How To Use Wet Areas in Spas?

Wet areas not only prepare our body and mind for our next treatments, but also helps us get the best of our spa journey. But to avail of these benefits, we should first be well aware of how to use these areas.

Whether our Spa visit is aimed at an immersive body care ritual or a rejuvenating facial, wet areas surely can be unique companions to each and every of our Spa experiences. They even allow us to create our signature self-care rituals, utilizing only these areas. But like all good things, wet areas too are one of those dynamics considered “too much is bad”. Therefore, they should be utilized subject to certain rules.

But what exactly are these rules? Let’s see herein below...

Wet Area Types

In the simplest terms, wet areas may be divided into heat and cold areas. However, depending on the type and concept of the Spa, they are offered in a great variety of modalities, be it the varying temperature and humidity rates or the enhancers such as minerals, herbs and essential oils. Indeed, in today’s Spas, it’s quite viable to experience a Finnish saunas, one of the main examples of dry heat, with dried healing herbs, a laconium with orange or rose aromas, or a traditional steam room with thalassotherapy elements...

Heated areas include Turkish and Moroccan hammams, onsen, sanarium, caldarium, jacuzzi and hot tubs, as well as Rasul baths, which can be found in some Spas. Cold areas usually include energizing spaces like ice grottos, ice fountains, Swedish baths, experience showers and cold plunge pools. Spa centers that focus on the healing power of water may also introduce one or more water facilities with average temperatures around 32-37C such as infinity pools, hydrotherapy facilities like vitality pools, Watsu pools, Thalasso pools, salt jacuzzi,  and Kneipp.

Whether your Spa has a wet zone or not, there will almost always be certain relaxation areas that'll ensure to balance your body temperature and let you unwind with their serene atmospheres. Some of the most appealing examples involve warm ceramic beds inspired by the Roman culture (tepidarium), sleeping capsules that give you the privacy to bond with your inner being, sweeping chairs in lush gardens, by the pool or the cozy fire, and cave rooms where you can tune in to the melodies of flowing water.

What Should We Take Note of in Wet Areas?

Value Your Preparation

The first rule for proper wet area use lies before the usage itself, which is that we should stop eating heavy food about 2 hours, and consuming alcohol and coffee 24 hours before our arrival to the Spa. Otherwise, our blood circulation may face difficulties in stabilizing, challenging our aptitude to get the maximum effect from our treatment and therapy. To learn what you can consume when using wet areas, see our article “What to Eat Before, During and After Your Spa Treatment”.

It’s also valuable to expressly communicate your health conditions to your therapist before using wet areas to avoid risks. If you are pregnant or have open wounds, or heart, circulatory or blood pressure problems, you should also first consult with and obtain prior approval from your doctor.

Comply with the Order of Use

The most essential rule is to experience the wet areas gradually, based on increasing degrees of heat and humidity. And to begin our experience with a warm area step close to our body temperature...

To enjoy our spa journeys duly and fully, we’ll first need to relax our body and mind, which are strained from the stress and pain caused by our lifestyle. And this relaxation can only be provided by warm spaces that’ll dilate our veins, speeding up the flow of blood and nutrients throughout our body and calming our thoughts. Starting directly from the cold areas, on the other hand, will further constrict our blood vessels and slow down our circulation, inciting our pain, weakening our immunity and making us even more stressed given the insecurity of being cold.

This of course doesn’t mean you should immediately dive in a 100ºC heated room. On the contrary, such a start can shock your body with the sudden increase in temperature, which can lead to intense headaches, dizziness and fainting due to your abruptly accelerated circulation.

Take into Account the Duration of Use

Just as we pay attention to the steps of wet area usage, we should also take heed of the time we benefit from them. To let our body get used to the raising temperature, we should stay in hot rooms for a maximum of 15-20 minutes at a time, working your way gradually from temperatures around 40ºC up to 100ºC. Cause overdoing it can invite in dehydration, nausea and even organ collapse.

We should use cold areas for even shorter periods of time, ranging from 15 seconds to 2-5 minutes, based on the temperature levels. As these areas raise our blood pressure, lengthy use can lead to prolonged cramps, hypothermia and arrythmia.

Depending on the approval of your doctor and therapist, as well as the scope of your therapy, you can also use warm therapeutic pools for an average of 10 to 30 minutes.

Maintain Hot and Cold Balance

Did you know that the practice of alternating hot and cold therapy for well-being dates back to the ancient Celtic civilization?

When we use heat spaces for the ideal amount of time, our muscles begin to relax and stretch, our lymphatic circulation is stimulated to get rid of inflammation, excess fat and toxins, and our mind and spirit are healed through increased release of happy hormones. Cold spaces, on the other hand, speeds up our cleanse of these released wastes, trigger neurochemicals including adrenaline and norepinephrine to elevate our focus, close our opened and cleansed pores and evokes our musculoskeletal system. And alternating use of these areas reinforces these benefits.

This will result in easement in our pain, rejuvenation of our skin, increase in our dopamine levels against the reduced production of our cortisol hormones, and eventually, an enhanced sense of wellbeing.

Also let us remind you how crucial it is for your optimum health to utilize these areas in a balanced way, i.e. with hot-cold-hot transitions without causing too sudden temperature changes, and to create moments of rest for yourself in between.

Cherish Your Resting Moments

Relaxation areas bring us moments of deep tranquility in an environment close to our normal body temperature, with dim lighting, calming color elements, and music with nature sounds or rhythmic melodies. Spas recommend that we make use of these precious spaces for at least 20 minutes, either when we are transitioning between wet areas or after our treatments, particularly hydrotherapy sessions and heated therapies. Our times of relaxation allow us to compensate for dehydration, allow our bodies to repair themselves and sustain a calm state of mind.

Remember to Rehydrate

Before we outset our wet area journey, in-between transitions and after our experience, we should definitely take small but frequent sips of water and beneficial liquids such as spa water and herbal teas. Because our metabolism, while commencing a detoxification process in heated areas, expels our body fluids along with these toxins in cold areas. Considering that 60% of our body is made up of water and two-thirds of it resides in our cells, it's truly vital to keep hydrated to maintain healthy bodily functions, including our heart and brain, which are at least of 80% water... That’s also the reason why Spas will offer us water and usually spa water or herbal teas accompanied by light snacks such as fruit and nuts.

To sum up, taking note of the hot and cold balance, heat and humidity grades, and allowing yourself some unwinding moments when using wet areas can make a significant contribution to your healthy purification, and body-mind balance. Provided, of course, that you pay attention to your state of health and the Spa’s domestic rules.

Stay tuned to Spatopia for more content on Spa dynamics, each with the skill to help you achieve a more balanced and healthier lifestyle...