The basalt dropped at the foot of the mountain after the volcanic eruption was selected by quartering experts as hot stone, which is rich in mineral elements and thermal insulation function, and processed into energy hot stone suitable for human massage.
The hot stone spa is a new SPA therapy combining hot stone massage with natural plant essential oil, integrating the concept of modern beauty salon, Chinese medicine, and health care, etc., with the use of essential oils for beauty, body repair, and moisturizing effects, becoming the most popular care therapy nowadays.
What is hot stone therapy?
Hot stone therapy is a world-popular medical clinical treatment method that integrates massage therapy with energy therapy. It combines energy stones and hand massage, through a variety of professional massage methods to accelerate blood circulation on the body surface, relieve muscle tension, relieve body fatigue, treat some skin diseases, restore various body functions …… hot stone has the energy, acting on the body’s skin or meridians, especially suitable for the Oriental physique, It has a certain regulating effect on cold, deficiency, dampness and stagnation. It can be said that hot stone therapy has detoxification, stress relief, beauty, and health benefits, and is a Western clinical medical treatment method worth learning and experiencing.
In many ways, this particular technique is very similar to other types of massage therapy. The key difference, of course, is that this method involves the use of hot stones. These stones are smooth and usually made of basalt, a volcanic rock known for retaining heat.
These stones are kept in hot water until they are warm enough to be placed on the client’s body. They need to be placed on a specific part of the body, such as the back, face, hands, abdomen, or feet. In some cases, the stones are not placed on the body but are used by the therapist as a massage tool.
Origin of hot stone therapy
Hot stone therapy has been used by healers and practitioners of health and wellness around the world since long ago. Tibetan doctors have also taught people to use hot stone massage after fasting to complement the body’s recovery, and Native American Indians have used it for the massage of human and nature integration. International researchers have combined the Western principle of lymphatic detoxification with the Chinese chakras and concluded that hot stone therapy is a special SPA treatment that is especially suitable for the Oriental body (cold, deficiency, wetness, stagnation, defined by TCM). Therefore, hot stone therapy is a rare special SPA treatment in the world.
Benefits of hot stone massage
Hot stone massage therapy has many benefits, and while it would take a long time to describe all the suggested benefits of this therapy, here are some that we can’t miss mentioning.
1. Detoxify the body and eliminate swelling
The hot stones are placed in water and heated. The hot stones have a high energy polythermal and conductive nature, absorbing essential oils with natural plant energy and sliding over the skin, a warm current flows with the hot stones, conveying the heat deep into the body for complete relaxation. Using the principle of heat conduction, the heat energy will be the effect of plant essential oils deep into the sebum layer 2-5 centimeters, effectively softening and decomposing adipose tissue, high temperature accelerates the metabolism of the whole body, prompting the dissolution of fat cells, fermentation, detoxification, so that the body in a comfortable and warm feeling, presenting the perfect curve. Lymphatic drainage with hot stones facilitates the discharge of toxins out of the body.
Aromatic plant oils are used to assist the hot stones to improve blood circulation in the body’s vascular and lymphatic obstruction areas through the deepest massage and to balance the body’s energy by transmitting heat to the body through the hot stones. On the body side, the hot and cold stone energy treatment mainly transmits heat through the hot stones at acupuncture points and with acupressure or lymphatic massage techniques to thoroughly improve water retention, cellulite, and other disease problems in the lower extremities, return flow through the veins or lymphatic vessels, eliminate swelling and achieve the purpose of body sculpting.
2. Stress relief
Hot stone full body massage can relieve stress. Modern people’s fast-paced life, work, disease and accidents, and other physical problems accompanied by mental tension, or worse, leading to sleep disorders, depression, fear, tension, and other emotions accompanied by a variety of stress mountains. Hot stone therapy combines plant essential oils, therapeutic massage, and energy therapy in one, for your different needs, a combination of different hot and cold stone energy therapy techniques and plant herbal essential oils to coordinate the decompression treatment, can make the body, mental relaxation, sleep is improved, and energy increases with it. It is especially suitable for people who sit in offices and work at computer desks for a long time.
3. Beauty care
Hot and cold stone facial massage, hot and cold stone energy through the hot stone in the energy points on the heat, with massage techniques, so that the face skin microvascular expansion, blood circulation accelerated, skin toxins can be discharged, so that the epithelial cell metabolism is vigorous, sebaceous glands and sweat gland activity also followed by active. As a result, the skin becomes more radiant and beautiful. It also affects the central nervous system through the skin nerves, relieves stress, which in turn regulates the endocrine, improves spots, gets rid of fine wrinkles on the forehead and eyes, eliminates dark circles and bags under the eyes, and makes the face more rosy and beautiful.
