kiss and smile. Oh, and for our duck-face selfies! Article supplied by Esthetician Edit

spa therapies

The Return To Traditional Medicine By Healing Holidays, Frances Geoghegan

your assessment will last longer than a few minutes, and goes much deeper than a simple physical examination - an Ayurvedic Doctor will ask you a lot of questions, will take your pulse, examine your tongue and give you a thorough looking over. Your lifestyle and sleeping habits will also be discussed, as well as your emotional state of mind. Three doshas exist in Ayurveda, which show the dominant mind/body state - Vata, Pitta, and Kapha, and even though all three can be found in us all, we each have a dominant dosha that we are born with, and preferably an equal, although often changing), balance between the other two. It is an easy system to understand - when the doshas are balanced, we are healthy, but when they are unbalanced, we are more at risk of suffering from disease.

The Mayr Cure The world-renowned Mayr method, much-loved by A-listers and the world’s top models, is over a century old and is based on the theories of Dr Mayr, who believed the route to good health was via the gut or second brain. Any imbalances in the digestive system result in poor health. It is an equally easy philosophy to understand; poor digestion is the result of a bad diet or not chewing your food correctly. This, combined with increased stress from modern living, as well as a more inactive lifestyle, has put huge strains on our digestive system, all of which results in poor health. Your Mayr Doctor diagnosis is equally comprehensive, with a succession of prescribed tests with your Doctor, and a personalised plan to return you to rude health.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), with over two millennia’s of history, is built on its own complete medical system. It believes each of the body’s origins mutually support each other, and is all about balance, harmony and energy. When your yin and yang of Qi, (life energy) are in balance, you will be healthy and well. A typical evaluation under TCM includes a deep look at your health history, tongue & pulse examinations and a physical assessment. The purpose is to find any imbalances or Qi blockages. The thing that links all these practices is that each of them seek to discover the cause of the problem, and not just treat the symptoms, and so this is why many people seek out these traditional practices. We all want much more than a prescription and a temporary fix, we want lasting results. We want a holistic approach, and to know how our emotional and physical beings are inexorably linked. There is so much to be learned from these great practices and the best way forward is for them to be offered in conjunction with modern medicine and not as things which we need to search for ourselves.

Pregnancy Massage Training

At Healing Holidays, we have noted, over the last decade, an increased demand for traditional wellness approaches, such as the ‘Mayr cure’, (found in clinics across Austria and Germany), Ayurveda programmes, ain India and Sri Lanka), and Traditional Chinese Medicine programmes, which are available across the world. This fresh interest for the old traditions does not come as a big shock to us because now, more than ever, we are all looking for reassurance from experts and we want something that has a record of producing results, and all of these methods certainly offer this.

5 Reasons Why We Are Returning To Traditional Medicine • We want thorough diagnostics, we want the time to understand our health issues. • We want to tackle the root cause of the problem and not just the symptoms • We don’t just want a prescription for drugs and that’s it. • We want a multi-pronged attack to the problem including help with the emotional side • We want a more holistic approach to our illness, and a clear plan on what to do to feel better.

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Ayurveda Many of these methods or cures such as Ayurveda, are older than Buddhism. They look at the whole person including the mind, body and spirit, each of which hold equal significance. Ayurveda is thought to be the oldest surviving traditional system, having being practiced in India for over 5000 years. Translating from Sanskrit as the ‘science of life?, it provides a comprehensive programme on how to live your life, based on the notion that everyone is made up of different types of energy, or Doshas. Unlike going to a GP when you are not feeling well,

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Offering safe and effective massage treatments are even more crucial when treating pregnant clients. Extracts Collection™ Training courses are developed to elevate the skills of qualified therapists, raising the standard of treatment delivery.

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spa therapies

The Return To Traditional Medicine By Healing Holidays, Frances Geoghegan

Pregnancy Massage Training

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’81

Extracts Collection Offers: - Specialized Massage Training - Massage & Treatment Rituals - Spa & Retail Product Range - Treatment Accessories

(SAAHSP Approved | Earn CPD Points)

Proudly distributed by Black Frost Pty Ltd • mel@blackfrostsa.co.za • +27 (62) 288 2069

spa therapies

Why Crystal Therapy? By Mandy Trollio - The Soul Khaya / TAWA LABS Crystal Collection From the great galaxies to the subatomic, all people and particles dance to a vibration of resonance. Resonance is a way of storing energy by vibrating at a particular frequency, and everything everything - in the universe resonates. If energy is added to something at its resonate frequency, it can store more and more of that energy by vibrating at that particular resonate frequency. Simply put this translates to, more energy = higher vibration, or, the more the energy the greater the life force energy. Our Vital Life Force energy, also known as Chi, Ki, Prana or Mana is directly linked to our wellbeing, vitality and happiness. What does this have to do with Crystal Therapy? Well, everything! The above fundamentals of resonance sum up the basics of Crystal Therapy. For example when during a Crystal Massage we lay out a clear quartz energy grid around the treatment bed and then, with focused intention, perform a chakra stone layout along the pathway of the 7 corresponding energy centres, we are weaving a matrix of raised vibration. What arises naturally from the stones frequencies, colours, shapes and mineral content, along with the therapists focused intention, is a deep sense of harmony and peace for the guest and therapist alike. The energy system begins to flow and balance, and as science tells us, through entrainment, this alignment of rhythm now flows into the physical, emotional, and mental bodies. And this is just the start of the treatment! Discerning guests seek authentic experiences which allow them to go within and visit the landscape of self-inquiry. No longer is a 60 minute Swedish massage enough to feed their soul. Now more than ever we need to provide the space for outer and inner sensory experiences, this is the future for body therapies. Along with other modalities of like breathe work, meditation, sound therapy, and aromatherapy in the form of the TAWA LABS Crystal Collection, the crystal massage brings a gift to the guest, enabling him/her to embrace the remainder of their day with renewed energy, joy and happiness. And with

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entrainment………this joy transfers from this moment to the next and the next, and from this person to the next and the next. The Crystal Therapy training I have curated for therapists enables them to bridge the gap between providing merely a body massage, to creating an authentic open hearted holistic therapy. The regular practice of receiving, and giving, a mindful massage is a without a doubt an altruistic act. How so? Unconditionally giving benefits both the receiver and the giver by activating our happy hormones! These regular experiences settle into ones consciousness, improving the quality of one's mind and overall wellbeing. It is now my time to pay it forward, after so many years in this dynamic industry, spending time with, and facilitating growth for young therapists and teams who wish to grow both professionally and personally is my mission. My Crystal Therapy training paves the way for this.

Reviews Celeste Mokoena, Spa manager of The Houghton Hotel and Spa, and two of her senior therapists recently completed a full 5 day training programme. “This was one of the best training courses I have ever experienced, out of this world! Crystal Therapy massage holds incredible benefits for both the client and therapist. As a Spa manager I have often found it difficult to switch off after the many daily challenges, learning these holistic practices during the course was invaluable and has enabled me to find balance, calm and focus. I am more equipped than ever to apply myself fully during and after my daily tasks and challenges, both professionally and personally. This is true Body, Mind and Soul therapy!” It was with incredible gratitude that I recently received from Roxane Gordan, owner of Flourish Beauty Salon in Glen Ashely Durban North, the following review “A crystal massage at The Soul Khaya is not a treatment, it is a life changing experience." For more information on treatments and training courses, contact Mandy Trollip www.thesoulkhya.com 082 451 7701

spa therapies

Being Mindful without Meditating

There is no definition of good meditation or bad meditation, what is most important is finding what works the best for you. For some, sitting in the lotus position for 30 minutes a day allows them to feel connected and mindful.

surroundings. Note the sounds of nature, visualise the colours around you, take in the smells in the air and relax.

However, for many of us, repeating this mantra every day can seem torturous. What is important is your ability to set aside some time each day to relax and reconnect with yourself, especially if you lead a busy lifestyle. How you decide to spend your time is completely up to you and definitely does not have to be strictly meditation. There are a variety of activities that can provide the same benefits you receive from meditation as long as you are present and aware of your thoughts and feelings. If you do struggle with meditation but want to incorporate mindfulness into your life, we have put together some activities to try.

Producing art is an excellent form of expression and can be highly therapeutic. The goal of art is to utilize your creative process in order to help explore self expression and, in doing so, find new ways to gain personal insight. Perhaps you have a passion for watercolour or life drawing, why not join an art club or enrol in an after-work course.

Walking Mindful walking is a great way to declutter the mind, centre yourself and regain mental focus. As you walk, keep your head up and focus on all your

Art

Gardening Find inner calm as you care for your garden. Many studies have shown simply getting into the garden a couple of times a week can have a huge benefit on our mental welfare. Take the time to pause as you take your first step into the garden and try not to focus on the clock too much. If you do not have your own garden, try volunteering at your communities public gardens

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Pottery Finding a new skill can be a great way to switch off from your surroundings and focus on yourself. An example of this could be to take part in a pottery class. Being creative is great for the soul, when you begin to feel the warm clay in your hands and smell the earth your mind begins to relax. This is also a real opportunity to connect with like-minded people and embrace your passions together. Foraging Similar to gardening, foraging is a mindful activity which truly allows you to connect with nature whilst spending time in the great outdoors. This combination is brilliant for overall mental health and wellbeing. There are many things you can forage for, depending on your surroundings. This could include foraging for berries, herbs or mushrooms. Or, if you are not surrounded by so much natural food, simply collecting autumn leaves for a home project can be an excellent way to tune into your thoughts.

spa therapies

Being Mindful without Meditating

surroundings. Note the sounds of nature, visualise the colours around you, take in the smells in the air and relax.

Walking Mindful walking is a great way to declutter the mind, centre yourself and regain mental focus. As you walk, keep your head up and focus on all your

Art

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spa therapies Brilliantly marrying revered traditions with innovative technologies, Japan asserts a comprehensive culture of wellness —and encourages the world to follow suit. As awareness of the100-year Life Society spreads globally, it is natural to look to Japan. In 1965, Japan had 153 centenarians, and in 2017, there were 67,824, representing the largest per capita ratio of them in the world. Fifty percent of Japanese citizens born in 2007 are expected to reach 107. There are lessons to be learned from Japan’s lengthy leadership in longevity. Japan is not standing still, but rather executing exciting innovations on top of its cultural traditions of trust, exacting quality in all matters and a deep reverence for nature. Recent years have seen each of these become a global phenomenon: Ikigai, purpose but at a measured pace; Kintsugi, “art of repairing broken pottery”; Wabi-sabi, embracing imperfection and transience; Marie Kondo, de-cluttering by auditing the spiritual value of our possessions; and ShinrinYoku, forest bathing. Japan is also known for its wellness-related products.

Japan’s remarkable resilience in the face of COVID-19 highlights its By Global Wellness Summit ancient wellness roots

Incense is used to purify, cleanse and relax. With a reputation for the highest quality, Japanese incense sticks have long been exported worldwide. Behind this are deep traditions. Seasoned artisans train for years, with 70 percent of all production being centered on Awaji-shima, a small island southwest of Kobe city. When the burning of incense moved beyond temples, incense-listening, or Koudou, emerged in the 13th century and is still practiced today: a ritual-rich game involving the identification of incense aromas. Japanese incense sticks are being followed globally now by wave upon wave of highly distinctive JWellness products and techniques.

The 2018 Monastery Stay & Meditative, Spiritual Cuisine legislation opened Japanese temples to lodging tourists, enabling visitors to access their inner Zen with meditation, silence and the famous vegetarian cuisine that Buddhist monasteries offer known as Shojin Ryori. “Shojin” means a devotion to pursue a perfect state of mind, while “ryori” means food. Dating back to the 6th century, it is prepared around soybean-based foods such as tofu and incorporates seasonal vegetables, wild mountain plants and nuts. Meat, fish or other animal products and pungent flavors such as garlic and onion are excluded. The monks employ two “rules of five”: five colors (green, red, yellow, black and white) and five flavors (sweet, sour, salty, umami and bitter). Encouraging contemplation and appreciation, the cuisine leads to balance and alignment of the body, mind and spirit.

Connecting To Nature

Forecasting the Future

Shinrin-Yoku (Forest Bathing), Therapeutic Onsens and yummy Shojin Ryori vegan temple food

• All eyes are focused on Japan for the “Tokyo 2020” Olympics. This will be Japan’s unique opportunity to shine a light on the preventative healthcare and wellness properties that are inherent in Japan’s deep reverence for nature—a sentiment that the Coronavirus has made even more urgent.

Japan’s deep reverence for nature also acts as preventative healthcare. For example, forest bathing began in 1982 with a J%panese national health program. Coordinated by the Forest Therapy Society, there are now 62 official healing forests and 1,200 certified guides, with over 2.5 million people walking the healing forest trails in 2018. Studies support the breadth of health benefits of connecting all five senses to nature, from reduced blood pressure, lower stress and improved cardiovascular and metabolic health to lower blood-sugar levels and improved concentration, memory and energy. The phytoncide in cedar and cypress has been shown to have calming effects on people, as well as providing a boost to the immune system, with one study having shown a 53 percent increase in the count of the body’s natural killer cells after two days in these forests. Dr. Qing Li of the Nippon Medical School in Tokyo and president of the Forest Therapy Society, who

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also spoke at the 2019 GWS, notes that we spend 93 percent of our time indoors, leading to a naturedeficit disorder. As the inbound tourism boom is discovering, Japan has an incredible wealth of natural assets to facilitate recovery: in addition to the 62 healing forests, there are 20,972 onsens (hot springs), two-thirds of the global total, providing a rustic, authentic, and hyper-specific wellness experience. In addition to the medicinal benefits of the various minerals in the water, deep-soaking bathing has thermotherapeutic effects (a higher body temperature s tre tc hes capillar ies improving circulation, increasing metabolism and reducing fatigue), water pressure effects (improving the flow of your blood and lymph fluid) and buoyancy effects. The latter, by reducing the body’s weight to one-tenth of what it normally is, allows muscles and joints to rest, enabling tensions in the body to dissipate. Japanese bathing influences are appearing worldwide. The new Shou Sugi Ban House in the Hamptons, US, has a Japanese design, hinoki soaking tubs, tea ceremonies, etc.

