When we think of fitness, we usually think of blood-pumping, heart-pounding, sweat-soaked workouts – but being fit is about more than just cardio.
To develop truly well-rounded fitness, it’s vital to think about different elements of your personal health. Cardio and strength is one part of that, but your mental and emotional health is intrinsically tied to your wellbeing.
But it can be hard to know where to start with wellness – how do you build it into your routine and what should you focus on?
‘The idea of health has long moved past just fitness and nutrition – it now encompasses mental, emotional and spiritual wellbeing,’ explains Dr Yannis Alexandrides, founder of 111CRYO.
‘In order to positively perform in one of those areas, the others must be in alignment.
‘To help those elements come into alignment, new ways of facilitating health have come into focus. We can now optimise our body, mind and spirit with innovative (and occasionally pseudo-scientific) technologies or practices that are either new or had been a fringe movement.
‘The more we cultivate every aspect of our being, the better space we occupy with our health.
‘Wellness is simply holistic health. The wider we reach out on a health journey, the more encompassed we are in positivity and wellbeing.’
Fitness is becoming increasingly holistic. More of us are thinking about the importance of self-care and being conscious of how we are feeling mentally, as well as physically.
The experts believe that the best way to be healthy is to treat our mental health with the same importance as we would our physical health – and there are plenty of ways to do that.
You might think that cryotherapy treatments, salt therapy or floatation tanks are solely reserved for top models and Instagram stars, but new fitness apps are making luxury wellness more accessible.
ClassPass allows members to buy credits each month, which can be spent across a huge range of boutique fitness and wellness studios – and it’s available in five major cities across the UK, including London, Manchester, Edinburgh, Bristol and Brighton.
The sessions can be pricey, but with a monthly subscription, you can choose how you spend your credits – whether that’s on daily spinning classes or the odd session of cryotherapy. It couldn’t be easier to build holistic wellness into your weekly routine.
‘Cryotherapy is a form of cold therapy that incites vasoconstriction, stimulating an increase in circulation, collagen production, endorphins and epidermal firmness while reducing inflammation, pain and fatigue,’ explains Dr Yannis Alexandrides.
‘It’s ideal for heavy athletes or frequent fliers, speeding up recovery tenfold. It’s all about using natural processes in a scientific way, which is really what wellness in the modern era is about.
‘Thermotherapy is a form of heat therapy that incites vasodilation, stimulating an increase in circulation, lymphatic draining, toxin expulsion, muscle recovery and pain relief.
‘Think of the HEAT pod as a super high-tech sauna, getting everything nasty out of your system while the bespoke LED lights heal the skin.
‘Both of these treatments are wellness treatments, producing musculoskeletal and beauty benefits.’
Wellness treatments to try
Exerceo Training is one of the first studios in the UK solely dedicated to electric muscle stimulation (EMS) training.
EMS combines Electro Muscle Stimulation and active exercise.
EMS training mimics the action of the central nervous system, activating muscles in the same way, but using external impulses.
These are delivered via electrodes onto the skin directly above the muscles.
EMS is the quickest way to acquire the desired outcome when it comes to fitness. Only 25 minutes of EMS training is equal to 90 minutes of high intensity training at the gym.
Mr Salus Sporting Lab is both a sports and a gait clinic.
Its provides a wide range of services related to the world of sport and physical wellbeing in general. The clinic is specialized in three branches: kinesiology, sports therapy, dietetics.
The clinic is always looking for new rehabilitation methods and protocols to speed up and optimize the recovery time after injuries.
In their Salt Cave, machines create a unique microclimate for dry aerosol Halotherapy, which lasts for 60 minutes.
The salt penetrates deep within the lungs, which they say cleans them and acts as a natural antiseptic.
Most of their clients attend a few times a week for a month, twice-annually, to generally improve their respiratory health for the long term.
Many of their clients with asthma, COPD, sinusitis and allergies say their conditions have improved and that they experience fewer complications and infections.
The treatment also opens the airways, increasing lung function and capacity, so it is popular for improving sport performance and endurance.
Floating is an experience that can help to reset our mental wellbeing and bring balance to our thinking – or if, nothing else, it definitely feels cool.
According to the experts at Tribe3, taking some time to quieten our thoughts allows us to think clearly and become more focused.
Floatation tanks are essentially a modern and controlled way to meditate. It can be the perfect opportunity to take time away from screens, people and everyday noise.
Hypnotherapy is said to help with a whole host of mental conditions, from phobias and anxiety to addiction and negative thoughts.
The Clinic in north London says hypnotherapy can also eliminate bad habits, boost confidence and is effective for relaxation.
Session can either cover a specific issue or it can focus on many areas of your life – so you don’t need to have a specific problem in order to try hypnotherapy.
The treatment focuses on mind, body and gut health alignment – experts at the clinic say hypnotherapy is important because the subconscious mind ‘often needs support and re-framing.’