Thursday, May 10, 2012

A Guide to Massage Services – Part 3


Welcome to the third blog in our series about the various spa services offered at CGI. In our first entry, we looked at three common massage techniques; in the second we explained some of our more unique offerings. In this entry we’ll shed light on three add-on spa treatments that can take your day at CGI to another level of relaxation and healing.  

Body Scrub

An easy way to conceptualize a body scrub is to think of it as a facial for the entire body. Its purpose is to exfoliate and hydrate, the end result being smoother and softer skin that leaves patients feeling clean and refreshed. It can be paired with any number of our other services to add another element to your day.

A body scrub uses an abrasive material (often a salt scrub) mixed with massage oil and an aromatic. The therapist gently applies the mixture all over your body, first to your back and then to your front side. Some find the salts and exfoliants to be a little abrasive, so it is important to communicate with your therapist if the treatment isn’t agreeing with your skin and to let them know what is working for you. At the end of the session, patients wash off the exfoliants thoroughly before the therapist applies lotion to the treated areas, leaving the patient with completely rejuvenated skin.

Brazillian Toe Technique

The Brazillian Toe Technique uses acupressure points on the toes to promote deep relaxation and stimulates the release of toxins. This holistic healing practice complements any one of our massages, but patients connecting with our mind body therapies such as Lomi Lomi or Shiatsu will find this to be a must-add service. Brazilian Toe Technique is a simple method that seeks to reduce stress and imbalances throughout the body, not just the feet!

There are six energy meridians that connect to the organs in the body, and all of them end in the toes; therapists using this technique are able to tap into the energy flow of the entire body. Patients will find that Brazilian Toe Technique relieves overall pain and achiness, restless leg syndrome, nausea, and insomnia. It’s a fantastic way to relax and release the stresses of your day to day life while enjoying your day at the CGI spa.

Reiki

A mind body alternative to the Brazilian Toe Technique, Reiki is a Japanese practice known for reducing stress, relaxation, and healing. Instead of channeling energy through the meridian points in the toes, therapists practice Reiki by a “laying on hands.” Through the therapist’s palms, universal energy is transferred to the patient, a process that allows healing and equilibrium to be attained. Reiki relies on the principle that there’s a “life force energy” that flows through us and increasing this energy level through Reiki will yield happiness and health.


Through using a set of hand positions throughout the body, the therapist is able to increase energy where the patient needs it most. Patients can expect to experience warmth or tingling in the treated areas, in addition to an overall sense of improved well-being and a state of relaxation. Reiki is a therapeutic add-on for a comprehensive mind body experience at the spa, and one that has many of patients coming back for more.

These add-on services leave our members satisfied, refreshed and relaxed. Whether it’s treating your skin to a Body Wrap or supplementing a Swedish Massage by energizing your mind and body with a Reiki session, these services add another dimension to your day at CGI. Please contact us with any questions regarding any of our services and for suggestions on how to get the most out of your spa treatments at CGI.

For more details about our facilities and full range of Massage Services, visit our Spa Amenities and Spa Services pages.

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

A Guide to Massage Services – Part 2


Welcome to the second blog in our series about the various spa services offered at CGI. In our first entry, we looked at three common massage techniques. In this entry we’ll describe some more exotic selections that we’re seeing more and more people take to. We know you’ll be hooked if you give any of these a try!

Hot Stone

During a Hot Stone massage, the therapist puts warm stones on targeted areas of the body. These targeted areas could be the back, hands, or selected acupressure points. Some of the stones may be used as massage tools, and others will be left alone to heat the targeted areas. Usually, a therapist uses smooth Basalt stones covered in oil to deliver a variety of massaging strokes. Hot Stone massages often include other types of massage treatments, and most patients find Hot Stone treatment to be relaxing; when done right, the stones penetrate heat deep inside the body, releasing tension and generating a uniquely soothing experience.

Shiatsu/Acupressure

The Japanese word shiatsu translates to “finger pressure.” It’s an apt description of shiatsu massage, during which the therapist utilizes a variety of rhythmic pressure on selected points on the body. These points, called “acupressure points,” are central to the body’s ability to maintain a positive flow of energy, or chi. Shiatsu, by honing in on the acupressure points, attempts to remove blockages at these points and restore the body’s vital energy to its natural state.

Lomi Lomi Hawaiian Massage

Lomi Lomi is a holistic tradition in Hawaii that is a quintessential mind and body experience. Therapists performing lomi lomi must be spiritually present and channel the tradition of the master healers of Hawaii when using this technique. Therapists use palms, forearms, fingers, elbows, knuckles, knees, feet, and occasionally outside objects such as sticks and stones to administer lomi lomi, a form of deep tissue massage.

Lomi lomi seeks to remove blockages in energy flow and give the energy a new direction. These blockages can be the result of physical ailment such as muscle tension or joint pain, or a mental, emotional, or spiritual energy block as well. Through a healing prayer, a variety of massage techniques, and rotations of the joints, lomi lomi relieves stress and tension, increases blood flow, and stimulates the elimination of toxins from the body.

If feeling great and removing yourself from your daily routine is your motivation for heading out to our spa, look no further than our Hot Stone, Shiatsu, or Lomi Lomi Treatments. Each uses your natural flow of energy to generate a truly remarkable healing experience. Keep a look out for our next entry, where we discuss a few add-on services that will help maximize your spa experience at CGI.

For more details about our facilities and full range of Massage Services, visit our Spa Amenities and Spa Services pages.

Monday, May 7, 2012

TEEN BOS Brain Operating System-Meditation for Teenage

Teenage BOS-(Brain Operating System)- Classes Starting Soon!
Increase your confidence & concentration level.  Create the life you want.