• Spiritual travel is bound to surge post-pandemic. Expect Japan to be a leading destination in one of the newest wellness travel trends: “monastery stays.” The country has already opened up hundreds of Buddhist temples to tourists and has even created an Airbnb-like booking system. • As home to two-thirds of all hot springs destinations in the world, Japan’s authentic onsen culture will continue to evolve and make its way West. New luxury onsen resorts are springing up across Japan, and the experience is also being exported to other countries. This is an excerpt from the “J-Wellness” trend in the 2020 Global Wellness Trends Report

Japan’s remarkable resilience in the face of COVID-19 highlights its By Global Wellness Summit ancient wellness roots

Connecting To Nature

Forecasting the Future

Shinrin-Yoku (Forest Bathing), Therapeutic Onsens and yummy Shojin Ryori vegan temple food

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’81

spa therapies and no grounding. Due to their physically demanding jobs, they’d all complained of chronic pain and physical and emotional stress. After receiving grounding therapy, all participants reported a decrease in pain, stress, depression, and fatigue.

swimming in murky waters, grounding naturally is a very safe and enjoyable activity. Using a grounding device poses a small risk of electrical shock if used incorrectly.

Many of these studies are small and rely on anecdotal evidence, although many also include measurable blood markers. More research is needed overall,but the results look very promising. And there’s really no downside to connecting with Mother Earth.

Mental health therapies often include grounding techniques to calm distressing thoughts. Here are some hands-on approaches to emotional grounding by engaging your senses.

Bottom line: Research suggests grounding may improve symptoms of… •chronic fatigue •anxiety and depression •sleep disorders •chronic pain •cardiovascular health

3 Common Types Of Grounding Choose your own adventure when it comes to connecting with the Earth. Here are some popular approaches to consider. Outdoor Savasana

Getting Grounded: How Dirt Makes You Happy Hippies are known for being happy and chill, and for running around barefoot. Emerging research suggests they’re onto something, too. Turns out, kicking off your shoes and literally connecting with Mother Earth has health benefits, such as boosting immunity, regulating sleep, and reducing stress. Grounding, also known as earthing, is when humans make an electrical connection to the earth’s energies. The simplest form involves walking barefoot in the grass, dirt, or sand. Some people take a more technical approach using grounding matts and other devices. More on that in a second. As radical as it seems, grounding is simple science. Humans are bioelectrical beings that carry a positive charge, which can build up in our bodies. Earth has a negative charge. When we m2ake contact through grounding, we discharge our excess energy, producing a healing effect at the cellular level.

Grounding is essential as it may: •reduce inflammation •reduce cortisol •increase energy •increase healing speed •decrease pain •restore balance to the body

It’s Science. There isn’t a huge vault of studies on grounding (yet), but the research that exists shows a measurable improvement in blood chemistry, pain, immune response, and inflammation after short periods of skin-to-earth connection. One research review suggests the earth is a living matrix with a central connection to all living cells. This matrix is held together by electrical conductivity, which acts as an immune system defense (sort of like antioxidants). The body restores its natural defenses by connecting to the matrix through grounding. In another smaller study exploring how grounding

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’81

affects heart health, 10 healthy volunteers had grounding patches placed on their hands and feet. Blood measurements were taken before and after grounding to detect changes in red blood cell fluidity. The conclusion showed a major decrease in blood cell clumping after grounding, which indicates the practice is beneficial to heart health. Grounding has also been studied for its pain-relieving abilities. One study used grounding patches and mats to understand how grounding affects postexercise muscle damage. Researchers measured creatine kinase, white blood cell counts, and pain levels, before and after grounding. The resulting blood analysis demonstrated that grounding reduced muscle damage and pain, indicating it had an influence on the body’s ability to heal. Another more recent study further examined the pain relief and mood boosting properties of grounding. This study looked at 16 massage therapists who rotated between periods of grounding

When was the last time you laid on the ground? If the last time was in childhood, it’s time to get back to your roots. Get that skin-to-earth connection by laying in a wide space like a picnic area at a park or in the sand at the beach. Or, next time you’re doing yoga, try going outside and including a little savasana on the earth rather than on your mat. Earth walker Walking barefoot is the easiest way to have a skinto-earth connection and wake up your senses. Savor the feeling of soft grass tickling your feet. Find a patch of dry, sun-warmed dirt and enjoy the sensation. If you’re near a beach, dig your toes in the sand. Keep in mind, If you aren’t used to walking barefoot, your feet may be tender. Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for stray rocks Embrace your inner mermaid If you’re more of a beach babe, this one’s for you. Swimming in oceans, lakes, or rivers are perfect ways to ground yourself. Feel the cool water, soft sand, and even slimy rocks or smooth river stones to feel more connected to the Earth.

Equipment for Rainy Days While rain wouldn’t phase a die-hard hippie, most of us save our earth child urges for good weather. When the ground is muddy, there are indoor alternatives to consider like grounding mats, sheets, blankets, bands, patches, and even cozy socks that are designed to allow you to ground from the cozy comfort of your couch or office.

Safety First Aside from the general risk of stubbing your toe or

Physical Techniques to get Centered

Dish it out. Convert the never-ending task of dishwashing into a grounding exercise and finally answer the age-old question: is water wet? Focus on the temperature of the water. Do all parts of your hand feel the same degree of warmth? Notice the contrast of the cold rinse water. Think of all the ways water purifies and heals the body and soul. Touch. Hold and touch items near you and challenge yourself to think deeply about their texture, weight, and temperature. Take a pencil and roll it between pinched fingertips. Tap into your inner thesaurus and find words to describe the sensations, being very specific. Breathe, beathe, breathe. For an instant dose of calm, bring your attention to your breath, noticing your regular breathing pattern. Then inhale deeply, filling your belly and lungs. Hold for a few seconds, then let it out.

Mental Grounding Techniques Try these mental grounding exercises to ease distressing thoughts and feelings. Memories. Look at a picture or piece of artwork. Close your eyes and try to remember as much detail as you can about it. Math. You’re never too old to practice your times table. Recalling basic math facts is a simple way to ease anxious thoughts and exercise your brain. Bonus points if you’re bad at math due to the need for even slower concentration. Other ways to use math include counting down from 100 or choosing a number and thinking of 5 ways to make that number. For example 12 + 7 = 19, 24 – 5 = 19 Laugh. A fit of giggles, a full-on belly laugh, or just a chuckle are all great mood boosters. Read some dad jokes, watch a baby-eating-a-lemon video, or whatever makes you smile. Find joy in the little things. What’s your mantra? In action movies there’s often a character who summarizes their life in a succinct way, like… “My name is Katniss Everdeen. I live in District12.” It’s a storytelling strategy to ground that character from the anxiety of their situation. You can do it for yourself when you’re feeling overwhelmed.

Self-soothing Techniques Feeling overwhelmed? Try these exercises if you’re in need of comfort. Who do you love? Imagine someone positive in your life or even someone you admire. Picture their face and hear their voice telling you that although this moment is challenging, you will get through it. Love yourself. What would you say to a friend who was feeling the same way you are now? Try

saying the same phrases, like “you?re strong,” “you can get through this,” and “I believe in you.” Say it like you mean it! Pet your pet. There’s a reason why we have emotional therapy dogs! Animals don’t judge you for being sad or moody. Give them a cuddle, a belly rub or just a knowing pat on the head. They got you. Your happy place. Use all of your senses to visualize the feeling of being in your faavorite place. Maybe a childhood fort, your kitchen, or a foreign city you love to visit. Imagine the colors, sounds, and sensations. Bring it to life in your mind. Listen to music. Put on your favorite song, but pretend you’re listening to it for the first time. Focus on the melody and lyrics. Does the song give you chills or create any other physical sensations? Pay attention to the parts that stand out most to you. Feel the music move you. Let emotions come up and out, don’t stuff them in. Mindful meals. Many of us are in the habit of eating while staring at our phones or other screen. To start, put down your phone, your to-do list, and your busy thoughts, and simply focus on your food. Step-by-step: Feel how the earth is there to meet you at each step, notice how your foot feels on the ground and how it peels up off of it. Notice the rhythm of your steps, maybe even count how many you take.

Other tips to improve your practice Grounding yourself through centering is subtle therapy. Unlike a prescription med, it takes time and consistency. However, the results are organic and empowering with no side effects, so don’t give up after the first try. Keep those self-empowering mantras close Get the most out of your grounding therapy by: Sticking with it. Practice makes perfect. Even when you feel like it’s not working, keep at it. With consistency, you’ll find yourself centered with an arsenal of grounding tools at your disposal. Try it first thing in the morning. If you wait until you’re in meltdown mode, it will be harder to take back control of your mind and emotions. Avoid being critical. When using visualization or observation techniques, go general and concentrate on the basics of your surroundings, not how they make you feel. Check yourself. Before grounding, rate your distress on a scale of 1 to 10. Do the same after grounding. Noticing results will encourage you to keep at it. You can also use this method to figure out which techniques work best for you. Eyes wide open. Keep your eyes open for many of these exercises, as it’s easier to stay connected to the present moment if you’re engaged with your environment.

In Conclusion It’s kind of amazing that simply walking the earth barefoot can have so many health benefits. In years past, our ancestors did this out of necessity. These days we have to make a concentrated effort (thanks, shoes). So Kick off those shoes, take a deep breath, and repeat: “I have the power!

swimming in murky waters, grounding naturally is a very safe and enjoyable activity. Using a grounding device poses a small risk of electrical shock if used incorrectly.

Mental health therapies often include grounding techniques to calm distressing thoughts. Here are some hands-on approaches to emotional grounding by engaging your senses.

Bottom line: Research suggests grounding may improve symptoms of… •chronic fatigue •anxiety and depression •sleep disorders •chronic pain •cardiovascular health

3 Common Types Of Grounding Choose your own adventure when it comes to connecting with the Earth. Here are some popular approaches to consider. Outdoor Savasana

Grounding is essential as it may: •reduce inflammation •reduce cortisol •increase energy •increase healing speed •decrease pain •restore balance to the body

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’81

Safety First Aside from the general risk of stubbing your toe or

Physical Techniques to get Centered

spa therapies

An Essential Guide to Tea And Health By Caroline Russell Ever since Chinese folklore told tales of leaves from an overhanging camellia sinensis plant that fell into Emperor Shennong’s cup of boiling water in 2737 B.C., tea has been known by cultures around the world for its power to soothe, restore, and refresh. Far from being a fictitious promise, tea has been extolled for a myriad of potential health advantages, from reducing heart disease to even improving dental health and aiding weight loss. Tea is undoubtedly an excellent source of nutrition for your health. First things first. Make sure your “tea” is indeed tea. True tea is derived from the camellia sinensis plant and has four main varieties, which are green, black, white, and oolong. Herbal teas are an infusion of a different plant and aren?t, technically, tea. Tea And Your Heart According to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, the antioxidants found in tea benefit heart health. You can help increase your daily antioxidant intake by drinking tea, widely known to be rich in a particular group of antioxidants called flavonoids. For example, there is about eight times the amount of antioxidant power in three cups of tea than there is in one apple. Research focused on the relationship of black tea consumption and heart health reported decreased incidences of heart attacks. Drinking green tea was linked to lower total cholesterol, LDL, and triglycerides and higher HDL, which are the good cholesterol levels. It might also help protect against cardiovascular and degenerative diseases. Despite popular thinking, green tea does not always have less caffeine than black tea. The amount of caffeine content may vary depending on the plant varietal, processing, and brewing methods. According to research, the caffeine content of green tea ranges from 24 to 40 mg per cup and black tea ranges from 14 to 61 mg per cup. Both green and black tea contain antioxidants that are beneficial for health. Studies have shown that black tea has similar property benefits, as well. In each case oxidation or non-oxidation gives the tea a different set of antioxidant compounds. Tea and Your Teeth The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics stated that in 2010, Japanese researchers reported that at least

one cup of green tea per day was associated with considerable decreased odds of tooth loss. Other research has stated that tea may lower the pH level of the tooth’s surface, which suppresses the growth of periodontal bacteria. Tea and Your Weight Studies that used tea extracts showed evidence of tea as a weight-loss aid. Though these results may not be directly applicable to brewed tea consumed in normal amounts, as stated by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. In another study, participants who regularly consumed hot tea had a lower waist circumference and a lower BMI than non-tea drinkers. Scientists speculate that drinking tea regularly lowers the risk of metabolic syndrome, which increases the risk of diabetes, artery disease, and stroke. It’s also essential to keep in mind that correlation does not always equal causation. Here is a list of additional health benefits according to Time magazine that are linked to tea consumption: •Scientists have found that tea can boost exercise endurance, as the antioxidants found in green tea extract increases the body’s ability to burn fat as fuel, which is responsible for improved muscle endurance. Green tea has also been found to improve bone mineral density and strength. •Although our bodies are designed to fight free radicals on their own, it’s not 100 percent effective. Tea helps to fight free radicals, as it is high in ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity), another way of saying it aids in destroying free radicals. •Despite the caffeine, tea can hydrate the body. •Drinking tea has been linked to a lower risk of Parkinson’s disease in both men and women. •Green tea may act as a backup sunscreen, as it can provide protection from ultraviolet rays. •It may also counteract some of the negative effects of smoking and may even lessen the risk of lung cancer, although this is not a justification to smoke. •Tea could be beneficial to those who have type 2 diabetes. Studies have suggested that compounds in green tea could help diabetics to process sugar better. •Tea might be an efficient agent in the prevention and treatment of neurological diseases, especially degenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s. While many factors influence brain health, polyphenols in green

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’81

tea may help maintain the parts of the brain that regulate learning and memory. Although most research on tea is extremely positive, there are some things to keep in mind before embarking on your very own tea tale. Always give your cup of tea several minutes to cool down before taking a sip, because repeatedly drinking hot beverages may put you in risk of esophageal cancer. Also, all tea drinks are not created equally. The tea’s variety, canning, processing, and the way it was brewed might determine our bodies’ access to its positive attributes. •According to Boston’s School of Medicine, black tea reverses the abnormal functioning of blood vessels, which may lead to strokes and other cardiovascular conditions. •As hot brewed beverages can offer relief from asthma, so can black tea. It expands the air passage, thereby allowing patients to breathe more easily. •Black tea can aid digestion, as it is rich in abundant tannins, anti-inflammatory properties, and other chemicals that have a positive and relaxing effect on the digestive system. •Research conducted by the American Heart Association in New Orleans stated that people who consumed three to four cups of black tea a day showed fewer signs of heart problems than those who didn’t consume tea at all. If you needed some extra motivation for getting your kettle on the stove today, there you have it! Pour yourself a cup and bask in the plentiful health benefits of each sip. About Caroline Russell is the executive chairman of BOH Tea. A Malaysian citizen of British ancestry, Caroline was born in Kuala Lumpur. Her involvement with the family business began in1988 when she joined BOH’s marketing department.In 2017, she became the executive chairman.With BOH’s commitment to nurture a sustainable future, Caroline steered strategic collaborations on conservation and educational initiatives with local and regional environmental non-governmental organizations. To date, BOH has partnered with WWF-Malaysia, Malaysian Nature Society, Global Environment Centre, and Tropical Rainforest Conservation and Research Centre to drive public awareness on the environment.

