Ventosa Massage Cupping Therapy

My wife frequently has tired and sore upper back muscles.  Sometimes, she even finds it difficult to move her head and upper body.  Ventosa Massage Cupping Therapy has helped her a lot.  This technique "sucks" out what we call "lamig" in the Philippines during the treatment.  You will observe the lump inside the glass on your back gradually shrink towards the end of the session.  To see is to believe!

Ventosa Massage Cupping Therapy is performed by placing glass on specific accupoints on your back. A technique is used to create a vacuum inside the glass placed on your back which lifts the skin.  The practitioner then moves the cup toward the outside parts of the body sucking the air away. 

At Chris and Chat Spa, we ask our patients to lie on their back for this therapy.  We only use cups made of strong glass to ensure our client's safety.  To create a vacuum, a flame from a burning cotton ball is placed in an upside-down cup.  When the oxygen in the cup burns out, the cup is placed directly on the skin where it is held in place by a strong suction.  This draws the skin up inside the cup.  Don't worry, this will not burn your skin.  The flame is just needed to create vacuum for the suction effect.

The skin inside the cup reddens due to the strong cupping which indicates that circulation has been brought to the surface.  There is a deep warmth and tingling sensation after the treatment.  Ventosa Cupping is generally a painless procedure. The redness should disappear in a day or two.

It's interesting to note that this technique is known to open the "Meridians" of the body.  According to traditional Chinese medicine, the flow of "qi" travels throughout the body in channels called Meridians.  These are the conduits through which energy flows to every part of the body.  Illness results when the qi is blocked at certain points or is not flowing properly throughout the body.

Ventosa Cupping opens these Meridians in the body.  The stagnated and out of balanced qi can be restored by exerting suction and pressure resulting in invigorating energy flowing throughout the body.  Cupping can also be used when qi needs to be drawn to the surface of the body from deep within to nourish muscles and the skin.

A recommended book on Cupping is The Art of Cupping. Hedwig Manz (click on the link to view the details).  This book is for practitioners and students who want to be trained on Ventosa Cupping Therapy.  It contains very clear black and white illustrations from the author's practice and shows the exact placement of cups.  This is a valuable book that meets its goals of detailing wet and dry cupping for 45 different disorders with clear illustrations.  You will certainly learn a lot from this book.  But do take caution before applying this Ventosa Cupping technique on yourself or another person.  It still takes experience to do this right.  So experiment if you want, but take caution.


Ventosa Massage Cupping Therapy helps alleviate pain, remove toxins, and allows the body to feel rested after the session.   It is better to help your body to be self healing rather than rely on external assistance, such as medications.

To maximize the benefits of a true therapeutic massage, we recommend undergoing Deep Tissue Massage after a Ventosa Cupping Massage.  

Eyebrow Threading - The Ancient Hair Removal Technique

Whenever I talk to people about eyebrow threading, it always surprises how very few people know of this hair removal technique.  It is really an art!  And very few SPAs and Salons offer this particular type of hair removal nowadays, most use wax or blade or plucking for their hair removal service.  And though there's nothing wrong with these other hair removal techniques, the threading technique does offer some distinct advantages.

Threading is an ancient technique used to eliminate excess hair on the face and eyebrow area using a cotton thread.  The thread is twisted and rolled along the surface of the skin entwining the hairs in the thread and removed quickly from the follicle.

Eyebrow Threading is a practice of shaping the eyebrows. It is preferred over other techniques since it is more accurate.  The string can be placed precisely along the eyebrow line and only the unwanted hair gets removed.  The brow also looks very clean and well groomed as even the tiniest hairs are removed.

It is critical to find an aesthetician who is very experienced at eyebrow threading.  Inexperience can result in uneven brows, ingrown hair, hair breakage, or unnecessary pain.

For men and women who would like to pursue a more natural beauty regimen, hair threading is a better choice since it does not use chemical ingredients.

This hair removal technique is not just for the eyebrows, threading is also used to remove other facial and body hair.

Threading is a highly specialized hair removal technique.  So choose  your threader wisely.  Visit Chris & Chat Spa and Facial Care today.

Elderly Therapeutic Massage

Are you aware that there is a particular type of massage therapy specially designed for elderly people?  Well there is! It's called Geriatic Massage.

