| Wellness: It's More Than Skin Deep | |
Connie Tyne, L.M.S.W., Executive Director, Cooper Wellness Program in Dallas, Texas was a guest speaker at the 2003 Spa & Resort Expo & Conference in New York City on Monday, April 28 from 11:00-11:55 am. Her presentation was titled: Wellness: It's More Than Skin Deep. The following is her presentation:
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However, it's time to
expand our thinking and consider a broader definition of wellness to include
feeling genuinely good, possessing high energy, being stress resilient, enjoying
a positive attitude, and maintaining strong physical condition with a healthy
body weight and an age-defying appearance. Isn't that more accurate?
Unfortunately, with 64
percent of adults overweight, most Americans do not experience true wellness.
Not that they aren’t trying: 72 percent of adults spend a cumulative $33
billion a year attempting weight loss—often unsuccessfully—through dieting.
What if Americans could be convinced to redirect their efforts from ineffective
quick fixes to successful long-term lifestyle modifications? That’s
where spas find a unique niche in personal care, offering us health-enriching
services in comfortable, familiar surroundings among trusted professionals.
We walk into a spa hoping
to look and feel better, and we return to our favorite places because the
professionals know us, care about us, and help us. We trust spa
professionals with our bodies and, in many cases, our health concerns. If
we are part of the 64 percent of the population that is overweight, we come in
for massage services to soothe our hips, knees, and backs—aching from the
stress of our extra pounds—and often vocalize related maladies such as
difficulty sleeping, lack of stamina, shortness of breath, or extreme fatigue.
In a way it’s our cry for help.
Equipped with expanded
services that are truly healing, properly trained spa professionals have an
opportunity to recognize health concerns and take clients to the next level of
well-being through lifestyle recommendations, motivation, and encouragement.
Medical spas around the country are adding health experts such as nutritionists,
exercise physiologists, and dermatologists to counsel, coach, and customize
programs for men and women in the non-threatening environment of the spa.
That’s good news for many of us.
Nutritionists can provide
dietary analyses and counseling for those who struggle with weight loss and
maintenance, and can then provide follow-up care when we return for weekly
manicures, facials, or massages. Accountability is key to successful
behavior change, and spa visits—a great reward for making positive decisions
throughout the week—serve as a pleasant environment for such accountability.
Continual encouragement from supportive spa associates can motivate us toward
better health through the small changes that add up to major benefits—research
has shown that a loss of just 10 pounds is enough to yield significant effects
on health, sleep, and vitality. In addition, losing those extra pounds
subtracts years from our appearance and, subsequently, constitutes the best
anti-aging strategy I know.
Skilled exercise
physiologists can teach us to reshape our body—without surgery—by assessing
strengths and weaknesses and recommending realistic activity programs that burn
calories and add energy and stamina. With exercise balls, bands, and dumb
bells, a home strength program combined with walking or cycling can jump-start a
weight loss program and ensure that the pounds never come back.
As the trend to include expanded spa capabilities continues, more and more specially trained staff—partnering with familiar, trusted spa professionals—will be available to address lifestyle issues in the comfort and security of our favorite spas. Wellness is far more than the absence of disease. At its best, it looks and feels terrific. We can achieve true wellness by turning to the professionals we already know and trust. The encouraging and supportive environment of a medical spa may be an ideal place to get back on track and take care of yourself inside and out.
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