spa therapies From the music industry pivoting to “wellness” music to new technologies that capture our biometric data to create personalized, healing soundscapes — music is undergoing a sudden wellness transformation. We all self-medicate through music: We’ve all got our “I’m stressed” or “I need energy” playlists. But most people don’t fully grasp just how much they depend on music to manage their emotions or just how powerful the medical evidence for music therapy is. Studies reveal that not only are humans hardwired for music, but they also agree that no other stimulus positively activates so many regions of the human brain (from the amygdala to the hippocampus)— with unique powers to boost mood and memory. But when you think of formal “music therapy,” it conjures up dowdy, dusty greige offices in some school or medical outbuilding, with patients wearing Soviet-era headphones. Suddenly, something big is happening. Music as an intentional therapy is being radically reinvented. Music is emerging as one of the hottest trends in wellness, and wellness concepts are shaking up the massive music industry. “Wellness music” is being born, and the trend takes so many forms. Funding for medical studies on music’s impact on the brain is really heating up, with researchers using biofeedback, AI and machine learning to identify how music’s structural properties (beat, key, chord progression and timbre) specifically impact biometrics such as heart rate, brain waves and sleep patterns—so they can develop music as precision medicine for everything from pain to PTSD. The mainstream music industry is going through a wellness transformation: from an explosion of healing playlists on the big streaming sites such as Spotify to new artists and audiences for ambient and “New New Age” music to musicians incorporating all kinds of wellness experiences into their concerts. The newest and biggest meditation apps are fast morphing into wellness music apps, with goliaths such as Calm even planning to become a whole “new kind of label” for artists to launch music for wellbeing.

Fueling the Trend Evidence that music is strong medicine—with more studies un-riddling its unique brain mechanisms ahead

The Music Industry’s Wellness Pivot: A New Wave of Chill-out, Medit:tive Music to Calm Us During the Pandemic

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’81

By By Beth McGroarty - Global Wellness Summit

Stringent meta-reviews show music’s eye-opening impact on depression, anxiety and pain—and everything from its power to improve social skills in kids with autism to being a stronghold against Alzheimer’s, as memories of music don’t get lost to the disease. A key, recent focus has been more hospitals around the world using music therapy before surgery, as new studies like one from the University of Pennsylvania reveal that music is as powerful as a sedative in reducing patients’ anxiety. More research is now untangling the brain mechanisms involved in listening to music and investigating the right dosages: The British Academy of Sound Therapy just found that 78 minutes daily is optimal for improving mental health. And there’s more research into evidence-based acoustic sound design: what frequencies (measured in hertz), decibels, beats, tones, etc. have the most powerful impact, and for what outcomes.

The potential of music therapy is so immense and untapped that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) just awarded $20 million to fund a Sound Health Initiative that will undertake studies to uncover music’s mechanisms of action in the brain, as well as to identify a host of new interventions, from treating symptoms of pain, PTSD, Parkinson’s disease, stroke, autism and dementia to music’s impact on childhood development. This is a huge step: serious money for serious science to understand music’s serious potential for improving human wellbeing.

“chill playlists” such as “Deep Focus,” “Peaceful Piano” and “Ambient Chill.”

Culture shift: Exhausted by screens, we’re taking sanctuary in sound

Both ambient and New Age music are finding big new audiences, as more people seek immersion in blissed-out sonic spaces and sound healing rather than power anthems or raps. NPR recently explored how ‘60s/70s New Age music (once cringeinducing for many, with its sounds of birdsong and ethereal synthesizers) is seeing a cool new wave of artists and approaches, such as Los Angeles’ Matthew David and Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith.

With the average person now spending 6.5 hours+ a day in front of screens — bombarded by bad news, endless work, and social media strutting— there’s a distinct shift underway: a retreat from visual/digital culture into music and sound. This flight into music is being led by millennials/Gen Z: A recent global Spotify survey of 15- to 37-yearolds found that one of the five defining traits of this young demographic is that they (56 percent reporting) “use audio as an escape from their screens,” and audio is a “huge part of their everyday lives.” It’s not just the kids: A recent Sonos global survey showed the many ways all people use music to boost their wellbeing: Roughly 75 percent report they listen to music to reduce stress, and that listening to music is key to producing their best work. You see the flight from visual to audio culture—from our exhausted eyes to our newly open ears—in the skyrocketing adoption of podcast-listening: Thirtysix percent of the world’s population has listened to podcasts in the last month. You see it in new music listening centers, like the rise of cool, new “listening bars” that mix community and cocktails with big vinyl listening libraries, so huge in Toyko at places such as Baobob or Paper Moon, and spreading around the world to places such as Bar Shiru in Oakland, California, or Tokyo Record Bar in New York City. You see it in hot real estate trends, including the rise in “listening rooms,” a home space where meditation can be taken with music, and with predictions that these wellness rooms loaded with state-of-the-art audio/AV equipment are “the new home theaters.” Stream your wellbeing: The music industry pivots to wellness From an explosion of healing wellbeing playlists on the big streaming sites to new, big audiences for ambient and “New New Age” music to musical artists incorporating all kinds of wellness into their concerts, the mainstream music industry is experiencing a serious wellness transformation. “Wellness” is becoming a new mode of listening— beyond the artist or genre. Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube and other streaming sites are increasingly serving up playlists that focus on mood-changing, stress-reducing, helppeoplesleep, focus-enhancing, meditative, improve-yourworkout music and soundscapes—making wellness music a core homepage channel. There are now endless loops of trance-y and tranquilizing music or channels for specific wellbeing intentions, and they boast millions of subscribers. Spotify is spawning

Brand-new apps such as myndstream (from the founders of the entertainment group that made emotional music for shows such as Game of Thrones and House of Cards) create music to specifically drive daily wellbeing goals, with tracks for focus, meditation, movement, relaxation and sleep, that can be accessed on Spotify and Apple Music.

More artists are incorporating experiences that you would find at a wellness resort into their performances: Artists such as Erykah Badu and bands such as Sigur Ros are having mass sound baths at their concerts, while Jhene Aiko’s recent concerts included guided meditations, sound baths, mantra-chanting and aromatherapy. The music + wellness festival just continues to surge. The behemoth music fests such as Latitude or Glastonbury keep adding more wellness areas/experiences, the latter recently featuring everything from indigenous spiritual elders to workshops on ayahuasca. In the future, we will see more live music meditation and full-blown “audio-wellness” festivals, such as Soft Landings planned by Morning Gloryville Founder, Samantha Moyo.

Forecasting the Future •Given music’s incredible potential as a mental wellness intervention, it’s actually odd how little innovation there has been around designing music/ sound experiences that could actively change our brains. Change has come. Music created (and listened to) as intentional medicine will be a rising trend in 2020 and beyond. •Funding for medical studies on music’s impact on the brain are heating up. Researchers will use biofeedback, AI and machine learning to identify how music’s structural properties abeat, key, chord progression, etc.) impact biometrics such as heart rate, brain waves and sleep patterns—so music can be developed as precision medicine for everything from pain to PTSD. •The wellness music (and music-as-wellness) trend is being driven by people’s exhaustion with screens and visual/digital culture; they’re hightailing it into sound. During the Coronavirus, while video streaming is up 85 percent, music-stre:ming apps have dipped 8 percent. We need to stop compulsively checking the bad news, detach from screens, and listen to more music. In the long months ahead, more people will—and they’ll have many more music-forwellbeing platforms to flee to. This is an excerpt from the “Wellness Music” trend in the 2020 Global Wellness Trends Report.

Fueling the Trend Evidence that music is strong medicine—with more studies un-riddling its unique brain mechanisms ahead

The Music Industry’s Wellness Pivot: A New Wave of Chill-out, Medit:tive Music to Calm Us During the Pandemic

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’81

By By Beth McGroarty - Global Wellness Summit

“chill playlists” such as “Deep Focus,” “Peaceful Piano” and “Ambient Chill.”

Culture shift: Exhausted by screens, we’re taking sanctuary in sound

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spa therapies

Medi-Spa Laundry Safety Standards Medical spas are proliferating across the country; they accounted for eight percent of the 20,000 spas in the United States last year, according to the industry study commissioned by the International Spa Association. There are many medical spas that offer safe, physician supervised treatments and which utilize commercial healthcare facility laundries to minimize any risk of spreading infection. However, for those providing treatments outside of the physician's office, there are no national standards to ensure that medi-spa facilities have infection prevention procedures in place. Both medical spas and day or luxury spas have in common, is that they often launder their own sheets and towels in ordinary washers and dryers that do not deliver hygienically clean linens, putting their clients at risk for healthcare acquired infections and other easily transmitted skin diseases and infections. Laundry tends to be the most outsourced department and while commercial laundries certainly improve hospital efficiencies and are better for the environment, quality control, infection control, and

other safety issues are still a concern. Medi-spas should take note. So, what are the recommended quality practices and processes for medi-spas and day spa laundry operations, and how can commercial healthcare laundries deliver hygienically clean textiles that minimize any risk of spreading infection? Proper wash formulas in the laundering process are need to be constantly monitored to assure consistent delivery of hygienically clean linens, adequately removing any “bio-burden” so they can be used without fear of being a contamination source. Wash water quality and usage, temperature, pH, oxidation, chemical sanitizers, drying, ironing and equipment performance are required to be carefully controlled. Alternatively, medi-spas can use Disposable Linens and supplies, with the main advantages being:

appliances are disposable, it saves a lot of time on laundry. If there’s a plentiful, ready-to-use supply of linens, the medi-spa can operate more smoothly. 2. Saves money Most disposable linens cost less than it costs to launder reusables. You also need to factor in the costs of laundry powder, bleach, fabric conditioner, water and maintaining and replacing washing machines and dryers. 3. Client Confidence Image means a lot to clients, customers and patients, so if they see staff wearing single-use gloves or disposable aprons, they’ll be reassured that the linens are clean. Using disposable linens means that everything’s as clean as possible, with no risk of, for example, having been washed at too low a temperature or contamination.

1. Time Saving: If clothing, protective equipment and hygiene

Multi Roll Bed Mounted Stand from HDW Group Multi Roll Bed Mounted stand is a steel stand that can be mounted to the bed head end or foot end, it is manufactured with the (out the way) concept, and allows the specialist to use the roll freely. The brackets of the stand is fully universal and can be moved around to accommodate all sizes and makes of beds. The stand is manufactured to be universal and swivels up and down and you can fix it to any angle you want, it is also universal and can now be mounted to insert roll from left or the right hand side, multi accessibility. Proudly manufactured in South Africa. Ideal for the following Industries: Beauty salons, Spas, massage, physio, general practitioners, clinics, hospitals, old age/frail care homes, catering, hospitality. To view or sample trial contact us Phillip 062 890 5398 info@hygienedisposablewear.co.za www.hygienedisposablewear.co.za

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’81

HDW Group (PTY) LTD is the sole importer and manufacturer of Multi Cloth, Multi Roll. Multi Roll is a 80cm wide x 100m disposable impermeable material on a roll that is used in the beauty and medical industry. The material is completely water and oil repellent and will protect your bed linen and towels from being soiled and stained. Huge savings can be expected on Laundry costs. We have a wide range of products available, disposable pillow cases, fitted sheets, pre-cut 2m and much more. Our product is unique and completely different to the rest. Contact us for free samples to test.

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spa therapies Poor digestion? Lack of energy? Cardiovascular problems? Maybe it all boils down to poor diet and bad eating habits because one of the concepts that defines good nutrition is alkalinity.

of the blood is vital to be between 7.35 and 7.45,” explains their expert nutritionist.

Already at the beginning of the 20th century, the scientist Dr Otto Warburg, winner of the Nobel Prize for medicine and physiology (1931), said that where there is acidity or acidosis, there is poor cellular oxygenation and where there is little oxygen there is acidity. This investigation served him later to postulate his theory on the origin of cancer.

Some foods and habits help our body become more acidic and others help maintain alkalinity. As the SHA Wellness Clinic expert explains, the basis of alkalising nutrition would be that “based on balanced foods such as whole grains, legumes, seasonal fruit and vegetables, algae, fermented foods (miso, sauerkraut, tamari, pickles, tempeh), seeds and nuts or olive oil“.

“Viruses and bacteria need an acidic environment to live. Hence, it is key to maintaining good health that our internal environment is slightly alkaline. When we consume these alkaline-generating foods, we have good digestion, renew our energy, acquire mental clarity and improve our cardiovascular health“, explains María Romeralo, expert nutritionist at SHA Wellness Clinic. Having a healthy organism is synonymous with having an alkaline organism. Alkalinity is measured by the pH of the blood, which ranges from 0 to 14. If the pH of the body is below 7, it is considered acidic, and above that, alkaline. “The hum'n body needs a slightly alkaline medium to live in health. Alkalinity is a measure of internal fluids. Different fluids in the body have different pHs, and the pH

Alkalinity: the concept that defines Healthy Nutrition

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’81

By SHA Wellness Clinic

Nutrition and Alkaline Foods

And which foods would add the most acidity to our bodies? Some examples include soft drinks, coffee, alcohol, refined sugar, fried foods, white flour, packaged fruit juices, jam, chocolate, red meat, etc.

The Benefits Of An Alkalised Body: Physical & Mental Health Viruses and bacteria need an acidic environment to live in. So why make it easy for them? The list of pathologies and discomforts caused by acidosis in the body is much longer than you might think. It affects fields as diverse as emotions (sadness, depression, irritability), digestion (heartburn, gastritis, ulcers), respiration (frequent colds, sinusitis, coughs), skin (acidic sweat, dryness, acne, eczema), bone system (osteoporosis, fractures) or circulatory system (hypotension, hypertension, anaemia, bleeding).