Geriatic Massage uses the same technique as a general massage.  However, it is specifically designed to meet the needs of elderly people.  The hands are carefully used to manipulate the delicate soft tissues of the body to improve blood circulation, relieve pain, and increase the range of motion.  It can help maintain and improve their overall health and regain certain physical functions that were reduced or lost due to aging.  It can also relieve their anxiety and provide comfort.

At Chris & Chat Day Spa, a Geriatic Massage Therapy session takes 1 hour and 30 minutes.  The service time is longer than a general massage session since each section of the body is carefully handled by our masseuse to ensure maximum benefit from the treatment.  After the session, clients are advised not to take a shower for 24 hours to prevent any adverse effects on their body.

Geriatic Massage should not be used as a replacement for regular exercise or medical treatments for elderly people.

Get Rid of Smelly Feet with Foot Detox

Having smelly feet is a problem for most people and it causes embarrassment and frustration. Some people have resorted to using over the counter treatments, like foot powder, to reduce the sweating of their feet. Although it's effective for most people, the result is temporary.

There are effective ways to reduce the sweating of your feet, which will, in turn, cure your smelly feet problem. And that's what I'll discuss in this article.

So what causes smelly feet? Since the feet have a lot of sweat glands, like the armpit, they make an excellent breeding ground for bacteria. The bacteria feed on your skin and release an organic acid that stinks. So the more the sweat in your feet, the happier the bacteria, the stinkier the smell. You can’t get rid of these bacteria on your feet unless you reduce the sweating.

Here are the Top 2 Homemade Recipes to cure your sweaty and smelly feet. Of course, it always helps to wear cotton socks and watch your food consumption. These recipes are simple to try and very inexpensive.


Smelly Feet Recipe #1
Ingredients:
2 strong tea bags

Directions:
- Immerse the tea bags in boiled water for 5 minutes.
- Soak your feet when the heat is already tolerable for 10 minutes.
- Dry your feet with a clean towel.


Smelly Feet Recipe #2
Ingredients:
1 cup of vinegar
1 drop of dish soap
1 cup of oatmeal

Directions
Pour the vinegar and dish soap to a basin filled with lukewarm water.
Immerse your feet for 10 minutes then dry with a clean towel.
Mash the oatmeal in another basin filled with lukewarm water.
Immerse your feet for 10 minutes then dry with a clean towel.


At Chris & Chat Spa, we offer a service called Foot Detox. We used the term “detox” to pertain to the act of eliminating the bacteria on your feet that cause the smell.

Foot Detox starts off with scrubbing your feet to remove any dirt or dead skin. This allows the treatment to be absorbed better by your feet. Your feet are then soaked in our special mixture of herbs in boiled water to treat the sweating. After the treatment, your feet are relaxed with a soothing massage. You will immediately sense the reduced sweating of your feet and the significantly reduced smell. The whole treatment takes 30 minutes.


It’s that easy, try it out and share your experience with our readers!

You can get rid of Sweaty Smelly Feet!!

Relieve STRESS with FOOT SPA

It seems that FOOT SPA has gotten a bit complex. When you search the internet, different types of equipments and services are now being offered for a footspa service. You can either do it yourself from home by buying a foot spa equipment, or you can visit a SPA offering foot spa service. Either way, a good foot spa session can help relieve your stress.

If you're thinking of buying a foot spa machine for your own use, consider the space you have in your home where you'll keep it. It's best if you don't have to put it away after each use since the mere thought of setting it up may already tire you. You also need to decide on your budget and what features are critical for you. Foot spa machines can range from $20 to more than $1000 based on the features that they have. Before you buy your own machine, I encourage you to consider carefully if you will really have the patience to do it yourself. Some of our clients bought a machine but ended up seeking our service instead because they can't get the same great result doing it themselves.

If you're still seriously considering buying a foot spa machine and money is not an object, the Aqua Chi Foot Bath may be a good machine to try. It claims to enhance your body's ability to detoxify and heal, and balances energy pathways within the body. Many have likened the experience of using it to that of bathing in nature's hot springs.

A foot spa session will typically involve having your feet soaked into a foot spa machine for about 15 minutes. After which, the callous on your feet will be removed gently. Your feet will then be scrubbed, dried, and massaged.

Whatever type of foot spa you decide to try, aside from relieving your sore, tired, and overworked feet, your feet should feel clean and most, if not all, of the callous (or kalyo in Tagalog) in your feet should no longer be present after the service. At Chris & Chat Spa, we always strive to meet this goal. Some of our customers even jokingly commented that they feel shorter (in height) after a foot spa service. That is because they can no longer feel the callous on their feets =).

