The Sheraton Kona Resort & Spa at Keauhou Bay’s Hoola Spa has opened Hawaii’s first Himalayan salt room.

Salt therapy has been used in Europe for centuries, and is believed to help respiratory and skin conditions, resort officials said.

“We are proud that Hoola Spa has made this considerable investment to provide the new Salt Room as a natural therapy for our spa-going guests,” Steve Lindburg, the Big Island resort’s general manger and area managing director, said in a statement in a statement.

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We are proud to have our brand new Himalayan Salt Room featured on Examiner.com.

Hoola Spa at Sheraton Kona Resort & Spa at Keauhou Bay on Hawaii, the Big Island has debuted Hawaii’s first Himalayan Salt Room.

The centuries-old treatment uses large amounts of salt to create pure, bacteria-free air that can be therapeutic for relieving respiratory and skin conditons.

“We are proud that Hoola Spa has made this considerable investment to provide the new Salt Room as a natural therapy for our spa-going guests,” said Sheraton Kona Resort & Spa general manager and area managing director Steve Lindburg. “Many may be unfamiliar with the therapy so we look forward to positive feedback from those who experience it.”

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Antioxidants inhibit the oxidization of other molecules. Too much science for you already? We’ll break it down for you in this simple way: Your body has certain cells known as free radicals. These free radicals cause damage to other cells and are often pointed to as the lead culprits behind many chronic diseases and cancers. Antioxidants stop the molecules in cells from oxidizing and becoming free radicals.

Sounds pretty good, right? Including antioxidants in your diet not only strengthens your immune system, but also gives your body a good tool for actively fighting off disease and other health problems like arteriosclerosis. When you load up on antioxidants, you’ll find that your body feels better and illnesses, from the common cold to arthritis, are less likely to appear in your life.

To know which foods are really rich in antioxidants, a good rule of thumb is to look for fruits and vegetables that are vibrantly colored. In fact, more likely than not, you’re already consuming a good bit of antioxidant power if you’re eating tree nuts, beans, apples, or onions. Many fruits and vegetables are a considerable source of antioxidants.

If you really want to increase the amount of antioxidants you’re getting, try eating blueberries. Studies have shown that blueberries are extraordinarily rich sources in antioxidants. All fruits can be a great source, however.

Another creative way to get the antioxidants your body needs for fighting free radicals is to take a look at what you’re using to spice your food. Many ingredients used in cooking, from cinnamon to oregano, are rich in antioxidants.

We’d like to encourage you to do some more research and have fun finding out how you can load your diet with antioxidants. Because you can’t have too many antioxidants, it’s fun to try to keep incorporating them into your meals!

You can get it in a tall glass of orange juice or in a morning vitamin pill—either way, make sure this vitamin becomes a part of your daily diet! Having good skin isn’t just about what we apply directly onto our skin; it’s about what we put into our bodies as well. While we’re huge advocates of taking care of skin with the right topical combination of natural elements, real skin care starts at an even more fundamental level.

We all know that eating greasy foods will make your face feel oily and unhealthy. It comes as no surprise that what you put in your body will show itself in your physical appearance. Consuming vitamin C should have just as noticeable an effect on how your skin feels as eating a greasy meal. Vitamin C, however, will leave you feeling far better since it is a rejuvenating vitamin that strengthens your skin, giving it firmness by promoting the growth of blood vessels and cells. That’s why vitamin C is so important for forming scar tissue and repairing broken skin (internal and external). Not only does vitamin C actively work in repairing your skin quickly, but it also fights against free radicals, which can cause serious skin damage.

Incorporating vitamin C more intentionally into your diet while also taking care of your skin topically will make you look and feel so much healthier than if you only got facial treatments.

Don’t overdo it though, as too much vitamin C can be harsh on your digestive system. Too much of a good thing and your skin might be feeling good, but not the rest of you!

Lastly, we thought we might add that though it is expensive, topically applied Vitamin C can also offer your skin some amazing health benefits.

When going in for a spa treatment, you should be relaxed. You want to leave the stress behind, feel your muscles loosen a bit, and allow yourself to unwind while someone else does the work required to make you look and feel healthier. Many people think that having a glass of wine or cocktail before beginning their spa treatment is a great way to ease into this state. The fact that some spas will even offer a glass of wine before treatment makes this prevalent theory even more common, unfortunately. It’s important to know that alcohol can actually have a negative effect on your body when you start a spa treatment.