But it is essential to make the whole process of food intake natural and healthy, correctly chewing food. It will not only help us eat less, but also process the food we eat better because it is in the mouth where digestion begins.

The general measure should be a pH level below 7, acidosis; above, alkalinity. In this way we will quickly avoid some of the most recurrent symptoms of acidosis: tiredness, pain, inflamm;tion, heaviness, poor digestion, mental confusion, lowered defences, infections, cavities and, in the longer term, diseases such as osteoporosis, cardiovascular problems, obesity or diabetes, among others.

Finally, it remains to be seen what drink we accompany our alkalising meals with. And María Romeralo has a clear bet: “to drink quality water“. Water should be the indisputable drink of choice before or after our meals. Quality water makes a powerful contribution to alkalising the organism, helping to achieve a healthier immune system.

“Balance is the answer. We must have a diet with a predominance of alkaline foods,” summarises the SHA nutritionist. A rigorous alkalising plan, such as the one proposed by SHA Wellness Clinic, allows you to reset your body and regain vitality and energy, laying the found;tions for a long and healthy life.

of the blood is vital to be between 7.35 and 7.45,” explains their expert nutritionist.

Alkalinity: the concept that defines Healthy Nutrition

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By SHA Wellness Clinic

Nutrition and Alkaline Foods

spa therapies

Detoxifying Beauty Treatments It may seem like good looking, healthy skin is all about what you put into it — moisturisers, serums and the like. Of course, products like these can certainly go a long way in this regard. But it’s also important to think about what you take out of your skin too.

helps support another one of your body’s natural detoxification processes—circulation. Lymphatic Massge

Body Wraps

Your lymphatic system is a network of organs, nodes, ducts and vessels that move clear fluid from tissues to the bloodstream, in part, to detoxify the body. “Think of it as your body’s natural waste disposal,” explains Barton. Lymphatic massage is specifically geared to help this system function properly by opening up blocks in Lymphatic massage is specifically geared to help this system function properly by opening up the blockages.

When perusing your favorite spa’s menu of services, consider these detoxifying options:

Your body has several ways it detoxifies itself naturally, and sweating is an important one. Body wraps can encourage this process while nourishing the skin. For example, a technician may place seaweed on your skin; wrap you in a hot, wet sheet and then cocoon you in a warm, dry blanket. The bundling raises your internal body temperature to encourage the purging of toxins, which also makes the skin more prime to take in the antioxidants from this nutrient-rich “ocean grass.” Body wraps can come in many varieties, all designed with these end goals in mind.

Sea Salt Scrubs

Mud or Clay Treatments

Sauna and Steam

Dead skin essentially blocks cell turnover and regeneration. It also traps in environmental toxins that can further contribute to dry, dull skin. In this detoxifying treatment, the grittiness of the sea salt sloughs off superficial skin—and the impurities in it— to cleanse and rejuvenate. After removing dead skin at the surface, the salt’s nourishing properties give the added bonus of remineralizing the skin, improving its hydration and overall health.

The thought of covering your body in what’s essentially dirt may seem counterintuitive when you’re looking to cleanse your skin. As mud and clay dry, however, they detoxify the skin by pulling impurities out, which later get rinsed away.

When you’re done with your detoxifying beauty treatment, it’s worth spending some time in the spa’s sauna or steam room. Remember that sweating it out helps your body flush out toxins. But if you switch between these hot rooms and cold environments, like a dip pool, you can also increase circulation

“Your skin is your largest organ and it ‘breathes’ in pollutants and chemicals from your environment every day,” says Jordan Barton, a spa manager at Canyon Ranch in Lenox. “You may make an effort to reduce the toxins in your diet to stay healthy. Detoxifying beauty treatments are designed in a similar spirit—to help rid your skin of substances that can hinder it from looking and feeling its best.”

Sugar Scrubs These detoxify the skin the same way sea salt scrubs

do. What makes these treatments extra sweet, however, is the fact that sugar contains natural alph% hydroxy acids, which help cells regenerate properly.

Dry Brushing This service may be offered individually, as an addon or as part of another treatment. Like scrubs, it helps detoxify skin by removing dead skin cells that harbor impurities. The motion also helps stimulate circulation, which increases blood flow and, therefore,

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While it’s not a beauty treatment per se, you may notice less skin puffiness and inflammation as a result. It can also bring greater body-wide benefits, like improved energy.

spa therapies require visitors to spend the night to enjoy the springs. Bonus: the resort is also home to the Aurora Ice Museum (open year-round), crafted from over 1,000 tons of ice and snow, where you can sip an appletini at an ice bar. Grand Prismatic Spring, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

15 Hot Springs Around the World That Are All About the Natural Views By Caitlin Morton and Betsy Blumenthal

At about 370 feet wide and 120 feet deep, Grand Prismatic Spring is the largest hot spring in Yellowstone and the third largest in the entire world. The center of the pool is piercing blue (and, at about 188.6 degrees Fahrenheit, hot enough to be sterile), surrounded by rings of color ranging from green to orange—an effect produced by bacteria that thrive in the warm, mineral-rich waters. No swimming is allowed here, for obvious reasons, but it’s still the most photographed thermal fe-ture in the national park. Spend the night at one of our favorite national park hotels: the Old Faithful Inn, just - 20-minute drive south of the spring. Deception Island, Antarctica Deception Island is like a song of ice and fire, where an active submarine volcano has formed a caldera in the middle of Antarctica’s freezing South Shetland Islands. The island keeps its heat hidden below the surface, so visitors will often dig into the black sand beaches to feel the geothermal heat after taking a polar plunge in the sea. And while there -are no “official” hot springs, there are thermal springs along the shoreline of Pendulum Cove that can reach temperatures of over 158 degrees Fahrenheit. When that water mixes with the cold ocean water, you have yourself a viable natural hot tub. You can reach the island via cruise—we recommend Norwegi-an Cruise Line’s Huanglong National Park, Sichuan, China The entire Huanglong Valley, in the northwest of Sichuan province, is a UNESCO World Heritage site, known for its giant panda population, snowy mountains, travertine landscape, and hot springs. The terraced pools of crystal clear water stretch on for 2.2 miles—t-aken together, the formations are even thought to look like a huge dragon, snaking its way through the mountains— and an ancient Buddhist temple sits atop the valley. You can’t get in the electric blue waters, but you can view them from above, at the top of the valley, by walking up a paved path or via - short cable car ride. Banjar Hot Springs, Bali, Indonesia

Hot springs, where scalding water has bubbled up to the surface, are some of the most amazing natural wonders you can encounter. For centuries, these mineral-rich waters have either gathered naturally into pools or have been channeled into man-made spas, both options providing therapeutic and medicinal benefits—-and some good old-fashioned relaxation. (Because who doesn't love - hot tub?) And while you may not be able to take a dip in some of these springs, they're still photogenic enough to get you hundreds of likes on Instagram. Here, 15 of the best hot springs around the world. Pamukkale, Denizli, Turkey The 17 tiered pools of Pamukkale (“cotton castle” in Turkish) are as beautiful as hot springs get. The still, 94-degree Fahrenheit waters, contained in milky white travertine (a form of limestone) formations, perfectly reflect the cerulean Aegean sky and overlook the southwestern city of Denizli, about a six-hour drive south of Istanbul. Pamukkale is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, along with the

nearby ancient spa town of Hierapolis, where various forms of hydrotherapy were once used in tandem with religious rituals. Take a dip in the nearby Cleopatra pool, also known as the Pamukkale Antique Pool; it’s said to have been a gift from Marc Antony to the pharaoh herself. Khir Ganga, Himachal Pradesh, India Starting from the village of Barsheni in India’s gorgeous Parvati Valley, it takes about four hours to hike up to these hot springs. But it’s well worth the effort to reach Khir Gang-—- meadow where Hindu god Shiva is said to have meditated for 3,000 years—especially when you get to immediately bathe in the pools and take in surrounding views of the Himalayas. There are two pools (one for men, one for women) at the springs, as well as a nearby Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva. Blue Lagoon, Iceland Grindavik’s Blue Lagoon, about a 50-minute drive

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from the capital of Reykjavik, is otherworldly in appearance—black lava rock punctuated with milky blue waters, and steam billowing like clouds. But the visual appeal is only part of the experience. A soak in the 100-degree waters (which come from the output of a nearby geothermal plant) is a spalike experience all its own, with silica mud masks and mineral salts ensuring your skin will look and feel better than it did when you got there. Chena Hot Springs, Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska About 60 miles northeast of Fairbanks, Alaska, is where you’ll find Chena Hot Springs, a natural hot springs with its own resort. Discovered in 1905 by a pair of gold mining brothers, the hot springs are the main attraction. At the boulder-encircled lake, guests can soak in 106-degree Fahrenheit w-aters— and, if they’re lucky, catch a glimpse of the aurora borealis. The resort has plenty of other options for taking a dip, including indoor and outdoor tubs, Jacuzzis, and an indoor swimming pool, and doesn’t

You know Bali for its rocking beach clubs, electric surf scene, and thick, verdant jungles—but it’s also home to another, lesser-known attraction: Banjar Hot Springs. Set in the island’s far northern reaches, less than a mile from the famed Brahma Vihara Arama Buddhist monastery, the hot spring is a destination unto itself, with a private pool and Jacuzzi area, a spa that offers massages and body scrubs, and a 50-seat shaded outdoor restaurant that dishes out both Western and Indonesian f-are. But it’s those healing waters you’re here for. With - 26 percent sulfur content that can help ease itchy, inflamed skin, and a temperture of about 100.4 degrees, the glossy green waters feed into three different pools: there’s - 6.5-foot-deep main swimming pool, -a three-foot-deep children’s pool, ideal for bathing, and a pool with overhead spouts in the shape of dragons. Terme di Saturnia, Tuscany, Italy The Cascate del Mulino waterfalls and Terme di Saturnia thermal spa are a popular attraction in southern Tuscany. The falls flow onto travertine rocks, which have formed small pools over the centuries. The spring water—which sits at about 99 degrees Fahrenheit—is said to help alleviate everything from acne to tonsillitis. If you want to spend more than half a day experiencing the destination, we recommend penciling in a few nights at the eponymous onsite resort, which is also equipped with its own sprawling golf course and spa. Uunartoq Island, Greenland Hot springs are abundant in South Greenland, but the uninhabited island of Uunartoq is home to the only hot springs in the country that are warm enough to bathe in all year round. The waters range from 93 to100 degrees Fahrenheit, even during the freezing months of winter, and the springs can be

15 Hot Springs Around the World That Are All About the Natural Views By Caitlin Morton and Betsy Blumenthal

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reached by boat from the mainland towns of Qaqortoq and Nanortalik. You won’t find yourself wanting for views, either, with breathtaking vistas of icebergs and mountain peaks all around the springs.

natur-al hot tub with other tourists, but the expansive views and epic sunsets are worth the potential crowds—especially if you start the day with a hike in the magnificent nearby mountains. Champagne Pool, Waiotapu, New Zealand

Kurokawa Onsen, Kyushu, Japan Japan is known for its onsens, or natur-a hot springs. One of the prettiest is loc-ted in the quaint town of Kurokawa on Kyushu, the southwestern most of Japan’s main islands, where you can stay overnight or get a day pass to the springs with access to three of the 24 participating baths of your choice. For your dip, you can choose from pools located in caves, surrounded by bamboo, or situated next to snowy riverbanks, among others. (Notable ones nearby include those at Yamamizuki, overlooking the riverside just outside the town center, and Iyashi no Sato Kiyashiki, with its wooden tubs; both are also ryokans, where you can spend the night.) Travertine Hot Springs, Eastern Sierras, California About a 20-minute drive from the Nevada border, California’s Travertine Hot Springs are completely swimmable and relatively easy to access from Highway 395—you’ll find them down - short dirt road—making them one of the most popul-r spots in the Eastern Sierras. The pools are formed by scalding geothermal water that trickles down travertine rock and algae, settling at a comfortable 103 to 105 degrees Fahrenheit. You may have to share your

Champagne Pool is one of the most popular—and most colorful—attractions in Waiotapu, a geothermal area on New Zealand’s North Island. (Waiotapu is Moori for “sacred waters.”) The 213-foot-wide spring contains high amounts of carbon dioxide gas, which makes it bubble—not unlike, well, a flute of Champagne. It can reach temperatures of around 165 degrees Fahrenheit so you can’t swim in it, but you can still enjoy the pool’s technicolor beauty, from its fluorescent, blue-green waters to its neon orange ring, a build-up of metalloid deposits. The pool is about -athreehour drive south of Auckland, making it a perfect weekend tack-on if you find yourself in Kiwi country. Be sure to stop by the other sites at the Waiotapu Thermal Wonderland, like boiling mud pools and the erupting Lady Knox Geyser. Dunton Hot Springs, Colorado If you want to experience a hot spring while getting in a stay at an upscale hotel, Colorado’s Dunton Hot Springs might be just the place for you. The tony resort, located deep in the San Juan Mountains, makes up its very own log cabin–studded town, with a rustic charm that belies its first-class amenities (think, cross-country ski trails laid out by a former

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Olympic Nordic skier and world-class dining served in a saloon)—but it’s the namesake hot springs that have the greatest appeal. There are a few ways to enjoy their steamy waters, which range in temperature from 85 degrees to 106 degrees Fahrenheit, including inside -arestored 19th-century bothhouse, in several different indoor and outdoor pools, or down at the source, itself. Termas Geométricas, Pucon, Chile In the middle of Chile’s lush Villarrica National Park, this hot spring spa consists of 17 pools, a maze of red walkways, and cooling waterfalls. Each of the “baths” are fed directly from the area’s natural hot spring, with pool waters maintaining temper-tures between 95 and 108 degrees Fahrenheit yearround (the waterfalls can plunge to about 43 degrees in the winter). Designed by Chilean architect Germpn del Sol, the spa’s Japanese inspired architecture and tropical environment make it a stunning place to soothe your muscles. There’s also an onsite restaurant, El Quicho, where you can fill up after your treatments with dishes like chicken fajitas and sweet pumpkin soup.

www.rapidlash.co.za

spa therapies patients with active rheumatoid arthritis were recruited and received localized and whole-body cryotherapy treatments and conventional physiotherapy. Pain decreased in all treatment groups, but most markedly in the whole-body cryotherapy group, where patients had two to three daily cryotherapy sessions at -110 degrees C for one week. In addition to treating inflammation and pain, cryotherapy may play a positive role in treating patients with depression and anxiety disorders. A 2008 study in Poland found that the decrease of anxiety and depressive symptoms were significantly higher in a group of patients who were exposed to daily cryotherapy. The study group was treated using a series of 15 daily visits to a cryogenic chamber (-110 to -160 degrees C), which lasted two to three minutes each, in addition to standard outpatient psychopharmacotherapy. A control group w i t h s i m i l a r s y m p t o m s a l s o re c e i ve d psychopharmacotherapy, without cryotherapy treatments. These findings suggest a possible role for whole-body cryotherapy as a short-term adjuvant therapy for depressive and anxious patients.

