LIFESTYLE / What We Love
HOT, COLD + HERE TO STAY Why Contrast Therapy Is the New Longevity Ritual
Red Rocks Sauna
mation and muscle soreness, improved metabolic and vascular health, nervous system regulation, immune support and better sleep — effects attributed to the blood-pumping action of alternating hot and cold therapies. In a world of overstimulation, chronic stress and digital overload, people are increasingly seeking it out for a different reason: camaraderie. Fire Within Sauna
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tradition as old as time has worked its way back into the modern wellness scene, and for good reason. Contrast therapy, the practice of alternating between intense heat and cold for two to three cycles, involves back-to-back sauna and cold plunge sessions. With roots spanning cultures and continents, its resurgence has been most heavily shaped by Finnish and Nordic styles. Contrast therapy has gained popularity through health experts like neuroscientist Andrew Huberman and physician Mark Hyman. Praised for its science-backed benefits including increased circulation, reduced inflam-
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VISIT-WORTHY SPOTS IN COLORADO: Red Rocks Sauna Denver, CO Just west of I-25, Red Rocks Sauna feels like a hidden summer camp for adults. Tucked behind trees and a wooden awning, the space offers camper-style changing rooms stocked with natural self-care products, an outdoor fire pit ringed with chairs and blankets and a grounded social atmosphere. Open seven days a week, it’s a favorite for midday remote-work breaks and those craving a lively, Friday night social scene, with its adjoined brewery and burger joint equipped with plenty of outdoor seating and friendly dogs. Owners and couple Alivia Cannistra and Joe Nevrivy are passionate about
making contrast therapy accessible beyond traditional wellness circles. It’s for "anybody from athlete to neighbor who needs to breathe or has had a hard week,” Nevrivy says. “We’re all about leveling the playing field. We’ve built the space around human connection.” Nevrivy often leads guests through cold plunge sessions in one of three double-filtered baths, while enhancing the experience with aromatherapy in the new Voyageur sauna, which features high seats for a full-body sweat — think Texas cedarwood with eucalyptus or soothing lavender. Community is the heartbeat of this space. Between guests swapping numbers after a session or joining onsite community events like boxing, aerial silks, bi-weekly run clubs, monthly happy hours or Saturday socials sold at a reduced rate, there is always something worth checking out at Red Rocks Sauna. Fire Within Sauna Paonia, CO For those craving a deeper immersion in nature, Fire Within Sauna is a mobile, wood-fired sauna serving natural settings like trailheads, ski areas and mountainous regions across western Colorado. Hand-built by co-owner Brendan Delaney using Finnish and Nordic techniques, the sauna combines local cedar and aspen with high horizontal windows and skylines that frame the surrounding landscape. Guests will often read or meditate silently during sessions, exiting to cold plunge in a nearby river or simply feel the brisk wind tickle their skin under a night sky bursting with stars. “It can be kind of a spiritual experience,” says co-owner Aubrey Ridd. “Nature is our partner in this.” Fire Within Sauna regularly appears at weddings, retreats, farm dinners and community gatherings, with plans to expand its presence this summer and fall at yoga festivals, workshops and other health-centric public events. Visit their website for a calendar view of pop-up sessions in Montrose, Paonia and Grand Junction.
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