Ten for 2010: Get Spa Smart Tips to Help You Live Healthier This Year
Worn-out from ringing-in 2010? After a season filled with relatives, parties, spending and stress, you may be screaming, "What about me?" Healthy living expert Mindy Terry hears your call. Having visited more than 500 spas, Terry shares insider tips to help you Get Spa Smart and make 2010 your healthiest year to date.
Atlanta, Ga. (PRWEB) January 6, 2010
Worn-out from ringing-in 2010? After a season filled with relatives, parties, spending and stress, you may be screaming, "What about me?" Healthy living expert Mindy Terry hears your call. As the President of Creative Spa Concepts, this busy mom travels the world creating amazing and timeless spa experiences for her clients.
Having visited more than 500 spas, Terry shares insider tips to help you Get Spa Smart and make 2010 your healthiest year to date. "There are amazingly beautiful spas around the globe, but if you think you have to go away to an exotic location to live spa, think again," said Terry. "Living spa is about knowing how to slow down and focus on making every situation more positive and less stressful. For little to no money, you can Get Spa Smart at home, in the office or even while waiting in the school pick-up line."
Ready to Get Spa Smart? Here's the Top Ten for 2010:
1. Got the post-holiday blues? A few minutes spent journaling will bring sunshine into your life. Set aside time every day to write everything you are grateful for in your journal. Re-read your thoughts when you write new ones and you will find that the blues will dissipate and you will become filled with gratitude and happiness.
2. Spend your life in your car picking up the kids and running errands? Avoid road rage and ease into calm by popping in your favorite spa-inspired CD or tuning your radio station to classical music.
3. Feeling as if a few extra pounds have been added? You're not alone. The New York Times reports that people gain an average of five pounds during the holiday season. One way to avoid future weight gain is by practicing mindful eating. As a form of meditation, mindful eating can be done in the office or home. Essentially, you want to slow down and feel the food on your tongue. Focus on the texture and smell while chewing slowly. When you eat slowly, your body is filled more quickly and, because you are focusing on the food, your choices become healthier.
4. Try a quick detox. Add Epsom Salts to your bath or eucalyptus spray in your shower. Make the water as warm as you can handle (note: avoid altogether if you have high blood pressure or heart problems). Stay in the bath or shower for 15 minutes and then wrap in a heavy towel or robe and lie on the bed for appx. 20 minutes. You will sweat out a lot of toxins. End with a cool shower, lotion and lots of water. In addition to detoxing the body, this practice will help with cold and sinus symptoms.
5. Marma-Point massage is also great for sinus troubles. A marma point is a juncture on the body where two or more types of tissue meet, such as muscles, veins, ligaments, bones or joints. To begin the massage, take a drop of your favorite oil, rub into your palms, cup them and inhale for three deep, belly breaths. Then, use your fingers to hold and apply some pressure on your jaw bone. Next, run fingers up to temples and apply comfortable pressure and hold. Slowly rotate fingers clockwise to relax, counter-clockwise to energize. Move to the third eye (directly above nose) and apply comfortable pressure for a few seconds. Transition to your thumbs and slide down to the side of your nose where your eyes meet, pull up towards your crown and hold, come back down to your nose as if you are smoothing the pages of a book. Try a few times to open your sinuses. The exercise takes about 90 seconds.
6. Having trouble finding time to exercise? When possible, skip the elevator/escalator and take the stairs. When traveling, bypass the airport tram and walk the concourses instead. If you work in the city, look for opportunities to walk to meetings rather than taking a cab. A brisk pace is always best to get the heart rate going.
7. If you work out of your home or are a stay-at-home mom - start a walking club. Pick a day of the week and stick to it. You'll enjoy the benefits you receive from exercising and chatting at the same time!
8. Feeling a little down? Chocolate, mandarin orange and vanilla are wonderful food-inspired scents that instantly lift a mood. Use essential oils to make a spray for your pillows, use as your signature perfume, or place a drop of oil directly under the nose to breathe in the uplifting scent throughout the day. Battle depression and soothe dry winter skin all at once with Terry's favorite Vanilla-Ginger Milk Bath. Add 1 tsp. of vanilla, 2 tsp. of ginger (fresh or powdered) and ½ tsp. of cinnamon to ½ cup of honey and blend. Add the honey mixture along with ½ cup of dry milk to warm running bathwater, relax and enjoy.
9. Quick tip: if you have a non-scented candle, pour your favorite essential oil in the basin (make sure the candle has burned a few times to create a basin). The oil will fill your house with amazing scents.
10. Another quick tip: add lemon and orange slices, a bay leaf, cloves and a cinnamon stick to a pot of water. Let it simmer on the stovetop.
About Mindy Terry
Based in Atlanta, Mindy Terry is the President and Founder of Creative Spa Concepts. Pulling from her 18 years of experience in the spa and wellness industries, Terry is a respected presenter and educator for her diverse expertise in the spa industry. In addition to leading Creative Spa Concepts, Terry is also a licensed cosmetologist, aesthetician, yoga instructor and certified infant massage instructor. You are invited to read more about Terry at http://www. creativespaconcepts. com (http://www. creativespaconcepts. com).
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