BOS (Brain Operating System) Meditation for Teenagers

More than ever before teenagers are bombarded with stresses, pressures, and influences unthinkable to past generations.   Teen stress and anxiety is on the rise! Teenagers today need support to help them manage that stress, and develop positive and healthy habits which can support their successful navigation through this critical time in their lives.  Rather than turning to unhealthy outlets for frustrated emotions or a sense of meaning, wouldn't it be great if your child could calm his/her mind, and look within to discover a course of action in alignment with his/her greatest potential, dreams, and well-being?

BOS Meditation for Teenagers is a program meant to teach children how to utilize their infinite potential in ways that are healthy, positive, and constructive for their physical and emotional well-being, and their overall life's success.  If children learn these tools at this stage of their life, they can put themselves on track for greater academic achievement and success in a life of genuine happiness.  If they miss this opportunity, they can make harmful choices that can impact the rest of their lives or develop habits that can create life situations that lack true happiness and meaning.

The teenage brain can be compared to a computer system.  You have acquired certain thoughts, judgments, and habits in your body which formulate your character, and you store, process, and utilize this information according to your deepest beliefs about yourself and the world.  This "operating system" formulates your reality, and is the cause of health or disease, happiness or depression, and peacefulness or discontent.  BOS (Brain Operating System) Meditation is a thoroughly deep, special training course designed to help you "re-format" and "delete" unwanted information, upgrade the operating system of your brain, and allow you to have the confidence and ability to create the life you truly want to by utilizing the key principles of health, success, and serenity.

Free Holistic Health Seminar with Acupuncturist

Free Holistic Health Seminar with Olga  @ CGI Holistic Fitness & SPA
May 17th Thursday- 
7:00 -8:30 pm.   

Introducing Olga Ivashkov – Health Consultant, Herbalist, Acupuncturist was born in Moscow, Russia, where she worked as a Medical Doctor in the Federal Children’s Hospital, Intensive Care Unit.  She also received her hypnotherapist license in Russia.

Olga moved the United States in 1995 and began practicing as a hypnotherapist in New York. In 2008, she graduated from Pacific College of Oriental Medicine in New York City with a Bachelors Degree in Acupuncture and Chinese Herbal Medicine. After graduation, she opened the Acuhypnotherapy Center in Nyack, NY - acupuncture, herbal therapy, hypnosis, NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming).  She also became a Brain Management Consultant in 2010.  

Customized Detox Sessions available (intestines, liver, kidney, blood and lymph). 
Health Evaluation-Acupressure/Acupuncture- Body Detox- Raindrop Therapy Technique- Foot Reflexology- Lymphatic Acupressure Drainage
*Raindrop technique is a combination of aromatherapy and acupressure (Vita Flex technique) which helps with relaxation, emotional release, tissue cleansing, stress and back problems like back pain, stiffness and misalignment.

 Olga has her Master of Science in Oriental Medicine, Brain Management Consultant and is a Hypnotherapist.
call 201-784-5575 for an appointment.

Working hours: Monday-Thursday, Saturday: 9am - 6pm

Thursday, May 3, 2012

A Guide to Massage Services – Part 1


Many of our members are unclear on what separates one spa service from another. This inspired us to create a series of blogs that describe our slate of services to help you make an informed decision on which spa treatment is right for you. Here are three tried and true massage techniques that are sure to have you coming back for more!

Swedish Massage

Swedish massage is the most common type of massage therapy. This style consists of soft, long, kneading strokes intermixed with light, rhythmic, tapping strokes along the surface of the muscles. Swedish massage also includes joint movement. This type of massage relieves muscle tension, and in doing so can be both relaxing and energizing.

There are four components of a Swedish massage. There’s effleurage, which is a smooth motion intended to relax soft tissue. Following effleurage, petrissage consists of a more intense squeezing, rolling, or kneading across the same soft tissues. Friction goes deeper, as its circular movements are designed to have layers of tissue rub against one another to increase blood flow and break down scar tissue. Lastly, there’s tapotement, short, rapid tapping done across the areas being treated by cupped hands, the fingers, or the edge of the hand.

Sport Massage

Sport massage is designed to do exactly what you might expect: better your results in a particular sport. Depending on the sport, this type of massage targets the muscle groups most essential to maximizing performance. Using a variety of techniques, sport massage helps athletes in training before, during, or after participating in sports.

When performed after a competition, sport massage aids recovery by flushing lactic acid out of an athlete’s system, preventing athletes from having muscle pain, soreness, and stiffness the next day. Prior to a sporting event, sport massage is more geared to loosening up muscles to optimize performance. Sport massage can improve flexibility and guard against injury. If suffering from an injury, sport massage helps athletes recover from nagging injuries such as muscle strains and tendonitis.

Deep Tissue

When it comes to the different types of massage, deep tissue is best for treating the most painful, troublesome parts in the body. In deep tissue massage, the massage therapist uses slow, methodical strokes that put pressure on muscles, tendons, or tissues deep under a patient’s skin. Though the techniques used are less rhythmic than other types of massage, patients who opt for deep tissue massage often find it to be extremely therapeutic and effective in relieving chronic ailments such as back and neck pain.

Some of our most popular choices: Swedish, Sport, and Deep Tissue Massage are all fantastic ways to spend your day at the CGI spa. Keep an eye out for our next entry, where we discuss some of our lesser known, more exotic selections that will make your trip to the spa feel like a vacation.

For more details about our facilities and full range of Massage Services, visit our Spa Amenities and Spa Services pages.