Here are three reasons why you should not drink before going to the spa.

• Alcohol dehydrates you. Before you start a treatment, you want to be well hydrated. The body is comprised mostly of water, after all, and muscles work best and are most responsive when well hydrated. Because alcohol dehydrates you, your muscles might be more sensitive to the masseuse’s touch and your massage may not be as effective as it could be otherwise.
• Blood circulation is increased during a massage. Because alcohol is carried through the bloodstream, drinking before a spa treatment might affect you differently than it otherwise would (in the same way that drinking on a flight, or on an empty stomach, might).
• Alcohol impairs your ability to properly sense what is happening to your body. We don’t want you to get hurt, especially when heat and intense pressure is being applied to your body in ways you are not accustomed to. If you’re drinking, your ability to recognize and immediately respond to an intense pain could be impaired.

If you’d like to have a drink, we recommend waiting until after your treatment is over!

It seems that somehow facials have gained a reputation as being only for women. However, more men are now enjoying the wonderful, reviving benefits that facial treatments provide. Gender aside, good skin is good skin. Guys, ask a lady. She’ll tell you! Having a quality and professional facial treatment done, whether routinely or on a more infrequent basis, will refresh your skin, leaving you feeling and looking younger than you would have thought possible.

While men and women have many similar needs for facials—like wrinkles, blackheads, and other skin impurities, a man’s facial skin undergoes different kinds of stresses than a woman’s, the biggest one, of course, being shaving. Compound a regular shaving routine with the fact that most men don’t moisturize or use lotion on their face nearly as often as women, and you might start to see why facials can be so beneficial for men.

Let’s look at three reasons why men can benefit from facials.

1. Wrinkles: Most everybody wants to look younger. With so many muscles working in our faces as we express ourselves, converse, and squint in sunlight, wrinkles start to appear even in our 20’s. While wrinkling is a natural part of the aging process, proper skin care, which includes facials, can alter the usual and sometimes harsh aging the body will undergo. Getting proper facial treatment can ease the wrinkling process.
2. Impurities: Facials can remove impurities and cleanse pores, making your skin look and feel healthier.
3. Shaving: This is the big one for men. No matter how good your razor, regular shaving is going to produce some amount of irritation on your skin. There’s simply no way around it. Getting a facial that addresses this issue can make your skin feel incredible!

We hope to see you soon at Ho’ola Spa!

Think positively

Positive thinking isn’t about wishful or dreamer thinking; it’s about making the most of the situations that you find yourself in and avoiding any tendency to add negative overlays.

• Use visualization techniques. While you might not feel calm and relaxed, imagining a calm and relaxed scene in your mind can do wonders to improve your outlook. Picture beaches, lying down resting, going for a hike, etc., to help you stay relaxed.
• Use affirmations to change your outlook on life, to stop yourself from always jumping to the negative reasoning. Affirmations are short, powerful statements that build you up and increase your confidence, helping you to expect positive outcomes.[4] Be careful about the words you choose – the things you say about yourself over and over again will ensure that you believe your own rhetoric – use positive, believable, and caring words about yourself.
• Teach yourself to step back and see the “big picture” when you’re in the thick of things that don’t seem to be going well.

Learn how to use logic and less emotion

If you learn to think more sequential and logical, then things will be less stressful.

• Change your ways. If the problem is something you’re doing, then change the way you act or react. Stop and listen to those around you to figure out and correct what it is you might be misunderstanding or doing wrong.
• Focus on the beauty in everything.

Find a quiet place when you are feeling overwhelmed and pamper yourself

• Draw a warm bath. Light candles around the tub, dim the lights, add bubbles or lavender, if desired.
• Lie on your bed or sofa. Play some soft music or nature CDs. Relax listening to ocean waves, waterfalls or birds.
• Read a good book. Curl up on the couch with a blanket and a cup of chamomile tea.
• Imagine a personal paradise. Close your eyes and envision a different setting. What do you see around you? Is there a breeze? What do you hear – birds or water? Imagine the calming sound of ocean waves reaching the shore. Enjoy a moment in your special place.
• Even the stall of a bathroom at work is an ideal “quiet spot” for a breather if you have no other place to go.

Stop feeling guilty

Guilt is a potent source of stress. Get rid of the source of guilt by behaving yourself; stop engaging in behaviors that make you feel guilty. Seek professional help, if necessary, but don’t allow destructive behavior to escalate and sabotage your life and health.

