Gym, spa and skin treatments are cool but, frankly, are approximately as exciting as tap water at a restaurant. We mean, we all need water but it’s just so… boooooring. Find out what’s new in the wellness world and step up your self-care game this year!
Cold Water Therapy
Blame Dutch athlete Wim Hof, also know as The Iceman, for this but cold water showers and ice baths are the latest ‘it’ of the wellness industry. There are numerous benefits for immersing yourself into freezing water, such as reduced muscle soreness, deeper sleep, a boost to the immune system, improving symptoms of anxiety or depression and so on. You can start small – just warm-to-cold showers in the morning. The aim is to endure temperatures around 10C-15C for 10-15 minutes.
Mini Digital Detox
Disappearing from social media to recharge your batteries is hardly a new thing but a mini digital detox is something wellness experts are recently swearing by. The main difference is that you don’t have to fly across the world for a 21-day wilderness retreat for that (not that that’s even possible, given the current situation in the world). Instead, you’re ‘detoxing’ from social media and the internet for a short period of time. For example, every Friday night or only on weekends or in the morning before work – whatever works.
Touchless Spa
Remember the days when we could just hug our massage specialist in gratitude after an especially rejuvenating session? Yeah, funny. 2021 is all about touchless treatments – think cryotherapy, salt caves, infrared saunas or float tanks (like the one we’ve found and enjoyed at the Earth Energies Sanctuary).
Express Workouts
A shorter attention span is something we all seemed to have developed because everything around us is becoming faster and more immediate to accommodate our needs. The latest fitness trend is ‘express workouts’ – only half an hour or even less. In fact, you can go as far as exercising for just 4 minutes per day! Bite-sized routines like this don’t let you get bored and lose interest in working out; it allows you to alter exercises regularly, making the process more fun and unpredictable. Try some of these virtual workouts – they are all alluringly short and can be done from home at any time.
Spiritual Baths
It’s weird how many 2021 wellness trends are connected to water! Take baths, for example. A weekend ‘bath bomb and magazine’ me-time is a thing of the past. This year is all about the full experience and the mysticism behind the ritual. An energy cleansing bath, full Moon bath, bath tea – these are the kind of things you should be Googling and trying at home. Spiritual baths are therapeutic and are focused on giving you the time to reflect, relax, reject negative thoughts, attract positivity and unwind.
Face Yoga
If the 2020 lockdown taught us anything, it was how many spa-worthy treatments we can actually do at home. And while women have gone back to their favourite specialists for peelings, microneedling and injections, there is one procedure that still trends on Google and Pinterest, and that is face yoga. A series of simple exercises to strengthen, tone and relax facial muscles are so easy to repeat at home, you won’t need anyone else to assist you.
Walk-and-Talk Therapy
Being outdoors, surrounded by nature, while talking through your plans, fears and emotions is honestly the simplest yet best solution ever. We’ve always known that spending time outdoors improves the mood, and energises and motivates. Just like we’ve always known that talking helps to sort out your thoughts. So, why not make it a 2-in-1 sesh? Forget offices and Zoom conferences, invite your psychologist or life coach for a walk in the forest or by the beach!