Foot SPA will not only keep your feet in good condition, it can help relieve your stress. So pamper your feet TODAY with a soothing FOOT SPA.

The Healing Hands of a HILOT Practitioner

"Hilot" is quickly regaining grounds in the world of massage therapy. It is becoming one of the hottest trends in our spas today. Out of some 90 spas in the Philippines, some 37 Department of Tourism-accredited spas are now offering hilot to their local and foreign guests. Hilot has healing capabilities and we already have several clients who have attested to that.

Hilot was actually nominated as the "Spa Treatment of the Year" during the 2005 Baccarat Inaugural Awards in Hong Kong. Soon, the art of Filipino healing and massage will also be available in Europe. A Philippine non-governmental organization and a company in Germany recently signed a memorandum of understanding for the transfer of the technology to introduce hilot in Europe! Isn't that something?! That should make Filipinos proud!!

Before anything else, let's first define what Hilot is. Hilot (/hee-lot/) is a Filipino healing art which actually means "massage" or "healer". It is a highly intuitive massage wherein the therapist identifies areas of energy imbalance in the body through touch diagnosis. It manipulates electrical charges in the body that creates a biochemical reaction where it is needed. A liver, for instance, can be supplied with precise electrical activity. If this delicate balance is disrupted and the problem is left unattended, it can lead to disease. While many popular massages had predetermined sequences of strokes, hilot was customized to the needs of clients. With hilot, focus was not limited to the muscle or tissue alone. It also soughts to harness bio-energies for balance, harmony, health and wellness.

At Chris & Chat Spa and Facial Care Center, hilot is offered as a full body 60 minutes massage which involves a medium deep tissue massage wherein the therapist uses rapid mixed with slower moving finger and hand pressure over various documented pressure points throughout the back and legs. Some of our clients find themselves more relaxed and de-stressed after a hilot session than after other types of massages.

A word of caution ... be aware that there are scores of hilots in Manila and many are fake. Most are malpracticing for the money and are not really in business to heal. So be on guard in your search for an authentic and therapeutic hilot service.

Authentic hilot practitioners do have healing hands!

Understanding the Benefits of Swedish Massage

There are different types of massage therapies available. For this article, we will just focus on the benefits of Swedish Massage.

Massage therapy helps relieve the stress and tension of everyday living that can lead to disease and illness. It has proven beneficial for many chronic conditions including low back pain, arthritis, fatigue, high blood pressure, diabetes, infertility and depression, to name a few.

Swedish massage is most commonly used for stress related ailments such as a stiff neck, back ache, and to relieve physical pain from emotional problems. It revolves around long smooth strokes, kneading, circular movements on the layers of muscles with the use of oil or massage lotion. It enables the muscles to relax as the massage therapist applies pressure on the deep muscles and bones. It is designed to increase the amount of oxygen that is flowing through your blood, which may improve healing and decrease swelling from an injury. It helps to release the toxins that are lurking in your muscles which causes some of your discomfort. The massage will be done in such a way as to work with the direction in which the blood is flowing back to your heart. This technique results in generalized relaxation.


Swedish massage is characterized by five deep strokes across our chests. A therapist begins by placing their hands just under your first ribs and applying gentle pressure with the fingertips. They sweep the skin from your ribs in a downwards movement to your waist. This technique is done five times on the chest, before turning to the neck and doing five smaller strokes from the nape to the top of the spinal column. The process is then repeated on the back. If any knots are found in the muscles while Swedish massage is being performed, a massage therapist will apply hard pressure with their fingertips to release the knots. This sometimes painful practice is referred to as deep tissue massage and is often used in conjunction with Swedish massage. This helps blood to flow properly through the tissues and muscles, thus reducing stress and promoting relaxation.



To get the most benefit from the massage, try to relax for the rest of the day. Having a massage on your lunch hour and then going back to a stressful afternoon on the job is not a great idea. It's also recommended that you drink plenty of water before and after the massage to help flush out the toxins that massage loosens up.

As beneficial as massage can be, it's not for everyone. If you have any fractures, infections, active cancer, orthopaedic conditions, or skin problems, you need to recover first before having a massage. Consult your therapist.

And just how often should you have a Swedish Massage and experience its benefits? As often as you can afford it!

Spa and Facial Care by Chris and Chat

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