Learn to prioritize

Make a list of tasks for the day. Organize the list by importance. Learn to be proactive and take care of things before they become a big problem. Time spent more productively means more free time to relax.

• Work! Although this may sound counteractive to your goal of relaxing, procrastination never feels as good as having nothing to do. Get it done now and then you can truly relax

Practice meditation

Remove all thoughts and emotions from your mind by concentrating on your breathing. Meditation takes you into focusing on your whole being as a form of relaxation, rather than just focusing on one area of your body as any other relaxation technique tends to do. It can take a while to master but it is well worth the effort.

• Begin with a sitting posture for a minimum of 15 minutes per session, and build up to 45–60 minutes per session.
• Try to meditate regularly.
• Find a respected mentor if you are having difficulty learning meditation by yourself.
• Avoid being intense, competitive, or frustrated about meditating – all of these emotions defeat its purpose!

Consider self-hypnosis

Focus on something, take a few deep breaths and let yourself become hypnotized. If you have trouble with self-hypnosis, go to a licensed hypnotherapist. Do not allow an amateur to try to hypnotize you, and beware of subliminal messages.

Do activities or hobbies that relax you

Get your mind off the things that normally stress you out. You may just need a break every now and then.

• Go fishing, sew, sing, paint or take photographs.
• Try singing a song using numbers instead of words. Singing can help to distract you from stress to suddenly relax.
• Use music as relaxation therapy. Play it as loudly or as softly as you like, whichever calms you the most.

Spend time with your pet

Cuddle or play with your pets. They’ll love it and so will you. Talk to your pet about all the stress and anxiety you’ve been going through and you’ll feel a lot better. Pet therapy is a genuine means for relaxing; you can also learn a lot from watching how your pet relaxes (note, animals don’t carry guilt around!).

Smile and laugh

Laughter is the best medicine. Rent, buy or see a hilarious movie. This is guaranteed to help. Smiling and laughing releases endorphins, which fights stress, helps to relax and reminds you that life is more than just work. Even if it feels strange at first, make it a point to smile more often.

Practice breathing techniques.

Slow down your breathing and actively concentrate on it. This is always the easiest way to self calm, provided you remember to resort to it.

• Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth.
• Inhale deeply, count to five, then exhale slowly, counting to five. Do this ten times to relax your muscles and nerves. Always relax on the out-breath.

Make Healthy Food Choices

• Avoid excessive sugar found in granola bars, pastries or soda. Carbohydrates, such as pasta, convert easily to sugar. These can cause severe ups and downs and agitation, upsetting your body’s ability to efficiently utilize energy.
• Avoid excessive coffee. Instead of regular coffee, switch to decaf or an herbal tea with little or no caffeine. Warm water will help you to relax.
• Eat fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains that are free of refined sugar, such as apples, grapes, carrots, broccoli, brown rice or whole grain breads.
• Eat plenty of low-calorie protein, such as chicken, fish, whole grains, legumes, dark leafy vegetables or low-fat dairy. These proteins are a better source of energy.
• Take a multi-vitamin. Some vitamins relieve stress. Vitamin B and Vitamin D are especially good for stress.

Exercise Every Day

• Try at least thirty minutes per day of moderate activity.
• Walk in the park, in the woods, or on a treadmill.
• Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
• Park a little further away from the entrance of a store.
• Ride a bike.
• Go swimming. Try your local pool, a nearby lake or a friend or relative’s home.
• Increase your activity, once you’ve built endurance, if desired.
• Stretch. Lower your shoulders to help relax. Be more consciously aware of the tension that is quick to accumulate in your shoulders and neck region.

Try traditional, respected and known relaxation techniques

• Do yoga. Yoga relaxes your body and clears your mind of the stress and rush of the day.
• Try tai chi, ki, or aikido.
• Ask your local gym or spa for a relaxing workout suggestion – some places will even build a program suited to your body type and energy levels.

Try A Massage

Go to your local spa for a great massage. Undoing the body knots is a good pathway to undoing the mind knots.

Join us next week as we go over ways to relax your mind.

Missing your joy of life? Knowing the importance of relaxation and knowing how to relax is vital for ensuring your ongoing health and well-being, as well as restoring the passion and joy in your life. Your health is your responsibility. Allowing life’s stressors to impact your health negatively will end up with you feeling under par in everyday activities and could eventually lead to illness.