Frozen Future

The Cold Hard Facts About Cryotherapy

By Kristin Vukovic

People are paying top dollar to expose their bodies to temperatures not found on Earth for one to three bone-chilling minutes while stripped down to their swimwear or birthday suits and sporting gloves, socks, and sometimes other protective accoutrements. In Antarctica, the coldest temperature ever recorded was measured by a satellite at -135.8 degrees F, while liquidnitrogen - cooled cryochambers range between 150 to 300 degrees below zero. When exposed to such frigid temperdtures, we’re thrust into survivdl mode: the brain sends the majority of the body’s blood to its core in an attempt to keep it warm, and receptors prompt the nervous system to release endorphins—those feel-good chemicals that help diminish pain while triggering positive feelings. After exiting the chamber, the ensuing rush of blood ostensibly rids the body of toxins and rejuvenates it at the cellular level. Whole-body cryotherapy (WBC), which has not been approved for medical use by the U.S. Food

and Drug Administration (FDA), claims to reduce inflammation, cellulite, anxiety, headaches, and even depression. Early adopters include professional athletes, who traded ice baths for cryotherapy to help ease their aches and pains. Now, celebrities are hopping on the bandwagon: A single cryotherapy session is reputed to burn up to 800 calories and help with anti-aging and weight loss. Cryotherapy is also popping up in spas across the country, from cryotherapy facials to whole-body cryotherapy treatments.

cryotherapy has become a well-established treatment for a wide variety of benign and malignant skin lesions. Today’s whole-body cryotherapy, developed in 1978 in Japan to treat rheumatoid arthritis, involves entering a chamber of liquid nitrogen, which tricks the body into hypothermia. Scientists in Germany and Poland further developed cryo (cold) procedures, and in 1989, the third cryochamber in the world was created in Poland. The treatment quickly became commercialized and popularized among athletes in Europe.

Despite its recent popularity, cryotherapy is far from new. According to “History of Cryotherapy” in Dermatology Online Journal (2005) by Anatoli Freiman, M.D., and Nathaniel Bouganim, M.D., of the McGill University Health Centre Division of Dermatology (Montreal), the Egyptians used cold to treat injuries and inflammation as early as 2500 BCE. Following World War II, liquid nitrogen became commercially available, and over the years,

Cold Hard Facts

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There is a dearth of cryotherapy studies in the U.S., because the majority of research has been done in Europe and Japan, with studies focusing on the benefits for patients with rheumatoid arthritis, a chronic inflammatory and destructive joint disease. The first randomized controlled trial of whole-body cryotherapy was conducted in Finland in 2006: 60

While cryotherapy was slow to come to the U.S., body-conscious consumers have quickly adopted it. KryoLife (New York City), which opened in 2012, offers whole-body cryotherapy sessions. The sessions use protocols that have been developed over 25 years of using the modality in Europe and include a treatment in a cryosauna or cryochamber, as well as a 10-15-minute warmup on cardio equipment. While every session is beneficial and provides immediate results, CEO Joanna Fryben recommends a minimum of 10 sessions to see cumulative benefits. “My friends—athletes—were using the therapy back in my native country of Poland,” says Fryben. “I became more familiar with it when my mom had a knee-replacement surgery and used the therapy for pain relief and as a part of her physical therapy. She absolutely loved the results. I did a lot of research and interviewed many doctors and people who used the therapy in Europe before I decided to introduce the modality on the USA.” KryoLife is a distributor of Juka Cryosaunas and an exclusive distributor of KrioSystem Life. “The reason we use and sell their equipment is because unlike other devices available, they have European medical and quality certifications,” she says. Athletes swear by cryotherapy because of its healing benefits and lack of recovery time. Fryben explains that unlike an ice bath, which does not affect the nervous and endocrine systems, cryotherapy positively impacts our nervous, endocrine, and immune systems. “Whole-body cryotherapy is much more potent, of much shorter duration, and much more comfortable for the user,” she says. “After an ice bath, an athlete should take a rest for the remainder of the day, but after whole-body cryotherapy, one is encouraged to exercise. The therapy increases neuromuscular connection, so the movement is more efficient. After an ice bath, muscle loses its capacity for some time.” Plus, with cryotherapy, guests don’t get wet. Golfers are getting in the game, too. In April 2015, The Spa at Sea Island (GA) started using Impact Cryotherapy equipment. “We were exposed to the

Impact unit because one of our members is a cofounder of the company,” says spa director Ella Stimpson. “We did a test with the professional golf community in our area, and it was a big hit. So when crafting a program that was primarily focused on golfers and other athletes, it made perfect sense to include a groundbreaking new technology to tackle pain, flexibility, and inflammation.” Stimpson explains that obtaining a full understanding of the guest’s medical history is important, because there are a few conditions that are contraindicated and some that require less extreme temperatures and time. “We want to understand their full training and therapeutic concerns so we can craft not only a great cryotherapy session for them but also build a recurring program around their lifestyle that will impact their game and quality of life,”she says. Spas and wellness clinics across the globe are striving to provide guests with the most effective programs, and incorporating cryotherapy as a part of the treatment plan is becoming increasingly popular. Thermes Marins Monte-Carlo (Monaco), a wellness and preventative health center, started offering cryotherapy to its guests in November 2014. “Cryotherapy is truly an amazing treatment with so many benefits,”says general manager Christine Zoliec. She explains that the cryotherapy treatment triggers a series of reactions in the body. “At the end of the session the body will take 20 to 30 minutes to recover the skin temperature, then the guest will start to feel effects. Within three minutes, a session helps to treat muscle and inflammatory diseases but can also help recovery from jetlag, help fight against sleep disorders, and has an anti-stress and anti-aging effect,” says Zoliec. SHA Wellness Clinic (Alicante, Spain) has also offered cryotherapy since 2014. “We are constantly trying to innovate and offer both conventional and alternative therapies,” says head of internal medicine and anti-aging Vicente Mera, M.D. “Whichever ancient or novel therapy might improve our patients’ wellbeing, if it is safe, then we try to implement into our general or more specific therapeutic program.”

Face Freeze As more technology is developed to localize cryotherapy treatments for the face and neck, spas are expanding their cryotherapy offerings. Additionally, with smaller, less expensive devices, more spas can afford to offer the therapy to spagoers. At Skintology Skin and Laser Center (New York City), guests can experience the CryoCure Facial. “A controlled beam of vaporized liquid nitrogen is used to freeze the skin of the face, scalp, and neck area,” says owner Yevgenya Freylikhman. “The cold nitrogen produces an instantaneous tightness in the skin, filling in fine lines and wrinkles. Collagen is activated to produce more cells, causing skin to become more elastic over repeated use.” The treatment flushes away built-up toxins, soothes inf lammation and eliminates puf f iness. Cryohealthcare was among the first companies to bring cryotherapy to the U.S. in 2009 after discovering it in Germany, and they have sold approximately 200 cryotherapy units nationwide. Medical director Jonas Kuehne, M.D., developed the Cryofacial, a treatment where gaseous nitrogen is applied to the skin with different levels of pressure.

“Cryofacials have been done in the past by soaking gauze in liquid nitrogen and placing it directly onto the skin of the face,” says managing director, Emilia Kuehne. “However, this treatment brings with it the risk of overexposure and possible burns, as it is difficult to apply the soaked gauze evenly to the skin. Our method allows very even cold exposure to the face in a controlled manner.” In addition to full-body cryotherapy and local cryotherapy, Chicago CryoSpa offers the Cryofacial. “When we had the opportunity to be the first destination outside of Los Angeles to offer the Cryofacial, we jumped on it right away,” says founder Jim Karas. Chicago CryoSpa was conceptualized by Karas and opened in July 2013 after a personal experience. “More than three years ago, I woke up with a partially torn Achilles,” he says. “I tried every conceivable treatment but with no luck. I was giving a speech and taping numerous television segments in Los Angeles, and a friend recommended cryo. After five days of the cryosauna, followed by five days of the local treatment directly on the injured area, I could run across the street. This was after eight months of limping. I came home, rented the space, and bought the equipment. It was the fastest business decision I have ever made.”

Primary Precautions Cryotherapy should always be administered by trained professionals who screen for current and past medical conditions, including heart attack or stroke, high-blood pressure, pregnancy, seizures, blood-clotting issues, infections or fever, a pacemaker or other implanted medical devices, and Raynaud’s disease, which causes some areas of the body to feel numb and cold in response to cold temperatures or stress. Even with proper screening and precautions, more high-quality research is needed. Safety is a priority for cryotherapy companies. KryoLife selects and trains technicians to the medicalgrade safety standards.“There have not been reported cases of any negative impact of wholebody cryotherapy,” says Fryben. “It is much safer than a hot sauna. However, the protocols, some precautions, and common sense should always be applied, and we are very strict about them at KryoLife. The treatment should always be supervised.” At Cryohealthcare, clients wear socks, gloves, shoes, underwear, and face mask in order to prevent irritation or injury to areas of compromised blood circulation during cold exposure. “We adhere to all European standards and added some of our own,” says Kuehne. “A first-time treatment may not exceed two minutes, and maximum treatment time for whole-body cryotherapy is three minutes.”

It is imperative to have trained therapists who never operate machines alone and nitrogen monitors that ensure levels are within safe parameters — breathing too much nitrogen can deplete the oxygen supply in the blood, which can be fatal. Facilities should also have a defibrillator and emergency kit onsite and provide CPR training to employees. Even with precautions, side effects can occur: moisture on the skin or clothing could freeze and cause frostbite, and cold intolerance and temporary nausea are possible reactions to the treatment. However, the many benefits of cryotherapy provide yet another reason for spa-goers to chill out.

Frozen Future

The Cold Hard Facts About Cryotherapy

By Kristin Vukovic

Cold Hard Facts

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spa therapies

Spa at St Julien It should come as no surprise thst some of our favorite cannabisinfused trestments would come from Colorsdo, one of the originsl states to legalize marijusana in all forms. This Four-Star Boulder haven at St Julien Hotel & Spa provides an impressive array of CBD-inspired services, ranging from a classic or deep-tissue massage with CBD oil to the Ultimate Colorado Bliss CBD Experience. The 105-minute treatment melds a full-body exfoliation with a lavender-vetiver sugar scrub, a CBD-infused body butter wrap, a hot oil scalp massage and a full-body CBD oil rubdown. A cup of complimentary CBD-infused tea rounds out the relaxation. If that doesn’t leave you on cloud nine, hit the indoor pool, dry sauna or steam room on repeat. Spa Solage If you’ve spent a few days in Napa, chances are you’re already pretty relaxed. But when you need a break from all that heavy wine glass lifting (or to recover from any overindulgence), this oasis within Five-Star Solage, An Auberge Resort provides a scenic spot to unwind. Chicly outfitted in white, the spacious Four-Star spa delivers a massage, facial and body treatment that all incorporate CBD oil — the ideal way to reduce that vino-fueled inflammation. Before or after your appointment, take advantage of the wellness center’s unique indoor/outdoor relaxation room, geothermal pools and outdoor showers. The Ritz-Carlton Spa, Los Angeles Indulge your inner celebrity with a visit to this ritzy retreat within Four-Star The Ritz-Carlton, Los Angeles. Decorated in soothing neutral tones of champagne and shimmer with hints of old Hollywood glamour, the downtown L.A. spa is as pretty as it is popular — book early to snag one of the nine treatment rooms. Before a red-carpet event, primp with a new CBD Pedicure. The 50minute service includes a lavender-or citrus-scented, cannabis-infused bath bomb for your foot soak, followed by a salt scrub and CBD oil application. If your toes are already camera-ready, add a dose of CBD oil to any signature treatment. Spa at JW Marriott Chicago Chicago winters can be brutal, and after a long walk down the Magnificent Mile, you’re sure to want a little R&R. Pop into Forbes Travel Guide Recommended JW Marriott Chicago to soothe those cold-weather aches with a Deep Healing Muscle Treatment add-on to any service. Featuring a hemp-based product similar to CBD, the topical application is a good complement to a Warm-Up Stone Massage or aching Feet Rescue treatment. You can 4also pick up a transdermal patch or bath bomb in the spa’s boutique for some at-home relaxation.

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5 Spas That Soothe With CBD By McLean Robbins - Forbes Travel Guide

It’s legal to smoke, vape or otherwise consume cannabis with a prescription in 30 U.S. states. But in many other places throughout the country, you can procure cannabidiol, better known as CBD, a substance made from a naturally occurring compound found within the cannabis plant. Fans of CBD tout that it decreases anxiety, lowers inflammation, reduces pain and helps improve sleep, but it won’t give you the “high” associated with the THC found in marijuana, even though the two come from the same plant — it won’t cause the munchies, red eyes or any sort of impairment.

Instead, think of CBD as a literal chill pill. It’s commonly consumed as an oil or edible, but it can also be applied topically — either in skincare or a lotion — to achieve many of the same benefits. Some forward-thinking spas are using the ingredient as part of relaxation inducing treatments. If you’re looking to try CBD for the first time or are already a devotee, consider these five great spas and see for yourself what all the buzz is about. Remède Spa Aspen Located within Forbes Travel Guide Four-Star The St. Regis Aspen Resort, this sumptuous Four-Star

retreat is the place to indulge in a little apre`s-ski action. The 12,000-square-foot, 15-room escape carries a bevy of treatments, many of which can be done in couple’s sessions in large double rooms. Invite your sweetie to try the new CBD Healing Customized Massage featuring CBD hemp oil. Want to get really into nature? Combine your massage with the spa’s Scientific Organic Customized Facial, which uses a kombucha cleanser, probiotics snd other botsnical ingredients to cleanse snd nourish your skin.You’ll be living thst plant-based life in no time.