4. Relieve pain, improve joint flexibility
In general, massage therapy has proven to be a very effective tool for pain relief, but hot stone massage therapy seems to be more effective than conventional massage. Many studies have linked hot stone massage therapy to pain relief in patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia. When therapists use moderate massage techniques, people with these conditions are more likely to benefit from hot stone massage therapy.
Hot stone massage therapy is an effective treatment for joint pain because it relieves muscle tension and allows joints to move more freely, and this type of treatment is especially beneficial for people suffering from various joint conditions such as arthritis.
5. Better sleep
Most people are fully aware of how important it is to get a good night’s sleep. However, busy schedules and stressful jobs often interfere with the natural sleep cycle and can lead to sleep disorders such as insomnia. In turn, this problem can lead to a number of serious health problems. For example, sleep deprivation is directly linked to an increased risk of coronary artery diseases such as stroke and heart disease.
There are many treatments for sleep disorders, including massage therapy. It is well known that stress and tension can make it difficult to get a good night’s sleep. Hot stone massage therapy relaxes the body and mind, making it easier for patients to return to a normal sleep schedule.
Steps for hot stone spa
1. Prepare materials
Add pure water to the hot stone heating pot, drop in essential oil, soak the hot stone in it, plug in the power supply, and heat for about 20 minutes (the temperature can be determined according to the customer’s skin tolerance, generally not more than 65℃). Remove the stone after it is warm and place it on a clean towel.
2. Shower
Before the hot stone therapy, go to the shower, the skin with open pores can better absorb the ingredients of the essential oil; you can also go to the infrared light wave bathroom to sit for 10 minutes, the infrared function of the space capsule can help open the pores and discharge the metabolic waste from the body.
3. Essential oil massage
Lying in a separate treatment room, the light is adjusted to the softest state, surrounded by green plants, soft music echoing in the ears, giving people a kind of return to the natural relaxation feeling. The massage therapist will be blended with essential oils applied to the whole body, along both sides of the spine, from the bottom up to lymphatic detoxification techniques to massage, soothe the muscles and collaterals.
4. Hot stone massage
Massage therapist holding a hot stone to deep muscle massage techniques to slide across the skin, feel a warm tingling, originally tight and sore muscles relaxed. This step helps to release stress, restore vitality, accelerate deep lipolysis, improve metabolic rate.
5. Strengthen the acupuncture point stimulation
The massage therapist will be the appropriate temperature of the hot stones placed in order on both sides of the back spine acupuncture points so that the hot stones absorbed essential oil ingredients with the heat penetrate into the skin. Hot stones will give the back acupuncture points a certain pressure to repair the spine fatigue parts, lasting about 20 minutes, this step with the help of hot stone energy conduction, awaken the deepest touch of the skin, revitalize the idle cells, strengthen the body’s blood circulation, stimulate and guide the body’s fullest supply of energy and nutrients so that the skin shows a rosy glow so that the body becomes more healthy.
6. Nourishing
After doing the hot stone massage, you can apply some lotion with skincare, slimming, shaping effect on the skin to further moisturize the skin, tighten the pores, tighten the skin, so that the skin appears more smooth and supple, elastic.
7. Purification
Indians believe that such stones with spirituality will absorb negative energy in the body, so after the treatment, the stones need to be laid out to purify each other.
After doing the whole hot stone therapy treatment, you must remember to drink 1.5 times more water than usual to help eliminate the metabolites released from the body due to metabolism.
Who is not suitable for hot stone spa
Although hot stone massage by a trained and authorized massage therapist is generally considered safe, it is not suitable for everyone. Please consult your physician if you have health problems such as high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, autoimmune disease, cancer, tumors or metal implants, or are on medication.
Also, consult your physician if you have recently undergone surgery or have a recent wound or skin dysplasia, or inflammation.
Pregnant women and children should avoid hot stone massage.
To prevent burns, professional massage stone heaters should be used (microwaves, ovens, hot plates, and slow cookers should not be used).
Conclusion
Hot stone therapy is a beauty-SPA-therapy that is performed by effectively combining hot stones and massage oils, one without the other. The massage stones used for hot stone therapy are specially heated and placed on the skin or meridians of the body, because they have the energy of the earth, acting on the local and overall system of the body, through the deep heat conduction method of the heat source into the body, and then through the reflex points of conduction, the muscle tissue and joints with stimulation and regulation. This therapy also integrates the modern concept of beauty and health, combined with the latest essential oils and special massage techniques, can relieve fatigue, relax the nerves, replenish energy so that you can feel the beauty of nature in meditation, all the tension and stress from daily life in the process of eliminating dissolution.
