spa - Healthy Living

Surprising Skin-Smoother: Grapes

July 28, 2008

By Julie Gouterman
From Health magazine

The tiny seeds in grapes are packed with wrinkle-fighting antioxidants and super-softening oils. No wonder the fruit is turning up in so many cutting-edge skin-care products. Read More

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America’s Healthiest Spas

June 18, 2008

After one too many days of running yourself ragged at work and at home, you daydream about it in hi-def detail—jetting off to an oasis of calm where you can catch up on sleep, pile your plate with succulent fruits and vegetables, recharge your body with hiking and yoga, and soothe your nerves with facials and massages. In other words, a spa. But some are healthier than others. And the last thing you need is a lengthy research project to pick the right one.

That’s where we come in. We put America’s destination spas through a rigorous evaluation (see “How We Chose Our Winners“). We rejected deprivation-and-detox boot camps as well as places where you’ll need extraordinary willpower to avoid gaining 10 pounds on day one. We insisted on good-for-you gourmet food, fun fitness activities, the latest skin treatments, gorgeous natural settings, plenty of guidance for living a lower-stress life, and programs that help you maintain healthy habits when you return home. While our top 10 may not be easy on the wallet, they’re the best for your body, mind, and spirit. Read More

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America’s Healthiest Spas: How We Chose Our Winners

June 18, 2008

By Elena Rover
From Health magazine

First we put together a list of America’s major destination spas. With the help of Melisse Gelula of Luxury SpaFinder Interactive, we looked for those that offered the healthiest food, fitness, skin care, medical, and mind-body programs, plus a strong connection to nature. Read More

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America’s Healthiest Spas: Five Standout Day Spas

June 18, 2008

By Julie Gouterman
From Health magazine

Sometimes all you really need is the spa equivalent of a great restaurant—one that offers a top-notch menu and is close enough to let you visit whenever the urge strikes. Melisse Gelula, editor in chief of Luxury SpaFinder Interactive, says these five big-city spas deliver everything you’re looking for. Read More

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America’s Healthiest Spas: Meet Our Expert Panel

June 18, 2008

From Health magazine

Mary Ann Bauman, MD, author of Fight Fatigue: Six Simple Steps to Maximize Your Energy Read More

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America’s Healthiest Spas: The Winners

June 18, 2008

By Elena Rover
From Health magazine

Canyon Ranch
Tucson, Ariz., and Lenox, Mass.
800-742-9000 or www.canyonranch.com

Canyon Ranch helped pioneer the healthy spa concept in 1979 and still does it better than anyplace else. Healthy, delicious food? Check. Top-notch skin care? Doris Day, the dermatologist on our panel (meet all of our judges), rates this spa a perfect 10. In the fitness category, Jo Hannafin, MD, gives Canyon Ranch’s offerings, which range from restorative yoga to hard-core hiking, the highest score of any spa we evaluated. Our judges also love the staff’s high level of accreditation and training. (The place is crawling with doctors.) A nurse tailors a schedule to help you meet your health goals, from lowering cholesterol to beating insomnia, and may also suggest tests like a mammogram or a stride analysis—all done on-site. “Canyon Ranch has the high standards that other spas strive to match,” says Melisse Gelula, editor in chief of Luxury SpaFinder Interactive. Choose between desert (the 240-guest Tucson spa) and mountains (the 200-guest Lenox location, tucked into the Berkshires), both of which take maximum advantage of the natural beauty. Read More

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America’s Healthiest Spas: Four Great Weight-Loss Spas

June 18, 2008

By Elena Rover
From Health magazine

You can drop pounds at just about any good spa. But if getting slimmer is your No. 1 goal, consider a spa that makes weight loss its specialty. Besides Top 10 winners Cal-a-Vie and Pritikin, here are four more that get high marks for helping you lose weight in a healthy way—and learn how to keep it off. (Check with your health insurer to see if it will cover any tests or programs you undertake at these spas; while reimbursement is far from a sure thing, it happens in some cases.) Read More

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America’s Healthiest Spas: Home Products From Our Winners

June 18, 2008

By Elena Rover
From Health magazine

Canyon Ranch Your Transformation: Restore Intensive Moisturizer
($95; www.saksfifthavenue.com)
Protects skin from UV damage and free radicals. Read More

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America’s Healthiest Spas: Across the Border

June 18, 2008

By Elena Rover
From Health magazine

These two spas aren’t technically in the U.S., but our experts deemed them outstanding enough for honorable mention. Bonus: They’re both excellent values. Read More

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A Coffee Break for Tired Feet

February 28, 2008

We asked Donna Perillo, owner of New York’s Sweet Lily Spa, for an at-home recipe to pamper your feet and help get them ready to emerge from winter’s boots and wool socks. “The caffeine in the coffee reduces redness and swelling, while the salt, coffee grinds, and vanilla beans—along with the lactic acid in the whipped cream—are all natural exfoliants,” Perillo says. Read More