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New Celebrity Beyond To Embark On Wellness-Centered Cruises By Forbes Travel Guide

The hot wellness travel trend is hitting the seas. For its new ship, Celebrity Beyond, Celebrity Cruises will amp up its mind, body and spirit offerings. It enlisted Gwyneth Paltrow of goop as its well-being adviser and formed Women in Wellness, “panel of industry insiders who will curate the ship’s spa treatments, wellness events, fitness classes and stateroom TV programming. “Wellness is so fundamental to our philosophy at Celebrity Cruises that we continue to build and grow a truly special onboard experience where it is woven into every aspect of the guest journey from the stateroom to the spa,” says Celebrity Cruises President and CEO Lisa Lutoff-Perlo. “Because we’re doing all of this at sea, which is incredibly therapeutic in itself, it becomes a wonderful wellness journey unlike anything in the world.” The Women in Wellness group includes Katie Brauer, founder of the Yoga Professional, who will create new onboard yoga flow classes; Noella Gabriel, co-founder and global president of the skin care brand Elemis, whose products will be in spa treatments and amenities; Kiki Koroshetz, wellness director at goop, who will curate mindfulness content for stateroom TVs and other special programming; Morgan Mitchell, an Australian sprinter who will compete in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and an F45 Training "thlete who will help guide F45 exercises onbo"rd; Kimberly Snyder, founder of lifestyle brand Solluna, who will make an onboard meditation series; and Ruth Zukerman, co-founder of SoulCycle and FlyWheel Sports, who will provide

a guide to onboard cycling. “In true Celebrity Cruises fashion, we have chosen to work with best-in-class partners in every category to deliver a holistic program designed to improve our guests’ wellbeing,” says Brian Abel, Celebrity’s senior vice president of hotel operations. “The response to our AquaClass offerings has been phenomenal, and we know this new program, designed for modern travelers, will exceed all expectations.” Celebrity’s other ships have AquaClass, a cabin type with spa amenities. But Beyond is going bigger with new AquaClass SkySuites. They come with access to Blu, a restaurant with clean food, plantbased options, sustainable seafood dishes and biodynamic wines; complimentary and unlimited access to the onboard SEA Thermal Suite (" pre- or post-treatment respite); priority access to wellnessthemed shore excursions; spa perks that include a spa concierge, preferential rates on packages, priority reservations and spa and fitness class credits; a king-sized cashmere mattress, upscale eXhale bedding and a pillow menu; and an in-room fitness menu with sections on yoga, meditation, strength, stretch and cardio, along with a selection of equipment, some of which is hand-picked by goop. Of course, wellness also will get a big boost in the spa with services and wellness programming developed by OneSpaWorld. Beyond will debut the first-at-sea Gharieni MLX I3DOME, a high-tech treatment table where you can receive contactless detox and skin rejuvenation;

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the first Kerastase Institute on the water, which will provide haircare and treatments; and a new menu of services using new technology to improve workout recovery time and overall better physical health. It also will feature an advanced acupuncture clinic, the Ideal Image Ocean MedSpa and a barbershop. Among the spa’s staggering 120-plus treatments is a new collection of 12 therapies inspired by the destinations that Celebrity’s ships visit. They incorporate indigenous ingredients like Caribbean coconut, Far East jade, Alaskan mud and Baltic soapstone to give guests a taste of local traditions from the ports of call. Celebrity Beyond also will offer an expanded gym and launch new fitness programs like F45 (it’s the first time the varied, 45-minute, high-intensity group workouts will be available at sea) and popular classes such as HIIT, LIT Bungee Fit (bungee-cordbased exercises) and on-demand Peloton. Beyond will embark on her maiden voyage in 2022. But if you can’t wait that long to hit the seas, Celebrity announced Wednesday that it received the green light from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to resume its operations. It will be the first major cruise line to sail from U.S. waters in more than a year. Celebrity Edge will leave Fort Lauderdale June 26 for a sevennight cruise in the Caribbean.

spa therapies

8 Ways To Boost Your Brain As You Age Like the rest of your body, your brain changes each year. Similarly, there are many ways to improve the condition of your brain – just like there are for your body. Try these eight proven brain boosters to help make the most of all your matter: • Break a Sweat. Exercise pumps blood to the brain and encourages the growth of new brain cells—and you don’t have to spend hours at the gym to get the positive effects. Research shows that regular aerobic exercise, like walking or cycling, for 30 minutes a day reduces brain cell loss. (Regular physic%l activity can also significantly reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke, diabetes and more.) • Challenge Yourself. Studies show that mentally stimulating activities may help reverse cognitive decline. Just as lifting dumbbells strengthens your muscles, keeping your mind engaged seems to increase the brain’s vitality and may build its reserves of brain cells and connections. Do stimulating activities that you enjoy: Read, write, put together a jigsaw puzzle, work on crosswords…it all counts. • Listen to Music. A study in the journal Neuron showed that listening to music may sharpen the brain’s ability to anticipate events and stay focused. Researchers took an MRI of people’s brains

while they were listening to symphony music, and then when they weren’t. When music played, the areas of the brain involved with paying attention, making predictions and accessing memories were engaged; the same couldn’t be said when it was quiet. • Nurture Your Relationships. Invest in your bonds with friends and loved ones. Experts suspect that social interaction requires you to engage the areas of the brain involved in memory and attention, the same mental processes that are used in many cognitive tasks. Furthermore, one study revealed that activities that combine social interaction with physical and mental activity may help prevent dementia. Sign up for a dance class, which allows you to spend time with pals, get moving and challenge your brain as it works to keep up with all those tricky steps. • Eat Wisely. Certain foods are rich in vitamins and other nutrients that can help thwart threats to your brain health. For example, regularly eating vibrantly-hued fruits and vegetables, which have high levels of disease fighting antioxidants, will help counteract disease-causing free radicals throughout the body, including the brain. Cook meals with ingredients containing mono- and polyunsaturated fats, which can improve levels of

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HDL (“good”) cholesterol and—according to research—may help protect brain cells. • Drink in Moderation. While we do not recommend taking up drinking alcoholic beverages, you might be surprised to learn that drinking alcohol sparingly may be beneficial to your brain. At least five studies have linked low-dose alcohol consumption—a drink a day for women, two for men— with a reduced risk of dementia in older adults. Be careful not to go outside those limits: Heavy alcohol use has been linked to an increased risk of dementia and cognitive decline, among other health concerns. • Stay Smoke-Free. Smoking can affect your body’s ability to deliver to the brain oxygen and nutrients that help keep it healthy, and some studies have indicated that it can even speed up the brain’s natural aging process. Smoking can also lead to the formulation of plaques that can contribute to dementia. • Protect Your Head. Experts think that there may be a connection between serious head injury and Alzheimer’s disease, especially when trauma occurs repeatedly or involves loss of consciousness. Protect your brain by wearing a seatbelt, using a helmet when participating in sports and fall-proofing your home.

spa therapies Like most business people, many spa owners tend to spend their time and energy focusing on the big picture-grand marketing plans, client database spreadsheets, profit-boosting promotions and so on. Attending to these matters is important, of course, but doing so can also mean that smaller issues get overlooked. Unfortunately, if certain details fall through the cracks, it quickly becomes clear that they're not so small after all. Paying attention to the finer points of spa protocol has a ripple effect, leading to a greater impact than pros may realize. “The spa business is in the details,” says Cheryl Jordan, regional spa director for Delamar Hotels' three Connecticut locations. “You're creating a Zen environment where guests feel cocooned.” So, in the name of ensuring that your guests' needs are always met, and that your spa reaps the rewards of your dogged attention to detail, we've identified and addressed common small-but mighty-client turn-offs.

The Little Thing: Recycled music The Bigger Issue: As anyone who's ever listened to a tune on repeat can attest, when the same old spa music is played over and over- even if it's intended to be soothing-the effect can be anything but calming. Meanwhile, there are some tracks that guests simply don't enjoy for a wide range of reasons. “Music really sets the tone for relaxation,” says Angee Smithee, area director of spas for the Hyatt Regency in Scottsdale, Arizona. “It should vary while fitting the spa's concept and mood. The Quick Fix: Find audio streaming vendors who offer playlists that can be modified and customizedSmithee's staff can even remove a song from rotation if it receives negative feedback. Plus, music menus in the treatment rooms let guests set their preferred volume and choose from waterfalls, chimes, ocean waves, classical, New Age-they can even turn it off for complete silence.

The Little Thing: Disposable dishes

Nine Niceties Spa Owners Should Never Neglect By Michele Meyer

The Bigger Issue: Cheap plastic cups, plates and cutlery don't exactly make for an indulgent experience. “When you charge $200 for a massage, your customers expect to be pampered,” says Renae Cassa, spa director at the Houstonian Hotel's Trellis Spa. “Plastic is for picnics,” she quips. The Quick Fix: Invest in better-quality options. Trellis Spa serves lunch on high-end china with silverware and cloth napkins, and champagne and bellinis are offered in fine crystal glasses. “We don't use disposable cups unless guests want coffee or tea to go,” explains Cassam. You can also buy upscale unbreakable options for the pool and other wet areas. “We're working on ways to be more eco-friendly by looking into shatter-proof, reusable champagne flutes, tumblers and tea cups,” adds Danielle Kichler, spa director at Dia Feliz Spa at The Cliffs Resort in Pismo Beach, California.

The Little Thing: A skimpy toiletry selection The Bigger Issue: Have you ever started a shower only to realize you've run out of shampoo, or that

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you need to shave but don't have a razor handy? Then you know how some spa visitors feel, and it's not pretty-especially if they're returning to a conference or heading to an event after their service. The Quick Fix: Offer a complete set of toiletries that ideally includes various hairbrushes, plus hairspray, styling gel, headbands, hair ties, mouthwash, toothpaste, toothbrushes, deodorant, cotton tips, razors, shaving cream, feminine hygiene products and plastic bags for damp swimsuits. “Male travelers appreciate men's haircare linesand heated shaving cream dispensers are also a nice touch,” Smithee points out. Ensure you're fully stocked by checking inventory opening and closing, suggests Jordan.

The Little Thing: Bad lighting The Bigger Issue: Overly bright hallways and public areas can be a literal eyesore for spa-goers. “You don't want your guests squinting from the glare,” says Jordan. “They need time to adjust to the outside world.” The Quick Fix: Dim lights throughout the spa, raising them briefly in retail areas when necessaryfor instance, if clients are trying to find the right shade of lipstick, bronzer or nail polish-advises Jordan. “Subdued lights are part of the Zen experience,” she says.

The Little Thing: Overlooking special occasions The Bigger Issue: Spas tend to be a preferred destination for special events, and these festivities should be memorable for the right reasons-not because a group of friends celebrating a milestone birthday or bridal shower gets separated from each other, or feels like aren't receiving enough attention. The Quick Fix: Ask clients about any special requests or amenities to be offered-right down to the guest of honour's favorite colours, flowers, beverages and snacks-and apprise every staffer of these details. Not only should plans be explained in the booking system, says Cassam, but workers throughout the spa, salon and restaurants should confirm that the group is together before and after services. “At Trellis, we're always connected via radio-management included,” she notes.

The Little Thing: Excessive noise The Bigger Issue: Patrons can't relax when others violate the no cell policy in quiet zones, or staffers gossip or guffaw in common areas. “Guests come here to chill out,” says Irisha Steele, director of The St. Regis Aspen Resort's Remède Spa in Colorado. “If other guests or therapists are being loud, they might get the impression that we don't care.” The Quick Fix: Make room for noise. The Houstonian's Trellis offers an outside terrace where patrons can use cell phones and laptops while getting the same perks-lunch, champagne or bellinisas those in the tranquility space, says Cassam. At Delamar, large groups are encouraged to reserve the entire space for a half hour before and after their services, explains Jordan, and employees are

always reminded to keep their voices low. Meanwhile, Steele says that therapists at Remède are required to keep cell phones in their lockers, and managers walk the halls after services have ended to ensure a peaceful setting. “We even ask that, in case of an emergency, staff members have their families call the spa directly and we will then alert the employee,” she adds.

The Little Thing: Lethargic therapists The Bigger Issue: If the person providing a service is stressed or exhausted, clients will pick up on that and feel they're not getting the best care. “Energy, whether positive or negative, is contagious,” notes Steele. The Quick Fix: Remind yourself that taking care of employees is as much a priority as taking care of guests. “We offer yoga, meditation and group walks to personnel, so therapists can rebound after expending energy on their clients,” explains Steele. At The Club at Kukui'ula in Koloa, Hawaii, spa director Justin Franklin tops weekly schedules with compliments and positive feedback from guests, whether it's for an individual or the entire team. “We don't ever want our workers to feel they're being taken for granted,” he says.

The Little Thing: The wrong robes The Bigger Issue: Ill-fitting or uncomfortable attire can quickly ruin a spa experience. “One size doesn't fit most,” says Smithee. “Nothing is more embarrassing for a larger guest than having to ask for a robe that fits.” Meanwhile, petite patrons tend to “swim” in unisex robes. There's also the climate to consider-terrycloth- lined options will be too warm in heated rooms, while lightweight cotton robes may not be cozy enough in cooler environments. The Quick Fix: Have robes available in a wide range of sizes and materials. Offer guests options at check-in, and keep extras in the wet area so they can replace or exchange them if they're not comfortable or become damp.

The Little Thing: Indifferent or inflexible staff members The Bigger Issue: Your clients expect to be treated like royalty and with the utmost respect, so it's that much more disappointing if their requests - such as changing to a different treatment or modifying a service - aren't well received. The Quick Fix: Make sure that your workers are skilled in providing all, or virtually all, options on your treatment menu. Hire versatile therapists and then offer frequent training on new techniques. This is a service industry, so spas should be eager to accommodate customers who change their minds about what they'd like, points out Cassam.

The Little Thing: Disposable dishes

Nine Niceties Spa Owners Should Never Neglect By Michele Meyer

The Little Thing: A skimpy toiletry selection The Bigger Issue: Have you ever started a shower only to realize you've run out of shampoo, or that

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spa therapies

Energy is in everything: people, plants, animals, food, rooms, furniture, tools, products, etc. When you strip all of these things down to their microscopic components, all that is left are waves of energy. Energy is invisible to the naked eye, but we know that when we plug in a lamp and turn the light on, energy is causing the light to shine. We usually just think of energy as this invisible magic that allows us to make coffee in the morning and turn on our blow dryers, but there is much more to energy. Imagine the feeling you get when walking into a hospital versus a yoga studio. That feeling is based on the energy in everything in your environment. When you are conscious of how energy works you can think of yourself as a wall outlet possessing the power for others to plug into and light up.

