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The Cryo Spa Subzero Temperature Therapy Detoxes, Lessons Pain and Much More Article Martha Helton | Photography Kat Swift

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he first few seconds I bravely resisted the urge to push the door of the sci-fi looking pod open and escape. Arctic air and white steam engulfed my near naked body. Cotton socks and gloves were my only protection. But Alli Chambers, co-owner of The Cryo Spa, talked me through the process so I wouldn’t notice the liquid nitrogen--with temperatures reaching -238 to -290 degrees--pressing against me. After three minutes, it was over. Whew! Post treatment—I enjoyed a sense of calm for several hours. The benefits of Whole Body Cryotherapy far outweigh the discomfort, according to Chambers. Not only does this innovative therapy promise increased energy, better sleep, an immune system boost, a full body detox, relief from chronic skin conditions, stress relief and increased focus; perhaps more importantly, WBC also promises reduced/eliminated pain, from arthritis to sports injuries. What happens in a WBC session in layman’s terms goes like this: subzero temperatures send blood rushing to your core to protect your organs and create heat. When your body is re-exposed to room temperatures, the process is reversed. The freshly oxygenated blood is sent back into the body, providing instant detoxification. Endorphins are released. Muscles and organs are regenerated. Fatigue and soreness are significantly reduced or eliminated—all this and it is a completely natural treatment. Alli Chambers was a very active, physically fit, outgoing young woman when she suffered a debilitating back injury four years ago that ultimately left her barely able to walk for a month and a half. “It was pretty devastating,” shares Chambers. She tried every kind of alternative treatment and was prepared to spend $30,000 of her own money on surgery. The surgeon’s liaison called and honestly confided to her that she hated to see her spend her money on something with no guarantee for success. Chambers immediately tabled that idea, reasoning she would be a “stay-at-home dog mom.” In the meantime, her friend Michelle Yourek learned of a new cutting edge therapy in January 2011 while watching the Dr. Oz Show. Whole Body Cryotherapy was in its infancy, but Yourek finally located a WBC spa in Dallas and tried it

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West FW Lifestyle | January 2015

out. Impressed, she kept urging her skeptical friend to go. “After the first session I felt so amazing that I signed up for membership. By the third session I was literally bawling because I had gone three whole days without any pain. I told Michelle, ‘Thank you for making me do this.’” After that first week of therapy Chambers was pumped. She looked at her friend and said, “This is what I want to do…to be able to do this and to help other people.” Soon thereafter Yourek and Chambers buckled down and wrote their business plan. However, the women were hesitant to secure the hefty loan needed for their dream. “We didn’t want anyone to have a piece of our baby.” Funding the women’s venture came in a bittersweet way. Chambers’ father unexpectantly passed four months after her back went out. She decided to use some of her dad’s life insurance money for the business, finding comfort that he had a part in their dream. Yourek’s father is also involved, using his carpentry skills to build all the woodwork—even the oxygen bar-- to match the beach theme. Yes, palm trees with turquoise sky and surf scenes help mask reality. “We’ll trick your mind the three minutes you’re in a session,” says Chambers with a smile. The Cryo Spa, located in the hip Foch Street Warehouses, recently celebrated their one year anniversary. “I’ve never done anything more rewarding than watch people every day feel better, sleep better and get rid of pain that they’ve had forever,” Chambers says. Chambers is living proof that cryotherapy works; with four sessions a week she reclaimed her active lifestyle and remains nearly pain free. Check out TheCryoSpaFortWorth.com.