The three areas to focus on are:

1. Relaxing your body

2. Relaxing your mind

3. Staying relaxed around non-relaxed people

This week we will be going over 3 steps to relax your body.

1. Recognize stress and don’t suppress your innate discomfort.

Obviously, some stress is good for us – it adds interest and excitement to your life, and motivates us, in the right balance. It is when the level of stressors in your life cause you to put up with things that are harming or distressing you constantly that you risk sliding into being too stressed. You might be too stressed if:

• All you do and think about is work, non-stop, be it your own business, a career, a salaried position, a stay-at-home mom or dad position, or anything else that is soaking up your time and life one hundred percent, and this over-concentration is leaving you passionless, disappointed, unhappy, and unfulfilled.
• You experience constant body tension, including headaches, neck aches, back aches, soreness all over, etc.
• You’re always irritable, short-tempered, and perhaps unable to focus on completing tasks. Trivial things set you off easily.
• You feel as if you have too much going on and that you can’t “get off” the merry-go-round.
• Your sleep is a battlefield and you wake up feeling less rested rather than refreshed. Insomnia has become your norm rather than an unusual event.
• You’re eating too much or too little. Or, you are choosing unhealthy food options.
• You can’t remember the last time you had a good laugh and your sense of humor is sadly lacking.

2. Prepare to relax.

Once you have accepted that there are negative stressors impacting your life, it’s important to make room for relaxation amid all those busy things you’re doing. Adding relaxation to your day will improve your productivity, not lessen it; while not adding relaxation into your life can lead to burn out, fatigue, stress-related illnesses, and constant insomnia. Ways to prepare for adding relaxation back into your routine include:

• Let go of guilt. Many religious and cultural beliefs instill the value of hard work very deeply. Over time, and increasingly so with the advent of smart technology that keeps us hyper-wired 24/7, many of us have come to believe that being “on-the-go” constantly is the only way to prove our value. Having an unrealistic interpretation of “hard work” will end up wearing you down – hard work is giving your tasks the attention they deserve at the time they deserve, not letting it bleed into all hours of your day!
• Accept that sleep is a very important part of life. During sleep, your mind continues learning in ways that are not possible during waking hours. Sleep restores and refreshes your body in myriad ways that do not occur when awake. Do not be tempted to devalue the worth of sleep. Moreover, the alleged ability of some people to thrive on four hours sleep per night is the exception, not the rule – most of us need the 6-8 hour sleep cycle for full restoration.
• Recognize that finding your own optimal ways to relax may take time, and some trial and error. Don’t give up – keep searching until you find the right combination of activities that relax you and rejuvenate your enthusiasm for living fully.

3. Make the time.

Make space for relaxation in your diary or daily schedule. The following sections of this article will help to guide you through many ways of relaxing your body and your mind. However, you still need to make the time available to take advantage of the benefits of relaxing!

• Block out times in your diary to relax.
• If you’re at home, mark time for relaxing in black ink on a calendar for everyone to see – that way, the whole family will appreciate the importance of making time to relax.

Make sure you join us next week as we talk about the first way you can relax, in body.

If you happen to enjoy playing sports, you are likely familiar with the occasional sore hamstring or other pulled muscle. If you play hard and train hard, getting a sports massage may be a great way to keep your body in optimal condition for performance. Sports massage is used for a variety of different reasons from injury rehabilitation to simply allowing a player to train more efficiently with less risk of injury.

Sports massage is different from traditional massage mostly in that it focuses more heavily on problem areas of the body. If you traditionally have tight calves when you train, a sports massage therapist will focus on massaging that area and getting the muscles to loosen.

Sports massage also tends to be shorter than most massage treatments. Generally speaking, sports massage is broken down into four major areas:

• Pre-event. This kind of massage is performed 15 to 45 minutes before a sporting activity. It is most pointedly directed towards the parts of the body that will be undergoing the most strain during the event.
• Post-event. This massage is given within an hour or two of completing the sporting event. It helps to normalize the body’s tissues.
• Restorative massage. A restorative massage is given during a training event in order to allow an athlete to train more rigorously with less risk of injury.
• Rehabilitative massage. This massage is for athletes who have suffered some sort of strain to their body. The massage is again concentrated at pain points for maximum effect.

With all of this in mind, the next time that you come to Ho’ola Spa, make sure to ask us about the varieties of sports massage that we offer. We are happy to cater to many different athletes with a variety of needs. Contact us today to learn more.