Start a Personal Practice The most powerful way to infuse positive energy into your life (including your treatment room or spa) is to start a morning energy-producing practice using the four M's: Meditate, Move, Manifest and Mantra. “The scientific benefits of meditation are indisputable.” Meditate

How to Infuse Energy Work into Your Life and Career By Ashleieigh Sacks

Meditating simply means focusing on the present moment, feeling your breath circulating in and out. The scientific benefits of meditation are indisputable, but as someone who practices on a daily basis I can assure you that meditating for even five minutes in the morning will make you happier, calmer and more appreciative and aware of what you have. Meditating daily makes you a stronger outlet. If the thought of sitting still and focusing on your breath for even five minutes is daunting, you can begin with the assistance of guided meditations on YouTube or use apps like Headspace and Calm. Move Exercising results in obvious and again scientifically proven physical health benefits. What we may not understand yet is that exercising also moves stuck energy out, making room for positive energy to flow. The stuck energy I am referring to is the stress, negativity and trauma that you accumulate every day and over a lifetime. My movement of choice is yoga and I practice from home mostly using a free app called Down Dog that allows you to choose your level and duration of practice (from 5 minutes to 90). I also like to follow a few yoga YouTubers, some of my favorites are: The Journey Junkie and Boho Beautiful. I started with Yoga with Adriene's 30 days of yoga that is suitable for all ages and strength levels. The optimal form of movement is the kind that you will do every

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day whether it be walking, running, dancing, yoga, pilates, etc. Manifest Where focus goes energy flows. When your morning is focused on meditating and moving, you have elevated your vibratory field making you a powerful outlet full of energy ready to be plugged into. However, before giving your energy to others, use that golden energy for yourself to manifest. Close your eyes and visualize your goals and dreams (including your day ahead) as if watching yourself on a movie screen. Mantra Creating a personal mantra (i.e. a word, thought or statement used to aid in concentration in meditation) for when challenges and obstacles arise (e.g an angry driver or stressed out client) is a powerful tool. Repeating a mantra when you are presented with these situations will bring your awareness back to your morning state of being and protect your energy field from being infiltrated. Getting upset or angry (although these emotions are normal human behavior) will only affect your energy field. Send positive energy to those in need and maintain your high vibration for those suffering to tap into. An example of a personal mantra is “I am the light.”

Reiki Healing REI - meaning high power, spiritual consciousness and KI - meaning universal life force energy is an ancient healing art that has been around for thousands of years with origins in India and the East dating back to the time periods before Christ and Buddha. How Does Reiki Work? Reiki heals by directing energy through ones body to free restrictions, blocks and negative energy that have been clogged and lowered by negative thoughts, feelings, bad choices and habits. A reiki healing releases lower vibrational energy and allows for the flow of healthy, vibrant energy resulting in feelings of happiness and well-being. Reiki can also be used to send positive energy to a room, your products, tools, etc. My first experience with reiki was quite miraculous and a defining moment in my career. After about 10 minutes of lying on the practitioner's table, with my eyes closed, not understanding what was actually happening, I started crying. There was no emotion or control behind my tears, no specific thought or reasoning. During our after-treatment discussion, I learned how blocked my energy flow was, stuck from the trauma of my twin sister's struggle with Anorexia and other mental health illnesses for over 25 years.

Once I was able to unblock that energy, I felt light and inspired. I became reiki certified in order to perform reiki healing on myself. As I healed, I couldn't deny the benefits and felt called to help others. My career developed new life and purpose and I started channeling reiki energy into my services and products.

Beauty is Energy Body Dysmorphic Disorder (a mental illness characterized by a persistent preoccupation with at least one perceived defect or flaw in a person's physical appearance) effects an estimated 2.4% of Americans (around 7 million people). People suffering from BDD can focus on any part of the body, but the most common areas are the skin, hair. According to mentalhealthamerica.net some warning signs of someone with BDD are: • Spending excessive time in front of the mirror or purposely avoiding mirrors • Expressing hatred, disgust or general dissatisfaction with either their general physical appearance • Expressing a strong desire to get cosmetic surgery or other cosmetic procedures • Spending more money than the average person on grooming or makeup products • Seeking reassurance about their physical appearance • Making comparisons to others Sound like anyone you know? Beauty is not the enemy, beauty is spirituality on the outside, a form of self-love and huge source of light energy (imagine yourself as a beautiful flower). However without releasing the stuck energy within, beauty can also be dark and lead to BDD and other mental health issues. Our industry NEEDS energy healing! Spas offering services like reiki or other energy healing treatments will add value to existing clients but also attract new clients; people who think that beauty is for the self-absorbed, people who don't “care” about beauty, moms or dads who believe they are being selfish by getting a facial and/or people who feel they are unattractive and not worthy. Change the mindset surrounding our amazing industry from superficial to spiritual. Every human is beautiful, it is our job to make them feel it. Be the light. Ashley Sachs Ashley Sachs is a Beauty Healer, Writer, Licensed Esthetician and Certified in Reiki Level 2 located in Chester County, PA . In order to balance beauty's magic and curse, Ashley combines energy healing in her custom blended makeup, eyelash extension and microcurrent services.

spa therapies

How to Infuse Energy Work into Your Life and Career By Ashleieigh Sacks

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spa business

Reducing Waste Increases Profit. #SpaWasteNotChallenge By Lucy Brialey- The Sustainable Spa Association Facility management teams are keen to identify the most effective business models. For some, increasing revenue is at the top of the list while others are looking to cut costs or providing a safe and healthy environment. A good waste audit can be the best catalyst in supporting all of the above. When a business takes a closer look at waste they can make qualified decisions that create profitable and environmental change. It’s easy to overlook the enormous return on investment (ROI) for waste audits, because they don’t exactly have a glamorous reputation. However, waste audits can be pivotal in helping you reduce costs while generating revenue. A good waste audit can help with purchasing decisions and create a more lean business model. If you understand the number of recyclable materials that are going out the back door, you can re-evaluate what you purchase on the front end. The resulting savings can make a huge difference to the financial bottomline. Not only can a waste audit help spa businesses see how they can make positive changes, it can help them see a way forward to building a brand founded on sustzinzbility. In this era of climate change and increased awareness surrounding environmental issues, a reputation for corporate responsibility can really boost a company’s brand, create loyal customers and attract new like-minded customers. This kind of goodwill starts at the local

level with residents who appreciate efforts to divert waste from the neighbourhood landfill. When you’re dealing with a larger company that operates across the country, small local changes have a huge benefit when they’re rolled into a national program. Given their potential ROI, it’s important to know what goes into an effective waste audit. At the most basic level, a waste audit provides a snapshot of business waste at a specific moment in time. The process begins by dividing waste into substrates — plastic, paper, metal, etc. Once you know what you’ve got, your auditors will weigh everything and calculate the total volume. From there, the audit can separate waste into recyclable commodities, hazardous wastes, and organic or compostable waste. The audit will also track where everything is going and identify any areas of non-compliance. Auditing is at its most effective at regular intervals so that you can measure any changes in waste production, evaluate whether training and recycling programs are effective, and make any necessary changes. Data gathering and analytics are the key and something you can be proud to share with teams and guests to promote staff commitment to recycling programs, and develop an effective training programs going forward. Most Spas will be able to develop capacity to

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conduct in-house audits. This does involve giving responsibility to the appropriate team members to gather and analyse data, track waste and monitor.

Stats on hospitality waste reduction: The SSA Accreditation pays attention to spa waste that is calculated and reduced year on year. The important things to remember are: 1. To maximise ROI, organisations should perform audits regularly, 2. Track the results of any changes that are made, qnd modify the progrqm as needed. 3) The resulting value in terms of cost savings, increased revenue can be measured 4. Tell everyone your results! Increase the positivity of your Brand awareness. The most cost effective and sustainable method for dealing with general waste is to treat it at Energy from Waste (EfW) facilities. This allows you to boost your environmental goals by diverting waste away from landfill, and also reduces disposal costs because you avoid incurring rising Landfill Tax fees. One of our members, Whatley Manor, who is currently in the process of taking The SSA Accreditation, contributes to a circular waste model by collaborating wit h Energy -From- Was t e (EfW) sys t em. Reducing Waste Directly Contributes to the United Nations goals of Responsible Consumption and Production.

spa business

The 7 Principles of Humanocracy By Jacob Morgan - The Future of Work How much do you trust your people? According to best-selling author Gary Hamel, one of the biggest factors stopping organizations from moving away from bureaucracy is that leaders don’t trust their people. But that lack of trust creates a cycle where leaders feel they have to treat their employees like children because they can’t be trusted, which makes employees stop making decisions on their own. When leaders try to control every aspect of the work, employees aren’t motivated to innovate and experiment. This lack of trust and motivation creates a never-ending cycle of bureaucracy. Organizations can’t rely on bureaucratic measures in the future of work. They have to find a better way to lead and create human-centric organizations. Hamel refers to this approach as humanocracy, or relying on people instead of rigid rules and procedures. Here are the seven principles of humanocracy. These ideas put people at the center of the organization and empower employees with trust instead of making them work through red tape. The Power of Ownership Employees want to be passionate, engaged, and inspired, so give them the power to do so. Make sure employees know the value of their work and how it contributes to the company’s goals so they can take ownership and foster great ideas. The Power of Market Markets need appropriate regulatory structures to function and are unmatched in their capacity to harness human wisdom and initiative. The Power of Meritocracy People-centric organizations don’t have rigid hierarchies that make executives feel like kings and employees feel like underlings. They support all employees and give them room to grow. The Power of Community Humans are designed to be part of communities. Employees need to feel like they belong and know that they are part of something bigger than themselves. A sense of community is powerful in motivating employees to make the world a better place and put in their best work. The Power of Openness People should be encouraged to voice different opinions and not feel that they have to agree with the boss. Diversity of thought, background, culture, and more is extremely important to the success of an organization. The Power of Experimentation The most successful companies are always moving forward instead of waiting for a crisis to force them to change. Empower your people to try new things and push the company forward, even during good times. The Power of Paradox All organizations face challenges and conundrums, but that is what makes life and business interesting. You have to help your organization become a master of paradox and thrive in the unknown.

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It’s the people-centric organizations that will lead in the future with innovative ideas and practices. Let go of bureaucracy to put people first and build their trust.

spa business

Three Best Practices For Running By Sal Capizzi Features Editor at Spa Executive A Successful Spa I have found a few key practices for building strong teams and achieving success. Here are three best practices for running a successful spa. As the spa industry gets back on its feet, our senior team members are excited to get back to work. There will also be a wave of fresh faces entering the spa industry for the first time, and we all share one common goal: creating an unforgettable customer experience! Creating that experience doesn’t come easy. It takes hard work, superior skill sets, and a dedication to best practises. I previously worked as a Spa Manager for Equinox and a Spa Director for Nexus Luxury Collection. I like to think this experience provides me with some insight into spa leadership best practices (and that this helps me be a good support to our existing spa clients). During my career managing spas and wellness centers, I found that there were a few key practices that allowed me to build the strongest teams and keep everyone achieving success, even during tough times and slower months. Here are my three best practises for running a successful spa. Create A Supportive Team Environment There is a reason that energy work is now finding its way onto many spa menus: drawing negativity away from one’s inner self and allowing positivity to flow through has been shown to improve mental focus, stress levels and overall wellbeing. The same goes for the teams we lead. Creating a positive work environment will greatly impact the success of your practitioners and your business. When therapists enter their sessions in a state of calm, they are able to provide the best treatment possible resulting in repeat business and clients. When it comes to coaching, I believe in a focus on the positive. Everyone responds differently to coaching, but eight times out of 10, embracing strengths (“I want to help you focus on this”) will be more effective than focusing on shortcomings (“You need to be better at this”).

Team engagement will always be fundamental to how your team performs. Find individual strengths within your team members and praise them. Chances are it has taken them many years of trial and error with their flow or massage techniques to become masters of their craft. Focus on areas of opportunities during your checkins and actively ask what their future plans are. This will show your team members that you have their best interests at heart. Maybe they too want to become Spa Directors one day or maybe an individual really wants to become a cupping expert. Take that into consideration when you are discussing potential continuing education courses and credits with them! Show and Teach When a new item in a particular line comes out, Spa Directors become kids in a candy store. For most products, reps will send samples for the teams to use and you can’t wait to make room for it on your retail shelves. But a huge question to ask yourself is, does the customer notice? Most customers notice a gorgeous retail display but won’t see that new brightening serum stuck in between all of the other products. That’s where it’s time to get creative! Do you have the counter space to set up a display to showcase and “feature” this new product? If so, put it out and let it shine. Get your clients talking about the full range of products that you offer.

visibility around newer members of the team, but at the same time generated an interest around the product that was being featured during the events. Whether it’s that new product or tool that you just got in or investing in your practitioners, education is an essential part of any business. As a business manager you never stop learning, every day you navigate new waters and adjust to best business practices. Be the One to Reach Out Pull those lists! Stay in touch with your guests and use every chance to connect with them. One thing I always loved about using Book4Time in my spas was the reporting. I was able to keep tabs on clients with gift card balances and remaining services in a package, or see who hadn’t been in for a treatment in a while. I could also see when the last time someone purchased a retail item was more than a certain number of days ago, which created the opportunity to reach out and ask if the client may be running low or even just to collect feedback about the product during the past 90 days of use. We’re living in a fast-paced world and sometimes it simply slips someone’s mind to prebook their next session or redeem a gift card, leaving cards unredeemed or a mountain of unused sessions in a series.

It’s also important to talk to your team about new offerings and make sure everyone, including your service providers and desk staff, is educated and ready to speak about the products on the spot. It is equally important to have fun as you leverage new offerings to create new streams of revenue in your spa, while creating the best possible take home results for your clients. In my time as a Sp- Director, I have always found tremendous success with hosting ‘themed events’ at my spas.

If they were reminded, they might want to gift one of those sessions to a spouse or loved one for a special day coming up. As a Spa Director it gives you a sense of accomplishment to successfully get a client back on the books who hasn’t been to your spa in 30, 60, or 90 days. Your practitioners will not only see that you are working for them but they will be happy to see a return client and the client will always be thankful you got them in for some much needed self-care.

“Mimosas and Mini Facials” was always a huge hit. We would strategically offer mimosas (because of the orange juice) and pair that with a Vitamin C or an ascorbic acid product and have an esthetician provide a five-minute mini facial. This not only created

We all have our favourite best practices. These are three of mine. I hope you find them helpful.

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spa business Leverage Retail

restaurants, retailers, or whoever is out there that works well for your brand.

In an interview with Spa Executive, Gordon Tareta, currently the Area Spa Director at Marcus Hotels & Resorts, noted that the average spa revenue is about $1.5 million USD per location and just 5% to 6% of that revenue comes from retail sales. There is a lot of room for improvement there.

Leverage Technology

There are many ways to leverage retail beyond in-store shopping, like getting creative with packages and promotions. Offering customers the chance to build their own gift box either in store or online is a good example of smart retail from Gadabout SalonSpas. Gadabout’s Gadabox allows customers to build a gift box with their choice of products, which are packaged along with samples and a handwritten note in a box tied with a bow, then delivered to the recipient. The box can be built online or in one of Gadabout’s locations. Gadabout’s Megan Jasper said in an ISPA webinar on diversifying revenue streams during ISPA’s 2021 Stronger Together Summit that Gadabout’s online revenue tripled in the last year and that 15% to 20% of that online revenue was from the Gadaboxes. Focus also on personalizing your retail marketing, which is easily done by analyzing data on both individual customers as well as customer segments which can be collected with your spa software system.

Partner with Experts

7 Strategies to Diversify Revenue By Spa Executive Streams in your Spa

Find people to work with to offer adjunct services and experiences at your spa. For example, the recently renovated Fairmont Century Plaza partnered with nutrition and anti-aging expert Dr. Oz Garcia to offer remote nutrition, wellness, and biohacking services. Spa Director, Magdaleen- Nikolov said in the same ISPA webinar: “We’ve put together some really great biohacking treatments and branched out to different partners that Oz Garcia works with already to create these treatments.” She explained that Garcia would be booking online consultation programs and that Fairmont would also have him come out to the hotel for events and in-person bookings. The hotel also partnered with antiaging and wellness expert Dr. Rita Rakus to open a clinic onsite. Nikolov said these partnerships can help alleviate the workload for her team. For example: “I don’t have to staff those days or while she’s here. I’m creating buzz, but it’s not my team that has to take on the heavy lifting.”

Safeguard your business by creating more than one income channel. Here are seven strategies to diversify revenue streams in your spa.

innovation, meaning businesses may be better armed to weather another storm. Diverse revenue streams also bring in more revenue in good times.

One of the most effective business strategies is diversifying revenue streams. Having only one or two revenue streams puts your business in a precarious situation, because if you lose one or both of them, you lose everything, as many spas discovered during the COVID-19 shutdowns. Suddenly people couldn’t, or wouldn’t, travel, go to spas, or be touched by and breathe the same air as other humans; and so there was no revenue. The scene was frightening.

Here are a few examples of ways to diversify revenue streams that can help you thrive in good times and bad.

This doesn’t only apply to spas, wellness, and hospitality. Any business in any industry that relies too heavily on one product, service, or big client, can fall into this trap. And a pandemic is not the only threat. We have no idea what the next disrupter might be. It could be automation, natural disaster, an alien invasion, or something else. What we can do – and what many spas started doing during the 2020 pandemic year – is create diverse revenue streams through creativity and

Seven Strategies To Diversify Revenue Streams In Your Spa. Memberships With memberships, customers pay a monthly fee for a set number of treatments or services and/or regular use of amenities. In some ways, this may be more of a European approach. In an interview with Spa Executive magazine, Benjamin Donat, Spa Director at the St Regis Deer Valley’s Remede Spa, who grew up in Germany, noted that European spas tend towards focusing on amenities before treatments. He said, “In Europe, there is more of a focus on the amenities, rather than the treatment, to give the guests reasons to stay all day or just come for a spa day

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without even booking a treatment. In America the treatment is the focus, and the locker room can sometimes be an afterthought or regarded as not as important. Though I do see a bit of a shift here towards the European way lately.” A membership program may also include member discounts, exclusive services, or monthly credits that can be redeemed at your facility Subscription Services Subscription services, meanwhile, can be a fun way to stay connected with your guests and add a new revenue stream. Guests can sign up for a subscription and get products and packages delivered to them on a regular basis. These packages can be personalized and can ensure your customers never run out of their favourite products. You can get creative with little additions, gifts, and messages. Both memberships and subscription services are ways to diversify and to create a steady revenue stream that continues even during slower months, like the post-holiday period.

Think Outside the Spa Consider taking your services into your customers’ homes or to events at other venues. Create specific packages and customizable options, combining retail and services to provide something exquisite, luxurious, and unique. Or take your consultation services into the virtual world. Combine partnering with experts with this idea. Another example from Accor is designing touring experiences across locations. Emlyn Brown, Vice President, Wellbeing for Accor Luxury & Premium Brands, recently told Spa Executive, “I like the idea of traveling retreat progr-ms and pop-up destination spas and wellbeing in many of our properties around the world. If you bring the right experts to a property for a fixed period of time, like two or three weeks, then you pick it up and bring it somewhere else, you can create destination wellbeing retreats at various locations around the world. That’s an exciting opportunity.” Partner with Other Businesses Find other businesses to promote each other’s services. Gadabout has also partnered with a local car dealership. Megan Jasper explained in the ISPA webinar that, when a customer purchases a luxury car from that dealer, they receive a Gadabout gift card in the mail a few days later. The dealership buys the card at a discounted rate. Jasper said, “We see probably 500 to a thousand new guests because of that annually.” Think about partnering with realtors,

Technology can be employed on almost every level to increase revenue and add revenue streams, and technology makes most of the above-mentioned strategies possible. Including low-touch or touchless therapies in your treatment options can free up therapist time and create experiences for guests who might be less interested in human contact. These might include guided meditation, VR, cryotherapy, floatation, contactless massages, IV and LED therapies, and more. Some of these are bigger investments than others. So, rather than jumping into anything, do your research on what will appeal to your specific customer base and bring a solid return. Technology can be used to leverage retail and gift card sales, to personalize offerings and to create content and virtual experiences, like online workshops and consultations. A spa does not have to be only traditional services and in-store retail. Everyone can get creative with potential revenue streams and a lot of that is made possible by technology. You’re limited only by your imagination.

spa business Leverage Retail

restaurants, retailers, or whoever is out there that works well for your brand.

Leverage Technology

Partner with Experts

7 Strategies to Diversify Revenue By Spa Executive Streams in your Spa

Safeguard your business by creating more than one income channel. Here are seven strategies to diversify revenue streams in your spa.

innovation, meaning businesses may be better armed to weather another storm. Diverse revenue streams also bring in more revenue in good times.

Here are a few examples of ways to diversify revenue streams that can help you thrive in good times and bad.

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’81

spa business

The Benefits of Having Your Own Niche #BeTheGoToEsty

By Esthetician Edit

Many estheticians are a jack of all trades. They can do skincare, makeup, lashes, brows, all with the right certifications. And while expanding your skillset and portfolio can open the door for many opportunities, finding your niche can really make you special. Once you perfect your craft and establish yourself as the expert, clients will begin to gravitate towards you for that particular service. This will lead to word of mouth, attractive reviews, and an increased following online. Before you know it, you will be the go-to esty for everything lashes, brows, or skincare! Here are the top reasons why finding your niche in the beauty industry is essential!

1.You’re the Best at What You Do Finding your niche and sticking to it allows you to immerse yourself into learning everything and anything about it solely. This will make you the best of the best at what you do. Many beauty professionals don’t perfect one skill before jumping into the next. While you may be able to do a lot, the truth of the matter is, there are hundreds of estheticians who can do a lot, too. But are they the best at what they do? You want to make sure you build a reputation with the skills, knowledge, and talent to back it up. You want your clients saying, “I know the best brow artist for brow lamination. Let me send you her information!”

2. You’re Loving What You Do Every Day Be happy every day! Let’s be real, you’re not going

Les Nouvelles Esthetiques no’81

to love or believe in every approach to beauty. If you are passionate about organic skincare, then fully immerse yourself in clean beauty! Love aesthetic medicine? Become a medical esthetician! You won’t have to waste a second devoting yourself to practice or service that does not align with your talents, skills, and values. This doesn’t mean you cannot tap into multiple passions, but if something does not serve you, why not pass it along to someone else and focus on what does?

3. You Appeal to Your Ideal Client You wouldn’t believe how many clients want an esthetician specializing exclusively in acne treatments or prefer natural brows over defined, thick brows. You want to appeal to clients who share your unique style. A Bride who is into Boho Beauty will be attracted to your portfolio if the looks align with what she wants for her big day. In the same way, if you promote the best anti-aging treatments, the more mature clients you will get in your treatment room. The more specific you are about solving one’s problem, the more they will trust you to be the one to solve it. No matter what you choose to do, there will be a client out there waiting for you to find them. All you have to do is let them know you exist by speaking directly to them.

How do you Define your Niche? If you haven’t already defined your niche, that’s okay. The fun part about this industry is that there is so much you can do. It may come naturally, or it may just take a bit of exploration on your part! Your

niche can come down to the type of services you offer, your target market, and the type of products you sell. You will need to ask yourself critical questions. How do you envision your dream business? What can you see yourself doing every day and loving? Other great questions, which are often overlooked, are who are you doing it for and who are you NOT doing it for? More often than not, estheticians are drawn to the field because they want to make other people feel good, but not many estheticians pay attention to who they want to serve. Defining your target market and why you do what you do can give you a greater sense of purpose. It will also allow you to create a fantastic customer experience authentically and effortlessly! For example, imagine a spa that specializes in care for college students. It would be strategically located near a college and offer services to help combat the stresses of finals and offer glam for the gals before Game Day or Graduation. You can get fun with your marketing and offer discounts around finals and before Spring Break! There will always be competition in the esthetics world, which is why setting yourself apart can bring you great success. And there is still business to go around for everyone! If you specialize in adult acne, really brand yourself on THAT! Perhaps your esty bestie specializes in oncology esthetics. She can refer to you your ideal client and vice versa! There are so many benefits to having a niche, and the more specific you are, the better! Become a master at what you do!

spa business

The Benefits of Having Your Own Niche #BeTheGoToEsty

By Esthetician Edit

2. You’re Loving What You Do Every Day Be happy every day! Let’s be real, you’re not going

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spa business

Regenerative Travel Will Move from Lofty Ideal to More Action 2020 represented a near total brake on travel, giving both travel suppliers and consumers time to think about rebooting it for the better. Our 2021 trend, “The Year of the Travel Reset,” looks at the ways that the travel industr y will rethink its manic, unsustainable past—to create slower, less destructive, and more mindful travel experiences. The concept with the most potentially radical impact is regenerative travel. If sustainable travel works to minimize damage to the environment, regenerative travel is about actively leaving places we visit better than when we found them. So, it’s very much about environmental initiatives moving beyond fuzzy commitments, such as new properties like Svart lodge on Norway’s Arctic Circle that will be 100% energy positive (producing more solar power than it needs to operate) — or Tomorrow Air trying to scale up carbon removal technology to offset the million tons of CO2 that air travel produces eac h year—one mighty task . But it’s about more than being super-green. It’s about choosing quality over quantity, such as Tourism New Zealand or Visit Flanders now measuring tourism success not by the money generated but by the health and wellbeing of the community and

environment. It’s about fair income distribution +and destinations/tours that benefit the locals by funding schools, healthcare or small business loans. It’s about not just not destroying—but restoring—nature, as we see in the rise of rewilding destinations/tours

and impending global crises as lightly anymore: We know what disaster feels like; we know that a return to the travel status quo pre-pandemic is impossible; and more people will want to travel with purpose because they know they have to travel less.

While it obviously remains more Holy Grail than achievement, action is stepping up. Activist organizations such as Conscious Travel, and tour operators such as Regenerative Travel (a collection of 40 resorts in 24 countries), are promoting destinations that are “walking the talk” on regenerative social and environmental impact. And Regenerative Travel recently released a benchmarking system and guide for hotels to jump into — and measure — their progress toward regeneration. Because while the concept feels intimidating, virtually every travel destination can m a ke m e a n i n g f u l re g e n e ra t i ve m ove s .

Tourism will be far more scrutinized and radically more so by wellness travelers. Regenerative travel is the needed new compass point; it will spark more travelers to ask deeper questions about where their money goes and how communities and the environment benefit or don’t—and the movement will move faster than traditionalists expect.

Regenerative travel has quickly become a buzzword, and skeptics will say that with the travel revenue lost this year—and the wild, pent-up demand in consumers—that we’ll just go back to making the same mess of destinations. But more people aren’t taking the destruction of nature, the exploitation of workers/communities,

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Les Nouvelles Esthetiques Spa Magazine #81 2021

Articles inside

Innovate, Invigorate & Elevate your Spa

Getting Grounded: How Dirt Makes You Happy

Why Crystal Therapy?

Japan’s remarkable resilience in the face of COVID-19 highlights its ancient wellness roots By Global Wellness Summit

The Longest-Living People in the World Have These 9 Things in Common

The Wellness Questionn.ire With Beauty Guru, Bobbi Brown

The Benefits of Having Your Own Niche

Regenerative Travel: Lofty Ideal to More Action

Three Best Practices For Running A Successful Spa

7 Strategies To Diversify Revenue Streams In Your Spa

The 7 Principles of Humanocracy

Reducing Waste Increases Profit. #SpaWasteNotChallenge

8 Ways To Boost Your Brain As You Age

How to Infuse Energy Work into Your Life and Career

Nine Niceties Spa Owners Should Never Neglect

New Celebrity Wellness-Centered Cruises

The Cold Hard Facts About Cryotherapy

5 Spas That Soothe With CBD

The Music Industry’s Wellness Pivot

An Essential Guide to Tea And Health

15 Hot Springs Around the World

Detoxifying Beauty Treatments

Alkalinity: The Concept That Defines Healthy Nutrition

Medical Spa Laundry Safety by HDW

Getting Grounded: How Dirt Makes You Happy

Japan’s resilience with Ancient Wellness Roots

The Longest-Living People in the World

Why Crystal Therapy by The Soul Khaya?

Being Mindful without Meditating

Questionaire With Beauty Guru Bobbi Brown

The Return To Traditional Medicine

Theranaka Signature Massage

Treating Lip Care Like Skin Care

Good Microbes for your Skin by Esse